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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021-02-04-GCC-min Greenways Corridor Committee (GCC) Meeting Notes 4 February 2021 Remote Meeting via Zoom Conferencing Tool Members Present Keith Ohmart (Chair) Eileen Entin Peggy Enders Alex Dohan Bob Hausslein Susan Kenyon Don Grant Mike Tabaczynski Mal Crawford Other Attendees Mark Sandeen (Select Board Liaison) Francesca Pfrommer (Recreation Committee Liaison) Charles Hornig (Planning Board Liaison) Larry McCray (Lexington Resident) The meeting began at 4:07 PM EST with the Chair reading the Open Meeting Law statutory rules that apply to remote meetings. • Approval of Meeting Notes for the 7 January 2021 Meeting of the Committee All nine Committee members present voted in favor of approving the Meeting Notes. • Liberty Ridge Trail Connector (Jefferson Drive) Project Permission for trail work in the Land Locked Forest will be requested from the Town of Burlington Select Board at their 8 March 2021 meeting. Once the Select Board permission has been obtained work will be started on permitting for sections of trail work in wetland areas. • Hartwell Avenue Innovation Project The letter of support for the inclusion of walkability and bikeability features in the project infrastructure was accepted by the Town Planning Director,Amanda Loomis, for inclusion in the Hartwell Avenue Draft Zoning Bylaw. (The letter was approved at the 7 January 2021 meeting of the GCC and copy of the document is attached to the meeting notes.) • Wayfinding Sign Project A briefing on the Wayfinding Sign project was presented to the Town Conservation Commission at their 1 February 2021 meeting. A list showing the exact locations of the signs will be put together by GCC member Mike Tabaczynski to assist in obtaining permission from the property managers for the sign sites. Rev. 1 2 March 2021 1 Cost estimates for the proposed 16 signs will be obtained in the next few months. The Town has granted the GCC a budget of$9 k that has to be used before the 30 June 2021 Fiscal Year 2021 (FY21) Program Improvement Request (PIR) funding expenditure approval deadline. The GCC intends to apply to the Town for the funds from this appropriation needed to purchase the signs, post materials, and hardware. • On-Line Hiking Trail Information Services GCC member Alex Dohan will investigate putting the ACROSS Lexington route mapping information on proprietary on-line hiking trail information service platforms such as AllTrails. • Community Connector Project GCC member Keith Ohmart will contact State Sen. Friedman's office to determine the status of the Massachusetts FY24 environmental bond bill. Funds raised from the proposed bond sale are being sought to fund the cost of wetland area trail planning and construction needed for the Community Connector Project. • ACROSS Route H Bridge Elementary School Project The on-going COVID pandemic has made it difficult to determine when the work needed to complete the third and final section of the raised boardwalk can be scheduled. The first two sections of the boardwalk were done as Eagle Scout candidate projects with the expectation that the last section would also be done as one in the Spring or Fall of 2020. Since the date of future Scout participation is unknown, it was recommended that the GCC seek funding in the amount of approximately$3.0 k from the FY21 PIR before the 30 June 2021 deadline. This funding would be for the purchase of lumber and hardware needed to construct the raised boardwalk section in the event Scout participation is not possible. The current wetland work permit runs through 13 June 2022 allowing possible Fall 2021 or Spring 2022 dates for construction work. • Recreation Department Survey Results The results of a recent Town Recreation Department survey indicates a strong interest in adding more walking paths. The Recreation Committee has set up a working group with the Conservation Dept. to set priorities for new walking paths in the Town and develop budgets for priority projects. The Recreation Committee is planning for the working group to meet within the next two weeks and invites a member from the GCC to participate. • Wright Farm Project It was recommended that new trails proposed for the Wright Farm should be delayed until the planning process for the land, structures, and vehicle parking are Rev. 1 2 March 2021 2 completed. Two temporary trail routes were suggested to provide a connection between the Land Locked Forest and Grove Street. One suggestion was a route using the easement from Wright Farm to Jefferson Drive and Jefferson Drive to reach Grove Street. The second suggestion was to route the trail along the eastern boundary of the Wright Farm property. GCC member Alex Dohan will bring the matter of temporary trail routings up at the next meeting of the Wright Farm planning group. • Concord Avenue - Brookhaven Loop Project The GCC is currently seeking direction from the Town Conservation Commission and Conservation Dept. on the best way to proceed in planning for a new trail from Concord Avenue to the Dept. of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) Beaver Brook North and Brookhaven residential properties. A land management plan for the Town Conservation property on Concord Avenue is needed and private funding from the Judy Record Trust may be available to contract out this work. Planning for this project has been complicated by non-permitted trail construction work done by residents of an abutting property. • ACROSS Lexington 10th Anniversary Celebration The GCC is considering possible ways the celebrate the 10th anniversary of the ACROSS Lexington trail system. GCC member Bob Hausslein has mapped out marathon length (26.2 miles/42.2 km) and half marathon length (13.1 miles/21.1 km) courses using ACROSS Lexington routes that could be used as part of the celebration. The tentative date for the celebration would be Fall 2021 if permitted by COVID pandemic restrictions. • ACROSS Lexington History Project Local resident Larry McCray has created a history of the ACROSS Lexington trail network based on the last ten years of GCC meeting minutes available on the Town website. How to use the history as part of the 10th Anniversary Celebration is being considered by the GCC. • Approval of a Motion to Adjourn All nine Committee members present voted in favor of adjourning the Meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 6:02 PM EST. Respectfully submitted by, Mal Crawford, GCC Member Rev. 1 2 March 2021 3