Courtroom at Town Hall
7:00 P.M.
Members Present: Connie Kreider, Lynne Wenz, Jim Taylor, Denise O’Dwyer, Sue Siena, Ruth Roulx, Janet Cormier, David Rutzke, Harold Watson, Shannon Barnes, Debra Huffman, Mike Ruggiero, Andy Powell, Karen Mattor, Bill Keating, Chris Christensen, Tim Tenhave
Also Present: Scott McPhie
Call to Order: Tim Tenhave called the meeting to order at 7:06 p.m.
Announcements and Updates: Tim Tenhave announced that Jay Minkarah spoke before the BOS on 2/5/04 and the BOS gave their approval for the subcommittee tasks Jay recommended. They also discussed the Forester's report proposal and the BOS gave Jay permission to move forward with discussions about funding options.
Tim announced that Walter Warren is now the acting Community Development Director and the point of contact for this committee, and that Scott McPhie will act as support staff to the committee.
Tim announced that Greg Kirby and Tim Dutton have resigned from the committee.
Debra Huffman commented that she has looked over the Forester's proposal and believes there are several items that are not necessary or can be delayed to reduce the cost. Andy Powell stated that the MCC will ask Dan Cyr for more details and look for things to trim.
Debra Huffman stated that she received an e-mail from Bill Herbert alerting her to a breach of the beaver dams draining White Pine Swamp. Andy Powell stated that citizens brought this to the MCC's attention. A person was seen in the act and stated that he did it to prevent West Nile Virus. Harold Watson added that the person also stated that he did it so the coyotes could get into the beaver lodges. MCC members walked the area and authorities have been notified.
Tim Tenhave asked for volunteers to write meeting minutes. Debra Huffman and Karen Mattor volunteered. Tim also noted that the minutes of 8/18/03 are not on file. Debra said she would look into it.
Trails Subcommittee Update: Debra Huffman stated that the subcommittee has met to discuss priorities and has also met on the Wasserman Heights trail site. They marked a preliminary trail and some members have made subsequent visits to think about refinements. When the snow melts, Bob Spoerl of the Bureau of Trails will walk the trail with the subcommittee to provide advice on trail design.
Jim Taylor requested ideas for a logo for the HHNP. He has designed one possibility and welcomes other ideas.
Parking Subcommittee Update: Andy Powell stated that the subcommittee met with DPW Director Ed Chase. When the snow melts, Ed will visit the Amherst Rd parking site with the subcommittee. Ed prefers to wait until after the Forester's report is complete before starting work on the parking lots to be sure that he is not disturbing any natural communities. He also stated that the DPW has no projects in its budget for this property through July 2005.
Ed will work with Walter Warren to follow up on the potential parking lot on the PSNH property on Naticook Rd.
Connie Kreider commented that the DPW was very responsive in opening up the snow banks at Palmeri and Gerard to allow foot passage to the trails.
Andy stated that it would be the committee's goal to get some parking in the near future if at all possible. The subcommittee has asked the DPW to consider their position on volunteer labor, since they are overloaded with work. For now, the DPW focus is on determining what it would take to build the Amherst parking lot.
Clean-Up Subcommittee Update: Tim Tenhave stated that the subcommittee has met and discussed both large-item and small-item clean-up strategies. Some of the large items left after last April's clean-up were removed by the DPW in the fall, but many large items remain. Tim, Denise O'Dwyer, and Debra Huffman surveyed the property for large items and documented their location. Tim will discuss these with the DPW.
For small items, another clean-up day is planned around Earth Day. Janet Cormier advised the committee of the dates of some Parks and Recreation activities around that date. The committee chose April 24th for the clean-up date since that would not conflict with these other activities. Tim will coordinate with Walter Warren to get BOS approval for the clean-up. Tim stated that since there are far fewer items to be picked up, a major focus of the day would be to lead guided walking tours of some of the trails.
There was discussion of possibly asking the DPW to remove the top few inches of sand in the sand pit, since the volume of broken glass from target shooters cannot be practically picked up by hand. There will be more discussion on this topic in the future.
Funding Subcommittee Update: Shannon Barnes stated that the subcommittee met and developed a list of questions - Who is funding the Forester's study? What is to be funded in the short term? Trash removal? Trail development? They would like to develop a list of what items will come up, what they will cost, and how to pay for them. Tim Tenhave will speak with Bob Levan about funding issues.
The subcommittee is researching grants available to municipalities through organizations such as Fish & Game, Nashua Regional Planning Commission, UNH Forestry Division, Bureau of Trails, DOT, Historical Commissions, and the NH Charitable Foundation.
Historical Subcommittee Update: David Rutzke stated that the subcommittee has met and identified two areas for coordination with the Historical Commission. One is the Spaulding Foundation and the other is the Old Kings Highway. There is a major problem with vehicles on the OKH and the subcommittee, working with the Historical Commission, should consider ways to reduce the problem. Tim mentioned that Ed Chase has some experience with gating or discontinuing Class VI roads and the subcommittee should talk to him about it. Chris Christensen mentioned that there is a bill pending to clarify that the BOS controls all roads, including Class VI roads. If the road is abandoned it reverts to the abutters.
Another task the subcommittee will pursue is getting a written history from local people who have a knowledge of the property. They will also continue to pursue the facts behind the name Horse Hill and will consider an archeological dig around the Spaulding foundation. Karen mentioned that the committee might get help from a university, and Scott McPhie mentioned that Plymouth State University conducts digs. Janet noted that if the committee begins the process a year in advance they might get an intern from a local college. Debra mentioned that the SCRAP program in Concord might be interested.
