Town of Warwick Joint Meeting of Selectboard and Planning Board Scenic Road Tree Hearing October 2, 2013 Minutes Selectboard Members present: Dawn Magi, Nick Arguimbau, Patricia Lemon Planning Board Members: Brad Compton, Arthur Long, Matt Connelly, Nick Arguimbau Others present: Town Coordinator David Young, Town Secretary Rosa Fratangelo Calcari, Tree Warden Dana Songer, Highway Superintendent Tim Kilhart, Conservation Commission Chair Karro Frost and members Alan Berman and Kasey Rolih, Forest Committee members Keith Ross and Chris Duerring, Leigh Youngblood and Sarah Wells (Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust), Pat Vandenberg, Jack Cadwell, Lawrence "Doc" Pruyne, David Koester, A. George Day, Betsy Alkins, Michael Humphries, Susan Wright, George Roaf, Richard Field, Jon Calcari, Paula Lundgren Robinson (Athol Daily News, David Rainville (Greenfield Recorder) I. Call to Order Chair Magi called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm in Town Hall. Scenic Road Tree Hearing Lemon MOVED to postpone the hearing until Saturday or Sunday to have a site visit to Gale Road and to close Gale Road to hold the hearing there. Arguimbau SECONDED for the purpose of discussion. Tree Warden Dana Songer said that since those present had made the effort to be here tonight, that he wanted to hear what everyone had to say and that those in attendance deserved to be heard now. He said that the hearing could be continued if necessary for a site visit. Lemon WITHDREW her motion. Selectboard Chair Magi turned the hearing over to Tree Warden Dana Songer. He explained that this hearing was to address trees slated for cutting on Kirk Road, Chestnut Hill Road, West Wilson Road, and Gale Road. Conservation Commission Chair Karro Frost said that the Con Comm had focused on Gale Road, and that she had spent eleven hours to evaluate the proposed cutting on that road. She said that she had concerns about the other roads but she had not had time to view them. Songer noted that the haring had been legally posted and that all abutters had been notified. Highway Superintendent Tim Kilhart said that there was a procedure which had to be followed per the Scenic Roads Act, and that he had turned in all necessary paperwork prior to the deadline last month. Songer said that Kirk Road was marked per the cutting policy from Route 78 to the end of the road. Hazardous trees were marked with blue ribbons, trees over 6" in diameter were marked with orange ribbons, and those not to be cut were marked with pink ribbons. Frost said that there is a perennial stream running through that road. Songer said that both Chestnut Hill and West Wilson Roads were also marked in the same manner as Kirk Road. Planning Board acting Chair Brad Compton said that the Board had received a letter from Chestnut Hill Road resident Linda Styles saying that she was not opposed to cutting the trees on her road. Songer said that trees were marked on Chestnut Hill Road from Wendell Road to West Wilson Road. Kilhart said that the land owners are encouraged to take the wood quickly if they want it. Songer noted that abutters have the first right of refusal. Kilhart explained that the Highway Department will cut most of the trees, and that they work in cooperation with the arborist from National Grid and a private tree cutting company. A comment was made that there is a lot behind the church where unclaimed wood can be taken to be used for firewood. Frost said that she had concerns about Chestnut Hill Road between Shepardson and West Wilson Roads, as there are a lot of wetlands along that stretch of road. Songer said that West Wilson Road was marked from Chestnut Hill until it dead ends. Frost expressed some concerns about the culvert crossing under the road and other wetlands along the edges of the road. Songer said that a lot of trees are dead or diseased, or have branches that could fall into the road. Some trees were leaning towards the road and could fall under the weight of snow. He explained that there is a disease going around that is killing the beech trees and a blight killing hemlocks. Kilhart likes to open up the tree canopy a bit to allow for more sunlight on the roads to help melt the ice. He said that since hazardous trees can fall on wires, it is crucial to make sure that the trees fall the right way when they are cut. He noted that dead trees are the most hazardous and most likely to fall. Songer explained that his job as Tree Warden is to keep the healthy trees healthy and remove dead trees to prevent them from falling into the roadways. He said that the only opposition expressed on Kirk, Chestnut Hill or West Wilson Roads was that Karro Frost had not yet had the time to view the sites. Songer then brought the discussion to gale Road. Kilhart read aloud the overall cutting plan. He said that they have been cutting trees for quite awhile, with an eye towards those trees and branches that could fall in a storm due to wind or the weight of snow. He said the emphasis was on identifying trees causing the most hazards. Kilhart noted that there has been opposition in the past to cutting trees on Gale Road, and that he has kept trees standing. He pointed out that he needs to cut trees that could