##VIDEO ID:6w5x_MAf49s## all right welcome everybody open space committee meeting September 17th how is that possible easy it's still summer it's still summer that's right more more days um call the me into order um we have Jing are you going to like knock all the well it's the power of something I don't know but I will tuck it away somebody kicked it out yeah was probably that he sit there um and my thank you guys for coming coming in inside um so on our agenda and I I can put it up the [Music] agenda no extra citizens here we may have citizen calling in which would be wonderful Ella's dueling our former intern hopefully wants she wants call Jo oh is that right walking home from a class right now we won say no that's awesome so she's a UNH no no she's up at the University of Toronto oh right right sorry she's over the Border over the Border yes with her passport she's with her passport she's got a study permit she she she can she can work there for 5 years and become a citizen and who knows we may never see her again yeah well yeah I say something that I won't right maybe we'll all be there in a couple years now so I may in five minutes just try to call her and sure we try to not disrupt things that's great we'll welcome her if you get around okay um so I think the first thing we put on the agenda was just to talk about the committee a little bit I feel like they're sort of two categories of things one is um be great to drown up some more members we've talked a little about that um in the case when people have busy lives and occasionally miss a meeting and just making sure we have a quum of people so um so that's just out there um it's like from the in town hall side of things it seems as though like at one point there was sort of discussion of sort of a big push for all committees and I've seen other towns do that I think Newport just um this summer had sort of a big Fair where they just like really did a lot of marketing around come volunteer for anything and then hoping people drum up but I haven't yet seen that kind of energy in Newbury um so I think we should just take charge if we have ideas um you know maybe when we I I don't know I was sort of thinking like whenever there's something to announce we could do an actual press release with the paper and sort of include in that and look at all the great things we're doing and if you're interested and that might get some headlines so membership one thing and then the other thing being um whether the group who is currently involved is interested in um electing officers um most committees do that on a fiscal year cycle so it you know we're into fiscal year 25 um but that can also happen however and whenever if people are interested so I would think the normal sort of uh group of officers would be if anyone's interested in being chair uh that would be responsibilities being to do what I'm doing right now which is run the meeting go through the agenda um work with staff to set the agenda for the monthly meetings I think we'd still be posting the meeting and you know whatever just helping administer things in general but um mostly just kind of help set the agenda and then help coordinate meeting discussions um that would be the chair's responsibilities Vice chair to do that in the case that the chair is absent or to support the chair and then the other position I would think would probably be appropriate would be clerk to help with minutes taking um and I would just kind of open that up David you've been on the committee in the past are those is that the group of officers um what I would suggest frankly at this point um is that we focus our efforts and energies on getting more members and I have a couple of suggestions about that not in terms of bodies but in terms of perhaps ways of doing it um the other thing I think I would suggest at this point is because I think it's well okay there's such a small number of us that what we should do or think about doing is having a chair Pro 10 mean that's temporary okay somebody who simply is doing it until such time as we have a committee on which it makes some sense to pull somebody as a chair because at this point I think it's it's kind of uh you know short numbers as it were unless unless you folks feel otherwise um that's what I would suggest um it's a way of going forward and that means that rather than you running the meeting um and also having consultation with somebody about what the agenda is about um then that way we can simply go forward and not feel that we don't have someone who at least answers to being being pro you know temporary careair um my sense about recruiting people is and I I I probably know less about this than any of the rest of you but um we need to look it seems to me into organizations that where you would logically find people who might be interested perhaps out of a sense of contribution to the town and their own interest to get involved in in this making it clear that it can be a a sort of shortterm thing it doesn't have to mean you sign up you know to be a member of the open space committee for the rest of your life right um that it could be sort of task focused which is getting together the plan and maybe some other things um but I I don't know I I don't know what the rest of you folks think but I just feel that a kind of lack of some other people who perhaps have other kinds you know because I mean I know I'm looking across the table at mik and you know our paths crossed on this very committee a long time ago and yet also our paths cross through our interest and his employment and my involvement with you know he and I my guess is two nights from now we'll be in the same place when his boss is retiring blah blah blah blah sweet yeah right so um and and I don't know you know what kind of for example I know uh through kind of weird weird things um Jim really I no no I understand Jim bought a house okay from people who my wife and I knew rather well okay a rather particular house as it happened because it came in pieces from Denmark right um and so I got to know him through that connection and then it seems to me that you and your wife have had connections into the community in different ways because you were parents which I wasn't I to be a parent to that point um and and you know you and Christina have turned up as a matter of Interest so I would think there's different kinds of inputs yeah um the unfortunate thing is that the one organization that in some ways I don't think I can represent green Bill only can say that I'm very much involved in it and and you know volunteer for them but it's the trustees and the trustees used to have many moons ago a committee in town unfortunately for lots of reasons I W go to that committee not only died but essentially was killed because the trustees got rid of committees like that local ones um but that committee did managed to pull in people who had either frankly property interests or Outdoors interests that kind of thing and I would think I was hoping that maybe the rep committee might have and that might still be true actually thrown up somebody but by our recent experience yours mine in terms of the email arriving a couple of days ago from the committee obviously they're not off to trot either that or they didn't meet all summer I yeah anyway well I think I mean I think they it's just open I think um talking with folks anyone knows who might be interested I mean I there are a few people I know who from time to time have thought about the open space committee back when I was volunteering and and um Martha was soliciting me to join the open space committee so that's fine just kind of uh informally reaching out to different kinds of groups as you're saying that sounds really smart to me um and then if we want to just get some press going seems like why not right I mean I think the Daily News would run something if we have something to say my sense I know what my sense is the people these days don't want to do it people don't respond hey okay I know this is interrupting the conversation there's so I'll just leave it here Ellie we we're in the middle of a a discussion on the first on the agenda so we'll just uh you can say hello and then we'll continue can she actually hear us walking down the street in Toronto wave if you can can you hear us okay there yes the of technology so West in the east so I I think that you're right that it's hard to get people to commit cuz everybody's got busy lives but I feel like a lot of people don't know about open space either in the benefits to the town so I'm hoping we can stimulate well so there's that and there's people that se see a lot of change going on around here now at least since I've been here it's been almost 10 years which is surprising um so hopefully we can generate some interest but my question to maybe you and Mike is like when you've done this in the past what's what's like an optimal Siz group cuz when I've talked to other people in open space I tell them they're like it's only like five of us and they're like oh that's good small group but then some people like you know so I don't know I mean what do you guys think I mean what would would be a good number for you I mean when we did when we did the plan there was a bunch of us I mean there had to have been at least eight of us on that Committee in right 070809 right and we were sort of tag team to some degree and that some people were all you know reliably there and some people right w't and we had planning board representation we had concom representation right we had the ad community and Matt represented at that time you know y um and then we had the double play with um marleene and if it wasn't Marlene then Norm came and they came together this was you know was Dan on the committee at the time right maybe two Dan was he on the rec committee back then yeah yeah I had a nice little smattering of I would say volunteers and people on other boards in in town commission probably we probably had 10 technical members and eight who pretty regularly turned up but we never probably had more than six or seven around the table you know why I brought it up is because we ran into what and please don't feel it was you or Christina or whoever you know but we we couldn't meet because he have a Corum and obiously that means if somebody's traveling or somebody's not well or something's happened and I guess the one thing I feel fairly strongly is we we it's important we don't drop a meeting to me personally because I find the momentum kind of is is difficult to kind of keep going in a sense because it so happens that a bunch of things have happened in my life in the last two months and so I realized two days ago I better sit down and pay attention and figure out what we were going to be talking about and take a look at Mike's map and and and get the you know stuff