Conservation Commission Minutes
Date: November 12, 2003
Time: 5:30 p.m.
Location: 238 Deerfield Road, Lot #1, Allenstown NH
Attendees
Phil Trowbridge, Commissioner
Laura Bonk, Commissioner
David McKay, Commissioner
Mark Durgin
The meeting was called to order at 5:15 pm.
Note: Action Items in bold are to be completed by the next ConCom meeting.
The minutes from 10/8/03 were approved. After reading the minutes, the group provided updates on several of the items.
Regarding the minutes on the Route 3 bridge design, L. Bonk reported that she talked with Jim Rogers, Allenstown Planning Board, about the project. He indicated that she should speak directly with the project manager, Christopher Waszczuk (NHDOT) 271-6675.
Action Items: L. Bonk will follow up with NHDOT.
Regarding the minutes on the Trail Maintenance Day, L. Bonk reported that 30 volunteers spent 5 hours doing trail work on the Bear Brook Trail on 10/26/03 (150 man-hours of work). The Allenstown Conservation Commission co-sponsored the event with the New England Mountain Bike Association. The volunteers consisted of hikers, bikers, and equestrians.
Regarding the minutes on the recruitment of new members, the three commissioners agreed to staff a table at the polls during the primary elections in January.
Action Items: P. Trowbridge will find out the date of the primary and ask the Selectmen for permission. P. Trowbridge will prepare a flier about the ConCom. L. Bonk will develop a display and get other relevant handouts for the table.
The December ConCom meeting was rescheduled for Wednesday 12/17/03 at 5:30 pm. The meeting will be held at 238 Deerfield Road, Lot #1, Allenstown. Starting in January, the ConCom meetings will be held at the Town Hall at 7 pm on the second Wednesday of each month. The dates of the first six meetings in 2004 are: 1/14/04, 2/11/04, 3/10/04, 4/14/04, 5/12/04, and 6/9/04.
Action Items: L. Bonk will confirm these dates on the Town Hall calendar.
P. Trowbridge reviewed the line items of the 2004 budget request for $3027.00. The proposed budget was approved by the Selectmen on 11/10/03.
P. Trowbridge and L. Bonk attended the NHACC annual meeting on 11/2/03. They shared handouts and information from the sessions.
P. Trowbridge reported that 54% of towns allocate use change tax (UCT) receipts to the conservation fund. On 11/10/03, P. Trowbridge presented the Selectmen with warrant language to allocate 100% of the UCT to the conservation fund. The selectmen approved the warrant article, which will appear on the ballot. Over the past 12 years, Allenstown has generated approximately $13,000 in UTC receipts (on average $1000 per year).
Action Items: P. Trowbridge will review the RSAs to determine the type of bylaws that are needed to have a non-lapsing conservation fund.
P. Trowbridge reported that the Central NH Regional Planning Commission is willing to create Open Space Trail System Plans for three communities a year. The CNHRPC staff facilitates discussions between multiple trail users and produces a final report. With increasing conflicts between trail users, the ConCom may want to take advantage of this free service.
P. Trowbridge reported that presenters at the meeting strongly recommended the each town complete a scientifically-sound Natural Resource Inventory (NRI). The NRI is the only mandated responsibility of the ConCom and it provides objective, science-based information for land use planning decisions. The proposed ConCom budget for 2004 contains $1000 to support a watershed NRI being conducted by the Friends of the Suncook River.
L. Bonk reported that the Suncook River is a 4th order river and, therefore, development along the river needs to follow the requirements of the Shoreland Protection Act. There are two riverside parcels being developed currently.
Action Items: L. Bonk will visit the parcels being developed along the Suncook River and send the owners information on the Shoreland Protection Act.
The group decided to hold a Saturday morning snowshoe into the Allenstown Town Forest on January 24, 2004, 10 am – 12 noon. The group will meet at the end of the plowed section of Dodge Road. The hike will cover 2 miles on easy terrain. At least two experienced guides will accompany the group with safety equipment.
Action Items: D. McKay will invite the Boy Scouts and will try to find a wildlife tracker to go on the hike. P. Trowbridge will add information about the hike to the flier to be distributed at the primary election. P. Trowbridge will research liability issues. L. Bonk will advertise the event in the local papers.
D. McKay reported that he has attended a meeting of the Boy Scouts Troop about the Allenstown Town Forest. The troop is interested in using the forest for camping and for establishing an orienteering course in and around the forest. D. McKay has found and marked three of the four boundaries of the forest and will complete the boundary survey this winter.
Action Items: D. McKay will attend another meeting of the Boy Scouts Troop and will get information on the existing orienteering course in Bear Brook State Park. D. McKay will send P. Trowbridge a paragraph on this project. P. Trowbridge will prepare a draft of the Annual Report to be reviewed at the next meeting.
The group decided to propose a short article on the past, present, and future bridges over the Suncook River in Allenstown for the Friends of the Suncook River newsletter.
Action Items: P. Trowbridge will copy the relevant section of the Master Plan to show to the FOSR board on 11/19/03. L. Bonk will be responsible for drafting the article if the idea is accepted.
L. Bonk visited the site and met with the owner and building on 11/6/03. She signed a minimum impact expedited wetlands application (File Number 2003-02444).
L. Bonk reported that only towns can designate prime wetlands. Prime wetland status conveys greater protection for important wetlands. The ConCom agreed that this is an important issue that should be addressed in 2004.
Action Items: P. Trowbridge will get information on the definition of prime wetlands and guidelines for identifying prime wetlands.
Paul Loiselle, Acting Town Administrator, Hooksett, replied to L. Bonk’s letter on 10/27/03. He has asked NH ATV Club to look into repairing Chester Turnpike.
L. Bonk visited the office of Holiday Acres and three stream culverts in Holiday Acres (File Number 1999-01927) on 11/12/03. She urged the staff to follow through with the owner on completing this project.
L. Bonk visited the River Road site (Tax Map 106, Lot 33) on 11/12/03. DES issued a wetlands permit for this project on 10/22/03 (File Number 2003-02162). No work has begun at site.
Newsletters (The Source, Lakeside, Conservation Commission News) received by the ConCom in the past month were distributed to interested Commissioners. P. Trowbridge reported that all Commissioners were invited to a meeting of the Friends of the Suncook River on 11/19/03 at 6:30 pm at the Epsom Oddfellows Hall. UNH students will be presenting the results of their "Viewshed Analysis" of the main stem of the Suncook River.
The meeting was adjourned at 6:40 pm.