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2001-05-07 City of Beverly Public Meeting Minutes BOARD: Open Space and Recreation Committee SUBCOMMITTEE: DATE: May 7, 2001 PLACE: Beverly Public Library MEMBERS PRESENT: David Gardner, Robert Buchsbaum, Kathern Tracy, Anthony Paluzzi, William Squibb, Kathleen Skrabut, Cynthia Modugno, Guido Lauranzano MEMBERS ABSENT: Ellen Flannery, Richard Baker, Charles Raymond ALSO PRESENT: Planning Director Tina Cassidy RECORDER: Karen Bradley Gardner calls the meeting to order at 7:10 p.m. Acceptance of Meeting Minutes March 12, 2001 meeting Paluzzi: Motion to accept the draft minutes of the March 12, 2001 meeting, seconded by Modugno. All members in favor, no one opposed. Motion carries. March 22, 2001 meeting Skrabut: Motion to accept the draft minutes of the March 22, 2001 meeting, seconded by Paluzzi. All members in favor, no one opposed. Motion carries. April 9, 2001 meeting Paluzzi states that on Page 1, Sections 8 and 9 of the Open Space and Recreation Plan, it is stated that he made both the motion and seconded the motion. It is his belief that he made the motion. Cassidy states that she will check the handwritten notes for that meeting and make the appropriate changes. Paluzzi: Motion to accept the draft minutes of the April 9, 2001 meeting as amended, seconded by Skrabut. All members in favor, no one opposed. Motion carries. Final Acceptance of the Open Space and Recreation Plan Cassidy states that she sent a letter to City Councilor Don Martin with respect to recreational facilities at the North Beverly Elementary School. She states that the purpose of this letter was to reflect the current thinking of the Parks and Recreation Committee with respect to this site and recommends including these changes in the final draft of the Open Space Plan. Open Space and Recreation Committee minutes May 7, 2001 meeting Page two Cassidy states that she has also received comments from Pam Kampersal and Renee Mary. She also received two other letters from residents on Butterworth Road stating that they are not supportive of multiple fields on this site or lights for night games. The Committee reviews the comments from Pam Kampersal in detail. Cassidy states that she has noted all the committee’s requests and will incorporate the mentioned changes into the final draft of the Open Space Plan. Cassidy states that she will forward the changes to the Cecil Group to make the necessary revisions. Other topics mentioned by the Committee to be incorporated into the final draft are Conservation Subdivision Plan and land trusts. Cassidy assures the members that she will incorporate these topics into the plan. She also states that there are a number of typographical errors that will be corrected. Cassidy asks the members of the Committee if they would like to see the final draft before submitting this to the State. Buchsbaum asks if there will be enough time for the Committee to review the Cecil Group’s revisions before sending the final draft to the State. Cassidy answers yes, she will request that the Cecil Group send out revised copies to the Committee members prior to the next meeting. The Committee next reviews the comments from Renee Mary. Cassidy suggests that each committee member review Mary’s comments and submit any suggested changes to her so these changes can also be incorporated into the revisions made by the Cecil Group. The Committee agrees to submit any additional revisions to Cassidy within the next week. Mary states that she is concerned that her comments will not be incorporated into the final draft. Gardner states that all public comments will be appended at the end of the Open Space Plan. Cassidy states that she will have Joan Fairbank review the final changes reflecting the North Beverly School project changes, and to all of the Parks and Recreation Commission’s recommendations contained in section 5. Subcommittee Reports Regional Subcommittee/Public Participation Subcommittee Modugno states that she attended a Regional Open Space and Recreation meeting at Long Hill. She explains that stewardship (taking over and evaluating properties) and land trusts were topics of great interest. She states that the City of Beverly had a land trust many years ago and the property was then taken over by Essex County Greenbelt. She explains many interesting points that were discussed at the Regional Meeting that included people from Boxford, Ipswich, Gloucester, and Rowley. Gardner asks if Modugno has contacted any surrounding communities. Modugno states that a contact person needs to be established for each neighboring community. She states that she will work on establishing contacts after the May 17, 2001 Open Space and Recreation Workshop. She will draft a letter that will go out to abutting communities requesting a meeting with those Open Space and Recreation Committee minutes May 7, 2001 meeting Page three communities. She states that once she has established contacts and a meeting time, she will meet with the trails and regional subcommittees. Modugno asks if she and Tracy need