yeah exactly and one of the things that helps I think is that if you can't make a meeting then you can call somebody perhaps who's going and say hey U by the way you know we did go through this weird period I don't mean us but I mean sort of the state or something where you couldn't talk to people on the committee and unless you were at a committee meeting and that's frankly you as long as you don't have a meeting to make decisions or you don't bring things which are decisions to the meeting you can talk about what you want to yeah um and I think that sometimes is used a bit of a bully pulpit by people who would like to cut things off yeah well I um the first open space committee I worked with had seven yeah and like there were a couple alternates or something I mean there was sort of a little Charter and I don't think that's something that's ever been done here I reached out to a couple towns to get that information so if if someone's really interested in that kind of you know making a charter setting up some by like that's certainly a task that we could look at doing I I think seven tends to be good because it's not too big it's not too small you you know if a couple people aren't there you still have a good number it's just so that rate we're are absent missing too we got up I'm wondering also frankly whether we shouldn't make a little bit of a push perhaps not now perhaps later but we I think do need to have someone on the select board who at least least knows what sort of world it's like M because Jeff was a kind of unofficial member of the open space committee because at that point he was a member of the planning board and the planning board and the open space committee were talking to one another through me and other people and so um I I I sense that um uh for example the the um bill um what's his last name the D yeah D yeah uh might be interested in at least coming and finding out what we're about um and and I think uh an invitation to him maybe specifically some time to come and and just be a a guest who sits and listens yeah um would be a good idea um because I don't think the rest of them even Jeff have any idea what it is an open space committee really does yeah I mean I I yeah no I I think that's a great idea to invite um select board members and make that connection and have sort of leas on whether it's mostly informal not necessarily a formal but um yeah I was just going to say I mean I'm a perfect example of somebody who's interested press for time yeah hav't yet even officially done that simple step becoming a member so I yeah not yet officially a member understand that that will happen calendar 2024 no no just kidding but I would say I mean sizewise it's seems like for now it's a decent Siz working body if we need more folks for the actual plan and kind of divine and Conquer yeah of the actual tax work you that's one thing um but from an ongoing basis you know since there's more than just the plan right and yeah what are we doing on longer term B right that yeah spring getting people involved would be great um I think for the way now it's sprinkled in it's on the website interested and have some newslet you know the news announcements on things yeah I think organically or Grassroots wise yeah you know if we all just sort of keep aware of it and try to recruit and publicize yep maybe it is a little bit strategic about who might do it that yeah who you can pull in right right for more I mean if we all try to think of three people like maybe we'll get two or three people right so like just well I'm wondering specifically for example uh it's noticeable to me that the what is it called anyway the the committee that's dealing with the lower green which is one of our Open Spaces yeah um has two representatives from historic New England right one of whom I think actually works at um spenc Sidle the other of whom maybe lives in town and also happens to work I don't know this for a fact but just looking at their a couple of their meetings um what I'm thinking is they would be somebody on from that committee would be and if they were also and that's bnaa as it used to be the start New England employee working here got a whole lot of things in one go okay you've got because their open space is is a very key one because it Bridges both the historic commission open space it's it's you know one of the the frankly prestigious profits in town right so um I'm willing to have a go reaching out to them and finding out what's happening you build your list of organizations oh yeah that's another obvious Source yeah definitely yeah do you want to bring that up now sure okay yeah I think it was part of an action item from the last trip and um so Christina and I talked about it she typed it up and just made a table essentially of um other organizations um in groups that we could potentially approach and reach out to discuss open space and how it's important applies to them so we can then um incorporate that into the plan yeah and so we have some standardized questions which we startings um that did by no means set in stone and as cons open input is it just really to get the ball rolling but we put down um a bunch of organizations and then what we were would we suggest and propos is that we kind of just divide coner and once we formalize a list of questions how we can approach these people and then kind of get some data feedback and then get a feel from these organizations and then we can reconvene and we'll have that and you know after I'm thinking after we have like uh interaction with these um organizations um you know we'll just quickly type out a couple bullets about and how they answered each form standardized question and then we'll have that for use when we write the plan whether it's us or M however that works out um so we'll have this table that we can draw from down the road mhm that's great yeah abely and we there's probably some stuff missing there this is just a brainstorm through our conversation making noes yeah excuse [Music] me um so before we lose track of um officers I just want to like kind of open the floor is anyone interested in raising their hand or in like um um making a motion to nominate anyone to be any officers how do we feel about that tonight yes defitely silence very I okay I'm not sure I can recommend anyone cuz I'm not a member I would volunteer only volunteer to be chairman Pro 10 just to get us going um but I'm I'm I Hast to add I'm not doing that cuz I have an agenda but just to sort of get it done so that okay um and and I um we could have co-chairs too yeah no I like the idea of Coach I I'm not a member to we're going to hook you guys all up all you I mean I I I think I I told you Kristen that I'm I'm happy to be the clerk and to take care of minutes and things like that and I just I would have to double back and ask about the possibility of even being a co-chair I just I just don't know I have I have conflict of interest signed with the town I have a conflict of interest signed with green belt we work in town a lot and I don't know if that's a good idea as the chair to maybe have to recuse from things should projects be happening so I I just I feel like I'm in a little bit of the of the middle there with with something like that well you're doing a great job a minutes so yeah I'm happy to keep doing that no problem at all you know willing to be the clerk someone want to make that motion while we got him before I back make a motion I move Kon as clerk I'll suck at that all in favor all thank you Mike welcome awesome and I I'm you want to do a co-chair I know Christina would love to do it but she's also very busy um and what you get is like you know we basically get both of us at the same job so all of us were any co-chairing say but I'd be happy to co-chair yeah anyone want to make a motion so I make a motion that David Bill and Christina which is no yeah so I motion David Powell and Bill Hoffman are co-chairs of the open space committee great oh sorry anyone second you can second yourself I think can you so yeah so you second for each other right so is that a temporary coair Jim you have to get to be a proper member okay I will get there I will cuz otherwise you can't you don't count you're you're a cipher I understand I'm not voting you okay so um all in favor I I terrific osity is so the chair co-chair for now it can be is there a term a length of well I think we good good question um how about fiscal year right get us sort of on track and then in June we' talk about the next year because we now we're already we're already already I just suggested the pro pro 10 thing because that's the way the you know other things I've done in the past have gotten by an awkward moment yeah you know yeah eight months but that's cool because I it's just access to Christina even though she's not on the B right absolutely right she's essential so right great thank you all right um congratulations yeah congratulations maybe maybe it's newsworthy now we got okay all theair really you know all right so back to this um I don't uh Phill and everybody do we want to kind of fill this in a little bit does anyone feel strongly about adding their name to one of these some of these good categories is is Parker River still like active I mean know that they are here and there but are they still like well shouldn't it I going to say it's all gotten really folded into what's it called now um the three um the newsletter is Rivers it's p Rivers yeah P River yeah yeah I think that's um and uh what's his name this guy used to head it up as now moved on right when you Jerry's not Jerry was there for a while no I'm thinking of the guy was the the guy from the trustees who was the director so Wayne C was director of and has retired um and Aaron yeah who Bonnie um is chair director but he's still involved Wayne yeah he doesn't he's he works for the state he works for the state he works no he doesn't work for oh he he B chip yeah okay cuz I mean I know him well enough to call him up and bend his mind what's he doing for the state works in the Shish Department he works with me actually works for division marine fisheries and he's the head of shellfish for the Northeast area what does he know about shellfish that's where he he was Shish oh good nice to know I talked to him a little bit about Parker River um Clean Water Association and he said that it they need new blood there's like basically two people left um but knowledgeable and I mean it's he says it's a great organization too you really like like the people that are involved so at least be worth reaching out to them they were really strong for a while you know it's like that's why I was curious like George whoever George from George a guy from George to George um from George Town yes right yeah he was you know and yvon Marlene was part of that crew right and that gu