Open Space Committee
Open Space Committee minutes from Tuesday, September 14, 2021
Present: Rick Gardner, Deb Cary, Susan Downing, Karen Rossow
Meeting began at 8:04 p.m.
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Minutes from last meeting unanimously approved.
We are unsure if Karen should be representing OSC on ADA work the town administrator, Sherry Patch, is currently undertaking. Karen will check with Sherry.
Vision and Action Plan: Trail network development will include making a list of all know trail connections – we have a master plan including three large loops but there is more work to be done. Priority trails have been established. Getting trails approved by the Division of Environmental Protection (DEP) is time consuming but we hope to have our project posted as a public notice in the environmental monitor in a week. For the Division of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) we (Rick) will ask for a variance of their rules to modify the wetlands in order to add bridging on the former Red Fox Farm property which has a brook to traverse. This will involve Rick attending a hearing with DCR and if they approve the request we should be awarded a Water Quality Certification.
Scott Morris, the new director of Princeton Parks and Recreation, intended to hold a public meeting regarding future uses of Goodnow Park (small town parcel behind the town hall annex) but that hasn’t taken place yet. Action item: Susan will invite Scott to our next meeting to discuss this park along with our other areas that overlap and make general introductions to one another.
We will explore connection possibilities for Brooks Station Road and the Appel property at Calamint Hill Conservation Area (CHCA). CHCA replication of natural area around brook crossing is expected to be done later this month.
Regarding signage, Cobb Brook is getting a few additional signs. Bullock/McElroy property must have additional directional signs. We’ve discovered that the cost estimates may be highly variable so we will improve communication with the printers to better understand how this works. Deb is working on this. The new Four Corners kiosk signs are looking great! Steve Stimpson is engaged in the process and we’ve incorporated his attractive bird identification section. We will have a Mid-State Trail sign (in progress) on the opposite side of the kiosk and discussed best way to set the sign up. If the backside isn’t immediately obvious to hikers from the parking area, Susan recommends putting a bench there or find some other means to naturally direct people to it, such as mowing or other path to it.
The Princeton Land Trust has just acquired most of Hall’s Fields through the generous donation of the Bice family. The sign kiosk is ready for the area including three properties on the south side of Route 31, Peabody/Metcalf, Poor and Hall, but PLT is considering a name for the trail area. “Russell Corner” trails is on the table but it isn’t a geographically accurate name, as it is near Russell Corner but not at it. To be continued. Signage is in the works for the Gregory/Alexander property.
Regarding Thomas Prince School trails, the responsibility for them is informal, with the school mostly managing them with help from Wachusett Meadow staff and mowing by the highway department. The school administration is grateful for the new kiosk and OSC interest in them.
Communication and documentation on the OSC website have been picked up by Susan from Cary LeBlanc. She found much redundancy in trail descriptions and has some ideas to streamline it. Rick feels that documenting the HIKES is more important than documenting the TRAILS and has much feedback from users supporting this, although we understand that trail documentation can’t be omitted. Karen thinks that a brief overview explaining why we have hikes and trails would be helpful to viewers. It’s an important distinction. Any ideas on this topic can be discussed via email outside of a scheduled meeting. Agreement on consolidating the information on the left bar of main OSC page.
Trails management update: There was a landowner meeting on August 11th including Tom Tripp, Jaye Fitzgerald and Rick. It was decided that a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) would be advisable. We want to work initially with the Nimrod Club first, followed by DCR and Norco, based on the route we want to use on already existing trails. We would start with group hikes with landowner permission and only expand on that with their approval. The AT&T trail is a mess but still a possibility.
Trail summit goals include presenting our trail vision, information on available electronic mapping systems (such as OLIVER, AllTrails, Mass Audubon) and enlist volunteers to help trail stewards, OSC, etc. The last portion of the event will be a Q&A session. We expect to hold this sometime in January or February 2022 in the town hall annex on a Sunday afternoon, probably 2:00 to 4:00 p.m.
Princeton Hikes! is going strong.
We should think about what to submit for Nate’s “Town Board Update” that he sends out to the residents monthly. Forward any ideas to Rick please.
Next meeting to be held in the town hall annex on Tuesday, October 12th at 7:00 with Scott scheduled for 7:30 if he can attend.
Meeting adjourned 8:20 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Karen