approval to go ahead and act on Public Relations for the Sally Milligan Park clean-up. Gardner gives Modugno the go ahead to do their Public Relations part when necessary. She states that a decision should be made on what the Public Relations approach should be for the Committee. Gardner asks Modugno to develop a Public Relations contact list. Gardner states that the clean-up will take place on May 19, 2001 and hopes that the Committee members are able to attend. Tracy states that the sub-committees seem to be at a standstill. Modugno states that a Calendar of Events should be established to keep the subcommittees moving. th Buchsbaum states that he would like to organize a walk in honor of Biodiversity Day on June 8 or June 9th, 2001. He explains that lists are created of all creatures and plants that are seen during the walk. He would like to organize this event at multiple locations if possible. Cassidy states that if Buchsbaum could finalize those plans, she can get that information out to the Committee. Modugno also suggests organizing a clean-up day for each Ward. She suggests contacting each Ward Councilor to set up a schedule. Modugno will make some calls to the Ward Councilors. Renee Mary, 274 Hale Street, suggests contacting the schools to educate the children on open space-related issues. Modugno states that they could submit something to each school in the fall. Trails Subcommittee Lauranzano states that a draft of the Open Space and Recreation Trails map has been developed. He states that the first priority for this subcommittee is to develop a trail from Tall Tree Drive, to Thissel Street, to Hale Street and then connect to the water. He states that there is a whole network of trails in that area up to Manchester. He states that more manpower is needed to mark trails and set boundaries and easements where necessary. Gardner asks Paluzzi to bring the acetate map to the next meeting for the Committee to review. A Beverly resident states that the ball fields that are proposed on the North Beverly School site will break off a number of trails in that area. Adhoc Community Preservation Act subcomittee Squibb states that weekly meetings are being held regarding the Community Preservation Act. He states that a letter is being drafted outlining the benefits of why the City of Beverly should take part in the Community Preservation Act. He states that some of the people involved in these Open Space and Recreation Committee minutes May 7, 2001 meeting Page four meetings are State Representative Michael Cahill, the Housing Coalition, the Historical Society, some members of the City Council, and the League of Women Voters. Squibb explains that there is a great deal of misconception of how the dollar amounts are calculated, the 3% is based on the assessed value, not on taxes. He states that one of the missions for this group is to educate the School Department on the benefits of this act. Cassidy asks if there have been any discussions with the City Council to try to get this on the ballot. Squibb states they are in the process of speaking with City Councilors to get a feel for their opinion on this. Tracy states that some of the most successful cities and towns have initiated the Community Preservation Act via a grassroots, citizens’ initiative. She states that she has submitted the Open Space and Recreation Mission Statement and questions if the one submitted is the most recent. Cassidy states that she will check the current mission statement of the Open Space and Recreation Committee and get back to Squibb with the current statement and revise accordingly. Cassidy suggests appointing a Community Preservation Act spokesperson to speak on the Committee’s behalf and also inform the Committee on current issues relative to the Community Preservation Act. Gardner states that Squibb and Tracy should find out what the CPA group would need from the Open Space and Recreation Committee for the next meeting. May 17, 2001 Public Meeting Gardner states that the Planning Workshop for the Open Space and Recreation Committee will be held on May 17, 2001 at the Senior Center at 7:00 p.m. Cassidy states that members of the Committee should arrive at 6:15 p.m. to allow enough time to review the process of the workshop. She explains that they will use flip charts at each table and each table will be labeled. Cassidy states that she will bring copies of a 24 X 36 street map of the City that can be posted that evening. She states that Ward Committee members will be responsible for their respective ward tables and all other members will take other tables. Cassidy states that she could contact the local newspapers to complete a possible story on this topic. Other means of communication were also discussed. Gardner states that topics for the next meeting should include subcommittee reports and the final approval of the Open Space and Recreation Plan. He states that the next meeting is June 4, 2001. Lauranzano: Motion to adjourn, seconded by Tracy. All members in favor, no one opposed. Motion carries. The meeting adjourns at 9:10 p.m.