Jerry that was kind of their head for a little while yeah and and then the the professor from you know um the long to drink of water who's the professor um who's uh yeah I know but I think somebody else is there anybody here who's a fish counter um in in the local community because someone like that might be um so a volunteer that worked yeah cuz I I was thinking there is I would hesitate to approach her this cuz I actually see she's in New report but there are a number of people on the Osprey group that I'm part of who are very active and it it's but most of them unfortunately don't live in Newbery as far as I can see but that's the sort of group I would look to to say frankly we need your commitment to that sort of thing and not specifically Osprey but but your sort of a commitment to the world that that represents um so when I talk to people my colleagues at division FES I'd be talking to the dious group who would cover that and so they obviously are really interested in like all well below damn but all the up Dam impacts to and benefits of open space so we'll get that perspective I think from that angle but if you want like a volunteer citizen then I could probably get a name from them through them cuz they they work with them closely so I can probably come up with some names of people to talk to and I can talk to them right yeah sure um what's o me I can't think of thing but anyway i' have to I can I mean if you can me under the trustees and reservations up there I I I will be I I I am um it's yeah the um they' sort of sorted them are you in contact with them at all well yes but nobody like just locally like I deal I deal with a lot of the folks in the conservation restri program pet yeah cuz what's happened just to clue you all in is that that got very confused at one point in that they were working out of some strange kind of world down in Manchester right who were taking care of our property Oldtown Hill um which was cuckoo I mean it really was well now Oldtown Hill has gotten folded back into Peter's Port Peter venero's portfolio and I've know Peter long I've known you actually there's been a lot of reshuffling like for their regions and who's managing what and what Falls under like uh there's a guy Jared that's one of the Northeast managers now that I've been in contact with oh yeah right the guy who was at Long Hill he's in the UK he went back toost his green supposedly he didn't actually he doesn't know where he went but anyway I'll find out next month yeah so um so I'll do that um and it may be that they have somebody yeah you know I just don't know I know the coastal team right Jim did you want two comments if I you could kind of pencil me in with you know uh but and this is all through my wife Sally being the sort of Point person for me to then maybe find people both she worked at mass audon as a field educator okay so maybe I unless someone feels like I have a strong con do that and through the new school PTA the elementary school which actually I think would be great from a family younger kid perspective right the outdoor BL so uh she knows people there even though we're past that from our own kids yeah she was just started yeah so just starting is there still side of things cuz there was like a green team that Sally and I worked exactly like getting a dishwasher at NES so it was like that subcommittee of the PTA I mean he he just started preschool at NES last week so I I'm pretty green to sure I can you know at least start to work I know someone who's in like involved in the PTA and um right and I know s keeps in touch with them yeah and they're actually one of the sources that tend to produce people who are act like to be actively involved in the whole range of things cuz when we did tried to do the override years and years ago it was people from the PTA at various levels who just anti up and there they were you know with with energy and time and sometimes money I'm and I'm happy to look you know look at our like you mentioned about the ospr program you know and look at our membership to see who is actually in town and part of like a program like that with us like I can do that I can to have them pull that information for me because I often don't know if somebody's in town or they're traveling up here to be in that program from another town or something what's her name Mary alen the volunteer coordinator might have anybody who is volunteered from Newbury work on Trails or something she be tired yeah you know I mean we can M we can really mine a lot of these places and some of these people though might be better for the actual survey once we roll up thinking more organizations like someone else's like what's their position on open space kind right so it's not just recuit kind of well I think the deeper all it's like the bench you know what I mean the deeper our bench is for people to do or to ask to do specific things rather than be on the committee because that's a good point I'm happy to do the library also I don't I know someone who was on the library board so I could use that to start it but again someone here may know be more connected I mean know library is you know and maybe also maybe also so you know may the ad a column for you know the ad Community you know um that's a good idea yeah idea she's not is she still chair I I have no idea Brian no no idea but I'm just saying in general like you know yeah right whether it's committee or Community you know whichever one you want to put in that column there oh yeah that row there you know um yes good point because they might not be a part of the committee or something but there's plenty of active folk in town so just you know thinking about the 61 conversations and things like that you know yeah I don't think there's a Super Active actual Agriculture Commission in Newberry right now but um but I've heard that it might be getting going again so I'm not sure yeah there's certainly an active fing Community are you thinking like tender crop or like thinking KOB or like I mean like I mean yeah I mean like you know that's you know those are the first folks obviously larger Farms that come to mind but um I know there's also just been you know smaller individuals that have you know been leasing like an acre from maybe one of those Farmers or something like that too that are in town that you know kind of the future ad Community too so um cuz I know you know somebody like Matt somebody like col you know they're they're jamming year round and may not have the time or or desire to put into the committee but um would would be good for the survey as well too though well that's kind of what I'm thinking just with this just ask some questions but I that's a really important perspective to get to capture yeah I so it's that's a great great idea cuz we know you know not all the Farms are created equally some have more Capital than others you know so their concerns are probably different between Farms you know and the Parker River greenwater Association I don't I can so we have it space committee on here but that's cuz Christine and our good friends with BL casting with so and and all his brothers actually um and he and I already had a conversation about them so I can kind of I'm just kind of curious to see where that stands anyways so I can reach out okay and then at the bottom um if you scroll down y I believe and we don't have to do these now but these are just a stab as soon as potential questions and um we can just you know this is to get us started but and if you guys want to add to that maybe um or we can go through and after you guys come up with some more questions um we can fine tune it but this is kind of where we were headed with it I say for the only thing I see missing is like some context for like what we're asking cuz we're asking like how do you think what are the num priorities for this plan but I think there needs to be a bit of a explanation for you how the plan could affect people now just cuz like I don't know how much people really will know about an open space Plan before coming the survey I just support it like we want people to fill it out maybe do some motivation say this could affect you and we trying to decide how it will and you could have a St in that good great Point yeah what's the elevator piture story but this is you're this is like almost networking just to start to gather more organizational right yeah and then there's going to be a Citizens type survey that yeah that is another which we can obiously talk about right exactly so we'll have that survey so this is like the higher level kind of thing yeah in my mind I mean I'm a scientist right so I come up with a study design I collect the data and we do the analysis and then we write it up and so this is this is the data collection yeah part for me yeah yeah yeah so this so just we can start this now yes that's what we're talking about as we yeah yeah in conversations with people we generally already have some kind of knowledge of like just but there would be a preamble as Ella is saying I agree with that like you have to put it in context but then like get some real answers in a more quantitative way and then incorporate it into as we develop yeah I mean so yeah step back then this is what we talked about in the last meeting when we were like what can we do now before we find out this is our this is kind of what I think we were talking about doing so we're just trying to push it yeah momentum going I mean I think these are good well I wonder how okay try to role play an organization how would I answer three when there's no plan well there is a plan it's just outdated but yeah um and some of these questions app right yeah yeah no I I'm just um right right um I mean I think most of these organizations not all of them like maybe not the library for instance or you know the PTA but like all the rest of them they do a lot of their own planning so it's not you know it's not like it's not another language to them to think about you know Ira does a strategic plan every 5 years so they're going to understand that the town is working on this General wait wait the to you open space PL okay um it has no teeth doesn't do anything realistically from all guys don't I don't want to go this place again but well the open space plan really has no teeth the teeth are in the action items right yeah the goals and the I mean I can tell you because the open space plan of when 2010 what has it done but isn't that part um it gives something for planners and other members of the community to fall back on say look this is what well no I agree but what I'm saying is that that um um okay I'm not trying to to argue with the idea of this question but I'm trying to look at is the realities okay of the fact that um one going back the open space plan has not either enabled or prevented really anything I can