HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Natural Resources & Conservation Committee - 10/07/2020
NATURAL RESOURCES & CONSERVATION COMMITTEE
Meeting Minutes for Wednesday October 7, 2020 at 6:oo pm
This was an electronic meeting attended by Ashley Parker, Ray Gonda, Colin McIntosh, David
Crawford, Larry Kupferman, Andrew Shatzer (Drew), Jessi Grillo, Colin McIntosh, Jean Chaulot,
Corey Santorello, & Lisa Yankowski (phone)
Public attendees: Michael Mitag
1&2) Welcome and orientation for new committee members a review of the process for
virtual meetings- lead by Ashley due to the committee not currently having a chair or
vice chair. We have been hiatus for several months. Ashley is recording the meeting,
Lisa is acting as clerk.
a. Refer to the city rules for remote meetings- “Committee Remote Meeting
Procedures.”
-Highlights include mute mics unless speaking to block background noise.
- Committee members should use cameras if possible. Members of the
public should have cameras off unless speaking. The staff liasson determines
whether they wish to share their screen or not.
-The committee will run the meeting and may want to have someone
monitor chat “bubbles” and those wishing to speak.
b. Ashley also reviewed the city’s access to Open meeting laws on the city website,
where to find meeting schedules, shared resources, meeting minutes. The NRC meets the 1st
Wednesday of the month.
c. The city stores lots of information via Google drive and Laserfiche. This is shared
idocuments and resources , it cannot be changed unless removed, edited and returned. Ashley
will resend the links.
d. Committee structure & charge- refer to the information Ashley sent. The
committee will consist of 7-9 members. A quorum requires ½ the total number of committee
members +1.
Discussion of the work presented by the working group and mentioned in the minutes from
01/15/20 are postponed until a future meeting.
3) Election of officiers:
a. Chair- David nominated Larry w/ Ray 2nd, Colin nominated Ray w/ Lisa 2nd
i. Ray elected Chair w/ 8 yeah, 1 abstain, 1 absent
b. Vice Chair-Lisa Nominated Larry w/ Jess 2nd,
i. Larry elected Vice Chair w/ 9 yeah, 1 absent
c. Clerk- Lisa nominated by David w/ Jess 2nd
i. Lisa elected Clerk w/ 9 yeah, 1 absent
d. New elections should be in July.
4) No changes to the agenda. Ashley will assist Ray for upcoming meetings.
5) No comments from the public.
6) Adoption of January 15, 202 minutes- we passed on adopting the minutes due to the
hiatus and most of the committee are new.
7) CIP (Capital Improvement Plan) or Open Space Project Fund- presented by Ashley, she
oversees the work.
a. This is the $1.3 funds the city voted on to use towards repair work in the city’s 3
major parks- Red Rocks, Wheeler & Underwood. Lisa & Larry were both on the
committee deciding the ranking system for importance for work that needs to be
done. Much of the work has been slowed down due to city staff being on hiatus
due to the Covid virus. Funds were not frozen from the fund nor the Pennies for
Paths, so there has been some work done. Red Rocks work requires permits for
much of what needs doing for erosion control. (Reference the sheets sent to the
committee).
b. Larry motioned to accept the CIP, Jean 2nd
i. 8 yeah, 1 abstain, 1 absent.
8) Member & staff reports
a. Chair- no report, we’ve been on hiatus for the last 6 months.
b. Staff- reference the information Ashley included in our information packet
c. Larry - The Dog Park committee just had a meeting about the new dog park-to-be
at the Wheeler House side lawn. It is moving forward with permits in the next
few months. Aprox 2 acres, 1.5 for larger dogs and .5 for the smaller dogs. The
actual boundaries will be determined by the DRB, (Development Review Board).
Larry will share the map that was developed with Justin Rabideau from DPW.
d. Ray mentioned a webinar 10/22 Regulations & Towns, Act 171 with Yens Hilke
e. 10/27 5:30 pm A joint committee meeting with Rec & Park, Bike Path, Dog Park,
& NRC on behaviors. Comments on behaviors around natural areas and
interactions. How do you manage and lessen the impact. Larry is attending.
9) Future agenda items
a. Jean - the Work Plan we developed. What further work do we need to do on it?
b. David though we should have a technical training.
c. Consider picking a Dog Park liasson, Larry is currently on that committee.
10) Next meeting is Wednesday November 4 at 6:00 pm