Athletic Fields Subcommittee Update: Janet Cormier stated that the subcommittee has met and they are developing a list of criteria to ascertain areas conducive to construction of athletic fields. Areas of concern are access and parking; soil conditions such as wetlands, drainage and ledge; and topography. They will then identify areas with a minimum of four acres that meet the criteria, prioritize the locations, and develop a long-term plan for fields and support facilities. Since the fields will be expensive they will not be developed in the immediate future but the areas should be delineated now.
There was discussion about the sizes of different types of fields. They hope to locate three fields in a row if possible for irrigation and parking considerations. They will have to wait for the Forester's report for a definitive plan, but for now they can identify areas of interest, which will help concentrate the Forester's efforts and will allow other activities to move forward in areas not under consideration for fields.
Subcommittee Logistics: Tim Tenhave stated that as Chairman he needs to know when and where a subcommittee meeting will occur and must have an agenda for the meeting. This will help him to direct the public to meetings of specific interest and will allow him to contact the subcommittee if a change is required. He reminded the committee that meetings must be held in public. Town Hall rooms are booked through Tammy in the BOS office and she will put the meeting on the weekly schedule.
He also needs minutes of the meetings, but they do not have to be as verbose as committee meetings. Once minutes are approved, send them to Tim for posting on the web site. Subcommittee lists should be updated to include new members. He reminded the committee that not all members receive e-mail so subcommittee chairmen should be sure to contact each appropriately. Each subcommittee should identify groups or individuals in the community that would be interested in subcommittee activities and engage them.
Andy Powell and Sue Siena stated that more publicity is needed. Debra Huffman wondered if it was wise to publicize the property without suitable parking.
Karen Mattor asked if new subcommittees can be formed, such as a subcommittee to think about ATVs. Tim responded that to start a new subcommittee the committee would have to go through Scott to ask Walter if that is an area that staff would like help with.
Web Page Update: Tim Tenhave stated that the web page has changed little since last August. He would like a volunteer to work with Chuck Miller to update the web page. Anyone interest should contact Tim.
Contact List: Tim Tenhave passed around the contact list and asked for updated information. He will contact people who have not come to recent meetings to determine who still wants to be involved. He will give an updated membership list to the BOS and ask if they would like to modify the membership.
Future Meetings: Tim has scheduled the first Monday of each month for future meetings. The committee voted unanimously to change the start time to 7:30. Tim expects the subcommittees to meet more often and expects full committee meetings to be relatively short. There was discussion about how many future meetings would be needed. It was determined that the staff would not be able to produce the definitive plan by June 30th as requested by the BOS, and that therefore need for the committee would continue beyond June.
Review of Minutes: The minutes of 1/19/04 were reviewed and approved after minor corrections.
Comments from the Committee: Jim Taylor reported that members of the community are very frustrated with the progress at Horse Hill. They feel that people who are destructive to the property are free to continue their activities, such as ATVers digging up the trails and target shooters leaving behind shot up paint cans and computer parts, yet people are not permitted to make any improvements on the property. Since the property has been widely publicized, negative impacts are increasing and people do not understand why the committee has not improved anything. Jim worked with an Eagle Scout to map out improvements to a trail to avoid a wetland, but the project was dropped because the BOS wants a definitive plan for the property from staff before any work can proceed.
Jim explains to people that the committee has been tasked with helping staff as requested. Target shooting cannot be stopped without a warrant article and the committee was unsuccessful in getting staff to move forward with a warrant article this year. ATVs cannot be stopped without further action from the BOS. Parking cannot move forward without the DPW, which has no resources for the project.
Jim asked if the committee could do anything to show the townspeople some progress.
The committee discussed what action might be taken. Chris Christensen outlined the steps that the BOS could take to stop ATV use. Andy Powell noted that the Conservation Commission can ask the MPD to patrol for wetland violations. David Rutzke suggested that the committee get on a BOS agenda to discuss what can be done.
Harold Watson stated that on six occasions in the last few months, ATVs have fallen through the ice on Horse Hill and abutting properties. This is a safety issue. Janet Cormier suggested that abutters take note of the times when ATVs are most active and alert the police, as they did at Bretton Woods, to help police patrols be more effective.
Chris Christensen made a motion, seconded by Shannon Barnes, directing Tim to write a letter to the BOS to bring these problems to their attention. Andy Powell agreed to co-sign the letter, with MCC approval. After considerable discussion about the suggested content of the letter, the motion passed unanimously.
Debra Huffman noted that the committee's charge is only to assist staff and she feared that raising an issue directly with the BOS would be seen as going around staff. She made a motion to amend the previous motion to address the letter to Walter Warren, with a copy to Dean Shankle, the interim Town Manager, the BOS, the MPD, and the MCC. The motion was seconded by David Rutzke and passed unanimously.
Jim Taylor asked Scott McPhie to speak with staff to ask if there is any physical improvement the committee can do in the short term. Andy Powell suggested flagging the boundaries, which will assist the forester.
Debra Huffman asked if staff could finish up what Jay Minkarah started regarding limiting target shooting. Scott was asked to discuss this with Walter.
Mike Ruggiero stated that his organization has experience with creating parking areas. If the DPW will agree to allow us to help, Mike would be willing to help move this along.
Tim Tenhave asked Scott to review the minutes of the 2/5/04 BOS meeting. He believes the BOS approved going forward with a gravel parking area and that perhaps it would not be necessary to wait for another year.
On a separate topic, Andy Powell reported that on May 10 (in Town Hall) and May 15 (at Gilmore Hill) the MCC is sponsoring a workshop on forestry plans. The public is invited
Adjournment: The meeting adjourned at 9:22 p.m.