think of and if if I'm wrong correct me well we just don't have that knowledge today we haven't done that exercise so no but come on come on come on it it should be that your answer is just the example what do you mean if you were in a community where the open space plan was an active agency you know about it well I I mean I I'm happy to argue that with you but I don't have that in front of me at what I'm saying is what I'm saying what I'm saying is the very fact that you need to have it in front of you okay and and the rest of us okay certainly Mike and I David I think very easily we could identify the properties that have been protected since the plan was adopted in 2007 list I'm sorry it's a it's an identified action in the plan to have the town protect land with it Partners you're missing the point that I'm trying to make I'm trying to make the fact the point that that as a community we have chosen or not chosen because we're asleep whatever over time never ever that I can think of in the whatever it is 30 something 40 years I've lived here to get behind and push for the recommendations and and and and aspects of all kinds of plans what has happened is where it has been a good idea to pick up something that's in the plan and to say well so we're approve we'll do that we've done it but not because of the initiative it none of those plans not even the master plan has been an engine of change so let's focus on this just I'm not making a connection between what bill and Christine have gathered here in our efforts to reach out to organizations is okay okay but so what I'm saying is we have to be aware of the N the need the need to change the open space plan into something that is an active agent well it's I think we briefly talked about this ACC the sense that hopefully it's a living document yes previous the previous iteration kind of sat and gather dust at some point in time right in terms of the I call them the action items I forget exactly what the the recommendations and the work that had to be right the table there or tables so this is an opportunity both with the plan to make it a little more living and a guide that is an action plan so that we're not it's not stale and just sitting and nobody knows about it and I think it also the plan kind of is a first uh it it's it's necessary for all the funding grants and blah blah blah but it's also an opportunity to make to to be a first item that this committee does and that the committee itself then becomes a change agent you know and a little bit of a catalyst or something going to talk in generalities but wouldn't that be great if this committee could be something like that even though it overlaps with a lot of other organizations or maybe things happening with other committees in Town conservation committee obviously R committee but that you know we're not just sitting here to finish the plan and have it and then be done with the committee right we're getting into the broader purpose of why we're even here right that's how that's exactly how I envisioned to and that's why I'm sool like I I wish there was way you could put tee into it I mean but that's not how it works as as far as I understand I am definitely new to this game but what I also understand is that it does enable us to go for funding and then and I look at some of the towns around us like up switch that have been really successful at securing a lot of money and and as I learned more there's a lot of potential out there to bring in more money so how you know it'd be nice to see a bigger group people that had the same vision as we did our motivation and then actually to pursue some of that but the first step is this so let's just bang this out knock it out of the park do the best job we can and then next year let's see where it goes from there that's what I'm hoping for great so you so what you just did thank you very much is to validate in a way what I was saying because previously people were not talking that way right okay and and you know I mean it it heartens me to hear you both say hey we we we need to get behind this and make it real because what has happened in the past is is it really hasn't worked out the way and you know um I have an example uh which relates to us which is the whole Plum Island Access issue where you can see what can happen even when there's money involved um and and we'll get to that perhaps later but anyway thank you you know I mean I think just to you know go back in time a little bit I mean we we didn't have Town support back then and that's when we hit the wall and that's why the committee dissolved and didn't really you know push the plan forward I mean we we did it but we we didn't we did not have the support I still have a letter somewhere saying thanks but no thanks essentially you know that was sent to all of us right you know and I think I think times have changed a lot and I think some of it could be you know um the unfortunate side of of how much we actually have in town compared to neighboring towns you know we have we have every representation in this town and all of our neighboring towns can't say that right so I think you know not saying that there's not more work to be done and that we can't you know develop that and put it forward but I I I feel like maybe there's just more support in general today than there was years ago you know and getting like the financial side of it I think that was part of it you know like there was no money to put towards it you know now if we're eligible to get money in you know Grant wise on our own and yeah you know uh maybe we'll get the support that way cuz it doesn't have to be a you know line item in the budget that we don't know where to get it from you know with everything else we need to do you know right right so I mean it was it was it was hard to swallow 15 years ago you know we all worked really hard on it to literally like get a letter that was like thanks but no thanks was you know a little bit of a kick in the teeth you know and I I just feel like things the people in charge people running the town running the different departments I think I think we'll get the support that we didn't get years ago or I'm naive no no I know I the attitude Chang I I would hope town but just in general you know like yeah you just see see a lot more support than you did you know yeah and I think just pragmatic level if the difference or the Delta between what the old plan and new plan we talked about the resiliency piece not that you're going to focus only on climate change and all the environmental stuff but like I think that's an example of the times changing and that that might be a catalyst or a way to absolutely get interest from others yes there again are multiple organizations yeah we weren't talking about any of that back then you know so just yeah you're right and I think Co getting people Outdoors you know is another people I I go down to properties I mean I do not that I necessarily see the same faces over and over but I feel like there's a little more walking around walking at the Parker River whatever it's it just seems like I I don't have the data but qualitatively it seems like yeah there more going on out there around this that's so I mean so you guys know we live on the Parker River the amount of boat traffic yeah I mean the boat ramp I can see the boat ramp that is unbelievable people I mean and ever since Co and it was busy before but it is really now right yeah that's everything from skits to kayaks to sailboats to big boats to name yeah yeah that is cool right new challenges related with that as well I mean out of curiosity just and I don't want to srack but if we're talking about this list are we also we talking about only nonprofit and governmental or are we also other commercial entities that I know that's Town businesses like Marin something like that I'm thinking of the canoe you know the you know that's water open space but there could like they're posting it's a little I follow just it seems like their Outreach their or events and kind of trying to get people you know their goal is to get them on the water but there could be tie-ins they're I just it made me think about whether are there commercial entities that yeah maybe not initially but let's not forget it in the long I mean that that that's a good point that does concern me because I'm seeing the great Marsh and I'm seeing it deteriorate and um you know I don't know how far away we get from if that is from open but in my mind it is related yeah and if maybe that would be captured under when we talk to people at the Refuge or something like that you know um and uh and actually trustees is doing that joint project restoring old toown with um with with Fish Wildlife I believe so maybe we'll capture that M yeah that yeah that's a little weird um oh what was it okay I hate to even say the word but the pink cows has you know pulled together a really sort of strange group of people in a way if they're listening I'm sorry but um you know in in the sense that it's people who both live here don't live here have strange ideas about what we all have as imagery and so on but they're the sort of and I'm just thinking what about oh what's it called SP oh no wait a minute what's the organization marw yes they are in Boxford now they moved out of the lulas piece there they're yeah they're over in Boxford now okay but she in South okay on the bo okay so they moved out of the place next to the do yes for rock yeah but isn't she a resident Kate and Ro they're yeah newort or new may be new port or they might be I know since they moved off of our property I haven't really had much contact with I was just wondering because there's an organization that tapped into the the whole Elementary kind of level too right after school and and she might be or they might be you know say oh yeah there are people in Newbery who were very much involved in that and that actually is one of our in in a funny kind of way I've discovered that on because it's relatively sort of easy for me to get to and that's a little gym that place that really is the for yeah yeah and it's wonderfully tied into the history of we're throwing some changes that to that place we are are you yeah we're going to do an all access Trail and a viewing platform to that big Wetland there oh okay and can you do something it's limited about a loop in a way because you have to go out and B no it's it's it's kind of hard with the way it's like wedged when you get down that end you the Wetland and then you're kind of like pinched to the property line it is it's it's quite extraordinary it ties into into the very early history of this place and you can tie it together um spens little see because they couldn't build brick homes until they had l to make M all you have to do is listen to my wife who is an architectural