Harrisville Conservation Commission
Wednesday, January 3, 2024
Meeting Minutes
Members present: Harry Wolhandler, Don Scott, Kathy Scott, John Sandri. Members absent: Ralph Zingaro
Attendees: Winston Sims
Agenda – With the addition of a discussion of a proposal to repair the town rail trail and a discussion on a proposal for the Recycling Center, members approved the agenda.
Minutes of previous meeting, 12/6/2023 – Members voted unanimously to approve.
Town Rail Trail, proposal to upgrade – The Trails Group is proposing to repair sections of the 1.4 mile town owned rail trail between Main Street and Brown Road for improved accessibility and drainage. Don Scott showed photos of water pooling in sections . Culverts need cleaning and swales need debris removed so water can drain properly. Further west, past Sanford Pond, sections need ditching and drainage work as well, while the leaves and branches need removing and original cinders need to be restored. Proposal includes repairing concrete head walls on section that splits the pond. The total estimate submitted by Sandri Stone for informational purposes is $16,595.
Following discussion, including the time-consuming nature of the grant application process, the Trails Group requested that the HCC consider funding the project out of Conservation Fund money. The fund currently contains an estimated $60,000. The HCC discussed the purpose of the fund. Though in keeping with the mission of the conservation Commission and though the HCC has the authority to appropriate the funds by its own vote, the Chair stated his preference to hold a public hearing or town vote prior to approving such an expenditure.
Following additional discussion, Harry Wolhandler moved to ask the Select Board to draft a Warrant Article for Town Meeting 2024 that states Does the Town support the Conservation Commission’s spending up to 18k from the Conservation Fund for purposes of repairing and upgrading the town rail trail bed between Main Street and Brown Road for increased safety and accessibility for all users and to mitigate erosion? All voted in favor.
Village Road Rebuild Project – Following review of the Road Work Committee’s draft plans for rebuilding of Church and School Street, and possibly Church Alley, the HCC heard the recommendation of the outside professional engineer, who suggested the town install 2 culverts in addition to those already on the plan, totaling 12 for the project. Separately, the State will upgrade its culvert at base of Church St to 22” diameter. The HCC cited no additional concerns.
Recycling Committee (RCC), update – The RCC will host a Community Conversation on Tuesday, 1/9, from 6-8 pm at the Granite Mill on the topic of the committee’s proposal to transition to Single Source Recycling (= Source Separation). The committee will discuss a warrant article to be proposed regarding the town’s return to single source recycling, done by the town prior to 2017. The committee is interested in obtaining feedback from the townspeople.
Linear wetland setbacks – Don Scott is working with the Ordinance Review Committee of the Planning Board to propose changes to language in Article XII of the ordinances, Wetland Conservation Overlay District. The HCC wants to ensure the proposed changes do not weaken wetland protections. The proposed language would allow for reduced setback distances from wetlands under certain conditions and conditional upon a report from a certified wetland scientist.
Correspondence – The board reviewed a letter sent from “a concerned citizen” about garbage being collected on private property adjacent to a wetland. The HCC will refer the concern and complaint to the Select Board as a Code Enforcement matter.
The meeting adjourned at 8:30 pm.