historian and takes off on this sort of stuff and says well you know this explains why this community had the kind of housing it had for the first X number of years and there it is you can walk and see right into the place that they ched that yeah yeah it's fascinating anyway sorry so major schools that's a good point so yeah that was great that's perfect that's awesome um Can it would be nice if we get these questions hammered out um by the next meeting so we can get rolling with this um so can we sign like homework and people can we do this through email sure yeah and maybe just everybody maybe add some more questions to it whatever you think we're missing um and then we can maybe just do like a group email and then we give it a thumbs up um either we just proove the next meeting or we just roll with it it I feel like doesn't have to be that pointal you know yeah I mean I this looks good to me honestly I mean yeah if people want some time to think about it and get feedback um but if people are just as a starting place did did you send this to all of us I sent it this this afternoon sent it this afternoon we're all just seeing it yeah oh okay yeah so we can think about it a little bit and get some feedback yeah I'll Lo back in a couple weeks may be like all right we might just need to like have like like the funding question works for 95% of the stuff listed on that table but like yeah obviously let's let's have the alternate version of that for like the ad community or you know Library something you know what I mean like so I just to have like a couple of you know like two versions almost if if that's needed yeah and I do think that you know six questions or something like we don't want to take too much of their time yeah yep I that's smart Y and if if one doesn't f just skip it that's fine and then we'll once get answer then we can put it back into a table something a document great okay thank you for pulling that together um okay so I'll forward this around to everybody slightly modified version um and wanted to let's say showcase a little bit I think the next thing on our agenda is just looking at how beautiful the web pages um Ella her last day in the office which was seems eons ago now um but and I shared this obviously so you've all seen it but um just really cleaning up the dropdowns over here um I don't know if people have clicked on it but you know simplified the text reduced the words I think those are some really good updates we've got um a resource page which needs to get expanded um it's a good start we have a landing page for the plan currently it just has what is the plan and then you know different components from the last approved plan um and then locations I think is where we we're going to talk about maps and that's a good oh and then just before we go over to Maps um did you all notice there's like a changing photo gallery up here I have no idea how I figured out how to do that but I was so yeah so any um other I'll I'll have to figure it out now but the back end I think we can upload I should let you talk do you remember anything about how that works Ella yeah I just I remember doing it I'm not sure um I don't want being that hard um but I thought like the photos be a fun way to like off track but try to get people like interested or even if they're not part of the committee or like je fall even like having like a like a chance to get your uh photo featured on the website as like a part of your like back kind of thing just getting like people talking about it yeah that's a cool idea yeah it's planting the seeds for maybe some kind of put have some social media is also but maybe that's you know maybe we should that was the one I like that one couldn't get that the orientation that maybe we should grab some photos of like some of the properties you know that cycle through there too you know whether it's a refuge or you know Martin Burns or yeah Town Hill greenbell properties whatever that that are in that photo slide too you know but even like it's like the signage you know like go ahead Al H say all these photos are from Newberry I like it's very careful she like that so fire various those places awesome yeah that's great that's old town right yeah some of West new do something like this what descri oh gives the name okay that's awesome oh yeah it does I didn't realize that yeah that's really cool there we go cool yeah it's awesome I want it bigger wonder if it could get it bigger look so fun what happens if you click on the little that gray icon in the top right oh okay that's the whole so it goes yeah I don't know if this is something I don't know what this is other related kind of images yeah it's just like choosing itself I don't think these are the ones we have this is like Truro and other anyway yeah I was thinking maybe it would make it a yeah that one could a little TLC yeah definitely um and then it's you know the standard stuff is agendas and minutes so it's looking good thank you again thank you thank you we'll keep picking out if anybody sees things or wants to send photos I'm happy to to work on that so good segue to um um this one yeah sorry for the abnoxious draft water M uh water mark on the uh on that one but I had you know you never know yeah they tell two friends and they tell two friends and you know next thing you know it's it's all over the place so I wanted everybody to have a chance to to to look at you know what I had gotten done to this point and um let me know what they don't like what they think should be changed Kristen has given me a version of the Town seal to add in um in my Legend bar down here I I haven't dropped that in yet Kristen for the resolution but I can at least put it in there and then if we get a higher res one I can swap them out yeah um some things that I thought of after like doing this you know I left I kind of left intentionally like the rivers and streams kind of flowing into town um or flowing through through town I just I kind of thought it was a little nicer you know visually than just the the the gray spaces of the surrounding areas then I started thinking well a lot of these you know um Open Spaces in in town you know spill across the border is that something would we like to see you know where Martin Burns goes into or you know uh crane Pond Wildlife Management Area you know kind of its Fuller boundary or do we like that it's kind of nice and tight to the town I like the focus yeah the differentiation that yeah this is a m the town if they're and not distracting with what else is there although it is nice to know like you're saying so right I don't know if if you were to maybe just do it in a different color like a dotted line ex just you know outside yeah going to the West if you wanted to I but I think as is I I like I like the way you've done it here really good it's awesome yeah and you didn't know about H how to besides in the legend you know I wanted it to tie directly to the website with as far as like how I ID everything on the map and if we wanted to do that numerically uh or if you would if you guys think it would uh you know I don't say look right but you know if it's better to just you know label stuff on the map as you know what it is um you know or if we leave it kind of clean and just with numbers you know it kind of ties back into to the web page and you know links on the web page for more focused um you know if you say say green Bel property is number two you know you go there then you you know you see the map that we've made you know it's linked you know onto the town website type of thing um I'm open for any suggestions uh for any of that stuff I'm looking at this and I'm already like I got to change this I got to change that I don't like that line weight you know like difficult to not make it I mean you don't want to make it too busy right right but you want to convey well interestingly why aren't the upper and lower Greens on this that's good point I I know they're tiny but they're you know I I'm on a mission to try and kick the select board to putting them into permanent conservation right yeah I don't know why they all sort of go when you say that I I mean so so they're not so they're not protected under article 96 town could sell them yeah well that's why they're not on here cuz this anything that wasn't directly in in my data sets came from the Mass open space land so that's that's where all my open property even though it's not it's not protected and and the name of this map so far is Public Access properties not not so thank you for pointing that out and if you see other things like that please you know let me know I didn't think about that the other thing I picked up on the Scotland Road is another piece of Town property what is that uh in the pink yeah the that's coffin's Island it's what coffins Island but I thought that was you guys nope no town of nuur owns the new side nuur port ons the newbur port side of it we I mean I we maintain it but it's not it's not owned by Green Belt oh okay you got a sign on it which means simply you have a conservation restriction uh no we we don't have a a conservation restriction on that on that property we once a year for the bike ride put a a lawn sign there no there's a no there's a sign on the gate there's a little like Old Town sign that open space sign that the that newport's actually currently redoing inside the property yeah yeah it talks about all the different partners that that came together to protect it I mean you know that's one of my shameful episodes on the planning board because you know that was a boondoggle of the worst kind um and I thought that green belt owned part of it but no you just simply have the conservation restriction we don't even hold the restriction on it no nope well somebody put you sign on the gate I mean I I look across the drive my driveway the gate I'm trying to think of what sign you're talking about like L 35 times a day look at that gate I'm kind of curious now well one there's a parking sign the one that's on C be some you know oh yeah we on that yeah okay well it's the same sign I'm pretty sure no there's no long sign at Island I I install them and I maintain them so I I know there's not a long sign on coffins Island there's one at Wet Meadows there's one at Hiller there's one across the street from Hiller for um so why do I know that green belt is involved because there's some sign that says will s I'm curious now I to go home closely you again sorry but I just saw we just we just do the trail maintenance there to keep it open you know uh just cuz I mean there's nobody else do it so well the T the town of course so are these only open space properties with Public Access is that what we've got on this map or is it all that's correct that's correct since and you know you bring that up and you know the sunflower field Hiller field is not on this map so you know that's something I can add in like in just maybe a different like a light gray shading like other just open space in town I mean I do that and it's going to fill a lot of this out like a lot of the marsh is going to you know be covered by that I mean we own a ton um that I'm not showing here cuz these were more the places you could go to and actually go for a walk you know recreate somehow you know not saying you can't with the marsh but um yeah different I think this is good to keep it separate I'm really curious I want see that M but that I mean not them tasking you or anything but I'm just curious like what other Open Spaces out there yeah um that we don't have access to right people that just own you know 200 Acres or something that's really interesting yeah absolutely you know and I mean technically Everything Green Belt owns is open to the public you know like anybody can go there you have to have it that way um but you know we may not promote something like I don't want to promote necessarily people tracing around graph Marsh but you can do that you can go there you have every right to go there but you know I wouldn't say hey Jim you want to go for water to like that's the place you should go to there's better options you know for people of all abilities too you know I was trying to think about that as well right anybody can go to any of these places yeah so this the um municipal there's H what are those that's great Meadow and um so that's great Meadow and manter Fields yes manter fields and then the beach on the other side on the east side okay cuz there's I mean there's hunting a lot on all the municipal salt marsh off of 1 a right like I don't y I don't know how that like Public Access you know that that that's like I had that question too CU you know yeah more landbased versus Marsh I guess like with Trails or anyway I just think we probably just need to clearly articulate it because otherwise everyone will do what we're doing right now like why isn't this one all you know and of course we just need to say but anyway it's a good reminder I think the title is obviously accurate and I'm open to ideas on the too I just kind of plucked that there yeah um yeah because you you have to look at the fact that the property which is okay on South Street is that South Street the continuation of Scotland Road is South Street right y yep yeah that not that's West Nu the talking about the Green Piece the west side in okay which is in which is in 61bet yes that's ours uh well no there's your or somebody that's conservation restriction though it doesn't doesn't like it's up to the landowner if they want Public Access there on that particular one no but there if you put it into 61b there has to be and it's in 1B okay well no I'm not folding your map I'm just saying that there are number no no no I mean it it's yeah that yeah I don't I don't know if he still has it in B because he put the restriction on it so yeah you know I mean right it's it's as good as B taxwise and just a little bit worse than a so yeah say that's I just know from the Restriction standpoint there's no guaranteed Public Access I don't know like if they put it in chapter or not that's not you know anything I'm technically involved in you know maybe I'm jumping ahead to the next item on the agenda but 61a and B are issues which I think are going to kind of drop onto the table because once again the town has been very dilatory about actually inspecting or finding out what the real status of properties that are supposedly for tax purposes in either of those I think the 61a always been a little tier for the 61b of which there are a handful is you know boy you I mean my understanding too was that you just couldn't post it like if you you if you had 61b you couldn't post no trespassing yeah you know what I mean like that that was always my understanding with it but how the public I know right right I mean that it can go a lot of different ways right I mean it could be you know letting somebody gray animals on it it could be uh you know Hunter can legally cross that parcel and you know yeah you know you are missing also the infamous parcel right across the street from me from you yes right okay which is the one that ties to the bll field in the library which we go for quarter of a million dollars several years ago but that doesn't have Public Access Trail is Town property I know there a lot of other Town property there's a lot of stuff that's not on here that's that's protected and you know protected open space or just open space that has Public Access wait wait wait wait interestingly you saying well that raises the issue about what is public access let me before we go down that road the way I looked at this map was if if if you were visiting Newbury from somewhere else and you wanted to go take a hike this is the map that you you would look at that's the way I looked at this map you know and that's why I said too like if if it's a second map or if it's something on here shaded differently that just showed open space in general I can turn the 61 layers on I I can show everything you know but I I looked at this like if you were coming here and you wanted to know you know a place to go this would give you the the big players in town that you would you would want to go to you know type of thing it's kind of how I approach it that's okay so I CU I was thinking about the website I was thinking about like if somebody's coming to town and there oh there's an open space you know Department there like let's see what they've got for places to go check out like I got my family with me or you know whatever I got my mountain bike or whatever you know these the place I can go you'd have to have your kayak to get to get to the other part of um the the uh posture the one off okay the the one off Orchard Street right you can't get to the part that's south of the river except from the river right right well from from a map Maker's perspective it would take me five times as long to I I would literally have to hand hand Trace you know what like directly access without an impediment type of thing you know um so to that kind of just with that lens of like if you're coming to Newber and you want to go on an open space property and take a hike I would argue maybe naming right the on the map itself yeah because then you're like oh this isn't just showing me everywhere that green belt has property cuz it's not right or everywhere the town has property it's not it's like these are specific places to for you to take a hike and with that does the title not make sense as it stands as public access properties because I can see exactly why you would say you have the comments that you had oh Public Access well there's a lot not showing that has Public Access technically you know yeah right could you just say like I don't know like open space and trails you know something that talks about what you yeah or just well yeah yeah do all of these have Trails of some sort and related do they all have some kind of parking or whether you know it's just a dirt patch right I mean I don't want to I don't I I can't speak for every single spot on there you know um kind of seems like it to me I mean maybe we need to think about identifying it more too like the St is like on the the access point adding an access locate like Tye of thing A P or star or something on the side well yeah we just say this suggested access point if there are other right ways I don't know something well that's why too like I I was trying to think about how this map got tied back to like links on the web page exactly right because if it's if if you're going to like we're not going to reinvent you know the Martin Burns map for example you know so whatever the state has you know for for a map of that area is what's you know going to be on the website and this is just more of the general overview you know the entry point yeah I was thinking you should Mark the access points but then I figure it's going to get too busy some gets interested in going to Martin Burns then they can just scroll Martin burn right yeah this is just kind of a more General yeah I mean some kind of I mean the numbers adding them on to map to what's on the website list me the name itself it doesn't get too busy I think it's a way for people to just yeah you know I didn't want to like I don't know you know like just you know because you know there's you know four or five Green Belt properties there's you know two or three different State Properties I didn't I didn't want the color scheme all of a sudden get super busy to be able to identify it in the legend that's why I kind of just kept it blanketed as like the organization or the entity's name like this is you know us fishal wildli this is you know historic New England this is you know um should you though suggest on this just simply that for more detailed information check the websites of these organizations yep that can be a note right on there you know because sometimes people don't do the obious well again I was hoping we'd have those links right like yeah yeah oh yeah sure cuz I wasn't just thinking about like an outside visitor also thinking like somebody moves to town you know and they're learning about the town and like oh with all these places we can go to recreate you know yeah um but I just thought like links would be kind of the easy thing instead of like Reinventing I also you know love to see something like this in the town clerk's office so someone can physically yeah take it home when they see it and they come to pay their taxes or get a sure parking stick a permission or something yeah because there are a lot of people who don't tend to do too well online with detailed stuff you know I mean well you're going to have it be a trifold of some kind with more text on the back I'm sure I mean that's been done previously the one thing that strikes me about this is wellow I mean nearly 50% and again that's not even showing no it isn't if you play in the others it would be I know or just a quick aside I know that they still do mvpc used to quote our population per square mile or whatever it was okay by dividing it by the total per acre or something yeah per acre or something by the population okay in other words we have 23,000 Acres you divide that by 7,000 know whatever it is and you get this sort wonderful number that we have 2. three people per acre that's crazy because half of the town is totally inaccessible for living on in the sense of and every time I raised this they said well no the problem is there the state standard and I thought yeah right state standard which essentially creates you know a very very deceptive view because some people that tells you a whole lot about what you can do in the town and the other people it's a big plus sure which is you real kind of thing and this this map really tells the story so thank you Mike it's good nice work thank you um it's 8:30 how are people feeling what you want some fun you want to look up my photos no I feel like um I feel like we should probably lean towards wrapping up and I'm a little worried both chapter 61a and the um on myland discussion because take a little longer so so you think both time well I'm just wondering how much more time people have cuz those both those discussions could take a few minutes I'm here were we the 61a remind me why so we'll just like like a few minutes on each topic but let's like be like time box let's not hour I guess would be my preference um but um so chapter 61a it sounds as though everyone has it it an understanding of how that works but um it came up recently David and I um attended the select board meeting because there's a property on Central Street that is currently been in chapter 61a that is being sold um it's the property that has sells the eggs where the chickens often run into the road across from um Plaza yeah Plaza actually geese yeah don't know so um so you know it sounds like we know but the way it works is when a property changes use or changes hands and the use changes um that it needs to be withdrawn and the town has a right of first refusal so one of the ways that open space plans and programs often work is to look at properties that are in that chapter real estate category and think about what because it's a temporary status it's open space but it's temporary from year to year to stay enrolled in that open space use so are there opportunities to look at more permanently protecting properties that's one thing that I think is relevant to open space planning and the other is when a property does change hands to be developed or the use changes the town has this opportunity to really do a good job looking at it and either exercise Its Right of first refusal or convey that right of first refusal to another entity like the land trust a land trust a partner um so um in this case the parcel that's Changing Hands um was just uh included in the overlay District that was approved at town meeting for multif family housing so I think that alone says something about what the town thinks is an appropriate use for that parcel um but the discussion at the select board meeting um the public hearing opened at the last meeting and was continued to the meeting which is next Tuesday night um so the select board um many towns actually have a chapter 61 policy that is adopted by the town to lay out what the review process is and I newr doesn't have an formal policy around that but that's again something I just sort of wanted to flag for us as a committee to think about whether we would want to consider you know recommending that the town have a policy around how that right of first refusal review process goes it's there's lots of you know guidance on that and David I think did a great job at the last select board meeting sharing his you know description of how the select board can reach out to other committees to get input um the planning board did give input to the select board the Conservation Commission I believe might have had it on their agenda tonight but didn't have it at the last meeting right and I the open space committee which hasn't really existed again until recently I don't think the select board specifically reached out to the open space committee but obviously that's a role that would be appropriate for the open space committee um in future such projects so that's kind of just what I wanted to to raise and share and um just thank David for attending the select board meeting and giving some the board some guidance it's there are properties in 61a 61 61b I'm not sure how recently anyone's kind of really done a thorough look at them and done some Outreach I know greenb does that kind of Outreach regularly but just sort of thinking about if they're Parcels that um have a high priority for a more permanent protection is that a role that we can sort of play as a committee is there a list where we can go look up properties yeah I have a list um from the assessor's office it's also they are um it is digitized on the Assessor's parcel data on the my map you can click on the open space which has chapter data it's not completely accurate the Digital Data but it's pretty accurate um but I have an updated list as well yeah and the codes are sometimes hard to decipher yeah right yeah so get the list from the assessor is easier to follow well there's actually a a graphic though like it's there's like a layer that shows like hatch marks for chapter properties um but it's not totally accurate so yeah yeah oh that's right cuz the open space layers has it too and and it's not 100% yeah that's right yeah I looked at that when I was thinking about this months ago as another yeah yeah yeah so the you can go to the actual tax card for each property and that's where they're like different codes that the assessors use like all the yeah 61 is all 700s or something that's not our massgis is it well well it is there is a there is 61 data on massgis but it may not be as up to date gotta because I just kind of looked I kind of compared between what I got from the assessor and the data layer and I was like I'm just going to stop right now decide what we want to do like cuz I could have just went down the rapit hole you know it's like how to make it show up on a map I was like all I'm so wait for it also annually there's an annual enrollment so it's almost going to get outdated as soon as you potentially but very weird too in that they have a coding for what the person is doing under 61a and if you that's what threw me off the different the different codes where I started then when I got the list it was easier to understand like what was what because if you look if you take a APLE and there one that I sort of keep an eye on because I'm interested in what they've cooked up this year is the it Chang and and people at one point was Apostle they were growing growing trees obviously Christmas trees and then the next year they were into vegetables well you know I mean that's highly unlikely on on anybody say so in that you if you're going to do that you're going to have to take down and take out all of the Christmas trees okay and prep the land vegetables in X number no way there's no way you can do that agriculturally speaking and and no one ever says like a Hest why and nobody ever says wait a minute you were hanging this year and last year you were running you know I mean it's just whatever numbers pick out of the sky most of the time and so the net result is that information really only tells you that it is according to the assessors in a 61a as opposed to anything else really doesn't tell you what's going on in reality yeah yeah for some pieces of land that have stayed the same way for years yes it does but when we were doing this the last time when Dan and I started doing this um it was I mean we had a session one morning we we over laughter based on you know what people were saying and and it's only because probably they have a form that comes in I think annually you must complete yeah and you probably you know stick the same number in not even knowing what the number means the 107 is totally different from 104 in terms of whatever it says so I found that information I'm glad you didn't get tangled up in it because it really doesn't tell you anything very level yeah and I mean I just came to the realization that all I cared about was if it was in the 61 program we're not you know what I mean right ex anything else didn't didn't matter from our our perspective of you know what could become available right a first refusal or an assignment or you know I don't care if you're growing crops or if you're grazing cattle or if you're there are there are a couple of properties where looking at that I think benefit fits and one is a property that AB buts a property that green belt has recently acquired namely the development of um Coleman Road H yeah oh yeah fil someway and and it ABS a property which is in 61 correct okay and that property is probably one of the most interesting ones in town as to what happens there because it's a big it's I think the biggest open one with open land around MH without going into to names to have people's knees miling yeah so um that was up um again just you know there are I would sort of put it in a category if someone as we go forward is interested in a little project it could be like a sort of small research project to look at policies that other towns have think about how they you know would work in Newberry and then bring it back to the committee and talk about how to sort of advocate and move that forward potentially do you know like does if have a policy like just we're not like shooting blind yeah West Newberry has one as well yeah there are a few in the area definitely around the there's several more um and then we had um s other items I anticipated um and uh David did some research into on that topic of Public Access looking specifically at the beach and Plum Island so um you want to plug this into your machine sure how it all comes crashing down isn't it I know see one know that's one does have one or does it yeah [Music] okay okay uh why don't you start with what says Temple bouard oh these are photos nice yeah okay so uh the fun thing about this is I started out and it was a nice day okay and what I was first of all what happened was I called um to the Peter you know the father of the pal Island taxpayers Association right um and had an interesting conversation with him which I probably won't relay except to say that Peter has done over a series of years some very hard work in trying to identify both existing and also legal in the sense of public rights of way to the beach which are legally recorded somewhere but may not actually physically exist okay so armed with that knowledge that they had done this that they had provided this information to the town and that there is a whole story as to what happened and what eventuated is what we see and that is that that is um Temple Boulevard which ironically it's really I mean this is where it starts Temple Boulevard is not a th Street you can't drive through Temple Boulevard and and come out the other end it stops however it legally does in fact go out um in terms of planning okay to the beach yeah and it's the one essentially which is the boundary along the boundary between in The Refuge and and and Plum the residential area and what it has on it is the Moi mat which is that blue thing okay um and that is relatively recent because when I was there in the spring um you couldn't at the end that you see at the skyline level there was a 6 to8 foot Dead Drop to the beach and the tangle of rocks where you could kill yourself you know right now it's open okay so uh next slide yes great so Harvard also has a moi mat um and uh at the same time it has the signage which you see all of which is in pretty lousy shape frankly they all have no parking signs but exactly what the other signs say is not always easy to find out so then the next one would be the next named one yeah Dartmouth no there may be a mo okay between Temple Boulevard and Dartmouth the heavens opened okay mean literally started raining like crazy okay so getting out was really not an option so I'm shooting through the window of the truck and I don't know there may be a m mat out of site yeah I haven't been back to check and my guess is perhaps there is but I don't know that for certain okay uh whoopsy can we go actually the 16th I think it is oh okay let's hold it this interestingly if you zero on the sign you see it says emergency access number 13 yeah I only found seven and what I'm wondering is are the other six in Newport perhaps oh okay or the are the six simply were the seven you found sequential or were they all like random numbers oh no I have no idea but that's the new sign and and this particular one is an emergency access Big E meaning I think the fire department the police Department have an interest in this working and so that may be their sign okay but could we find 16th Street there somewhere there okay so as you're driving along and it's now pouring with rain this is what you come to right yeah pull it up even further can you right so here you go The Pedestrian sign is for The Pedestrian walk on the street which of course was not barely visible because they haven't painted it and then there's some interesting things and every one of these has the red sign which says emergency access do not block and then there's a lovely sign which says don't pet the seals okay uh there's a 162 because let's actually look at what the access looks like so if you go back and go to 16 two I was like no dogs no alcohol right right there no no okay there you go that's actually what you see now and now is a sign that says no life guards on duty uh and no fires alcohol uh uh no no dogs on the beach okay uh Al all dogs I thought it was an interesting sort of choice it's alcohol or dogs right right so personally so having said having said no parking everything is no everything is negative oh yeah right right not like Public Access here Public Access here but you can't you can't right okay so next one would be 30 there okay there you go I mean um once again uh yeah when you go up and look at that sign it's the same no FES right and it's really that's really it's you know really inviting right because you will find very often and in this case actually they took it away and they don't quite understand why there was a private parking sign right at the point of access to this which is kind of pretty screw okay next one will be the yeah okay no fires now the other thing is what's that what's the yellow I have no idea I have no idea it's well it should be caution yeah right I mean on the you know the general sort of thing and I don't know and I wasn't about to go find out frankly 45th Street same sort of problem um you know what actually happens when you get there right um and also what's the parking issue is the r not 51st Street um is is has the same sort of problem in that um it's it's a street and so you don't know frankly it's long enough you don't know the emergency access meaning access to the beach is quite not too bad but it's a long way away um and I could only figure after looking at all this stuff two things one is that there is somehow this expectation that if you're on Plum Island either you live there and you know all about this stuff and so the signs don't you don't rely on the signs if you rent you either go there often enough that you become a semi sort of Resident so you know where to go or all bets are off you're all by yourselves and what puzzles me about this is none of this stuff is inviting right if you think about it I mean even though I know it was a rainy day but um all of this stuff talks about emergency access it doesn't talk about public access it doesn't talk about foot access it doesn't say pedestrians only or it it's all negative and this is in a place where we consider this to be you know an economic engine for this town and this is a town that when I was involved in the master plan they were talking about developing tourism right yeah and okay if we think about the fact that and I I I have no nothing to tell me that this is true but there is a well founded belief that nearly a qu of a million dollar came in to work on various aspects of public issues on the island including the one thing that has happened which is public toilets okay and and somehow it just hasn't gotten past what you see in terms of of working on this because there was an earlier Grant of of $50,000 which in fact was used to develop the information about where these public access points were and to do the research and all the rest of it but it wasn't I'll be very honest about this it wasn't until the other night when I realized I should get this together and label these that I saw that sign and I thought number 13 so what happened the other six I don't know I suppose I should call the police department or the fire department and find out it would make sense if they're SP you know Newbury port through newbury's you know own you know what I mean well but the interesting thing is I drove obviously in order to turn around and I I mean I do all the time anyway but it drove into new report new report doesn't identify any as far as I can see so whether the you know and I couldn't get back to to Barrett to find out whether the Peter people had identif since they're an island wine organization and not limited to Newbery I didn't know whether they had identified places in newbur Port logically they should have which had legal access to the beach and so is that are those the other six I I don't know maybe that's the answer but to to have that one labeled number 13 when none of the others have a number of them right yeah so I wish I could uh yeah it's it's pretty weird oh there's not that many places you can fit a fir truck or an ambulance or you know what I mean know 13 spots that you can get so okay so okay I found or I say seven so eight so then we're looking for five because the the main the park the one with the parking lot counts he didn't take a picture of that cuz that's pretty obvious um yeah anyway it was an interesting wet morning uh when I started you know to look at it I realized that what has happened there in terms of initiative has all been on the basis of what if somebody's injured grounding all of which is is is good but at the same time what about the rest of it yeah see there's the Harvard way there's a future that for public Ass Point Parking I some else know one of the things that this raises is that there is really no as far as I'm aware anyway no active consideration of what do does the town in fact do about public parking or parking of any kind of the nonresident or renting public on Plum Island yeah I don't it's the center lot and it's you know driveways for renters put in yeah well what it eventuates is that there are what there's there's one active two active parking lots where you pay one isn't active anymore the one on the south side of the boulevard but you know yeah yeah it it just raises the question that okay so how do you get there on foot on a bike um do you have can you only get there and and walk on the beach by having places you know you can park or friends or something um and I think the Refuge people would tell you that for years they've been dealing with that problem that that people essentially coming to The Refuge looking for a place to par to get to the beach and take their dog and then they find out they can't take the dog right look at this one that just like stops right here that this 9th Street yeah the way out of the RightWay just stops here and then this is private it's kind of weird just really quickly um and I do need to get home but um the parcel just FYI the zoning board has a project on it at its next meeting which is Thursday which is this parcel right here which has where the ice cream shop is you guys know yep it's a proposal to convert it to all residential all resal it's currently commercial on the bottom residential on the top but there's a proposal for two very large HS okay got to approve the minutes from July [Applause] Ella we so appreciate that you've been there see you later out by thank you let's talk soon thank you tell her thank you okay Bill made a motion to um approve the July 16th minutes seconded all in favor great I will post them um David thank you for doing that research because it's interesting and helpful to look at photographs you know um it sort of played into my hunch that that it was pretty spoted um I would try and solve the 13 is I discover coup days so we've talked about regular meetings on the thir Tuesday yeah which would be the 15th okay which is is that indigenous P's Day holiday the 14th so I don't know if that matters to anyone I'm pretty sure Christina said that following Tuesday right now was to Columbus Day yes 15th October the 14th is the Monday and yeah the 15th well it's indigenous people today forget about Columbus yeah so 15th is not good but the following is yep uh yep that's so first or something2 and there's a room um so I actually cannot I'm out of the country on second cool um but then you guys can meet now you have a chance if you would like what does what does that do with us for like credentials getting in here um you know yeah so I mean if that's too soon to figure that out then you know why don't I look into that and then I'll pull everybody and we'll pick the date that the most people can do it so either the 15th or the 22 you can handle it but I mean it's nice having you here so the 15th is better for everybody else and that's okay too okay the 22nd probably won't work for me but okay okay all right then back to the 15th and I don't know if maybe we could set up a remote option in the future too because there's lots of times could call in but you can't be here yeah I would love to have like a better hyrid system but um I'll we'll work on it yeah I mean actually I we have zoom I mean calling in laptop zoom into the table Yeah I think if you I mean I think if it were a zoom it would have to be posted as a zoom and then anybody could log in for the public access component of it m so but we might be able to just do that it's sort of an issue with the recording on camera but anyway it shouldn't be that hard and let's well let's work on it because I think hybrid can be really useful okay motion to adjourn seconded second Mike I'm GNA have you make it we will agree okay at 9:06 excellent fantastic