potentially cause damage to a truck that then would not be able to sand Gale Road and other roads as well, which means that the impact of not cutting dangerous trees on one road can impact other roads as well. Kilhart said that a 16" hemlock marked for this hearing fell across Gale Road on September 3rd, and because the call came in at night it cost the Town overtime for two Highway workers to remove the tree. He said that low hanging branches and those near the edge of the road become covered with snow which falls onto the road after plowing and sanding have occurred, which creates more ice and presents a driving hazard. Kilhart said that 121 trees now dead were not dead in April of 2011 when the cutting of approximately 50 trees took place. He said that all the beech trees are now diseased and the hemlock blight is causing all of those trees to die as well. He said that if disease is seen on a tree that we do not want to wait until the tree dies and becomes even more hazardous. Kilhart state dthat his number one concern is the safety of Gale Road and all the people in Town. He noted that one of the trees slated for cutting on West Wilson Road fell against the wires and National Grid had to remove it. David Koester said that he went out and cut some of the tree that fell on Gale Road on September 3rd and that he rolled some of the large logs out of the way to partially open the road. Kilhart explained because he received a call about a downed tree in the roadway, his crew had to come out and that they completely removed the tree and opened the road. J. Calcari asked if the Town is liable if a resident goes into the road to remove a downed tree and something happens. Young said that the liability is assumed by the resident who takes it upon himself to go cut the tree on a public way. Pat Vandenberg said that she has lived on gale Road for 38 years and has seen a lot of trees fall. She said that she agreed with a lot of what Kilhart had said because she has seen it first hand. She praised the work Kilhart and his crew has done since he became Highway Superintendent. She said that she has lost electricity many times through the years due to trees falling on the power lines. A comment was made by a woman who said that she did not live on Gale Road but walks or drives on the road often. She said that she considers Gale Road to be uniquely beautiful because of the closed canopy of trees. She said that if the trees are cut then sand from the road will wash into the wetlands. Leigh Youngblood of the Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust (MGLCT) said that the Trust owns 517 acres of land on Gale Road, with a total of 1.67 miles of frontage: 1.12 miles on the west side and .55 miles on the east. She said that all the trees along the Trust's land are slated fro cutting. She said that this land is a protected wildlife habitat, and that the road itself is uniquely scenic. She stated that MGLCT is opposed to the cutting as currently proposed, and that she looked forward to a site visit for an explanation of the reason for cutting individual trees. Kasey Rolih said that she uses Gale Road almost daily, either in her vehicle or hiking, and that she was concerned with the level of proposed cutting. She said that Gale Road is unique even among rural scenic roads and wanted a restrained and nuanced approach to the cutting. She said that she put a yellow "do not cut" ribbon on almost all of the trees marked with orange ribbons, because she wanted to see the cutting be limited to the blue marked hazard trees. Songer noted that the same indications seen two years ago on trees that are now dead, so these were marked to be cut while still diseased but not yet dead rather than wait until the trees die and present a greater hazard.. He explained that the Tree Warden alone decides which trees are deemed hazardous and are marked with blue ribbons. Songer said that prevention means that cutting may not need to be done every year. Sarah Wells of MGLCT said that she was concerned about the wetland communities along Gale Road which are sensitive to changes in water chemistry, which could be altered by tree cutting. She wanted a review of all trees in those areas to prevent any detriment to wetlands. Kilhart said that he counted 121 hazardous trees. Compton said that there were 695 discretionary trees marked. Young suggested the cutting be limited to hazardous blue marked trees this year and reevaluate the discretionary trees in a year. Mike Humphries said that Northfield cut trees well back from their roads but it did not help increase sunlight to the east-west roads in the winter months. He said that he gets out of his vehicle and removes branches whenever he finds them in the road. He favored dealing only with those trees considered to present a big safety concern. Frost said that she looked at every tree and that there is a huge amount of wetlands on Gale Road. She said that there are 3 certified vernal pools and other rare areas of wetlands. She described a living guard rail of trees, and cutting those could cause cars to go off the road and into the wetlands. She pointed out that trees pull water from the ground, so the removal of trees would make for more wetlands. Jack Cadwell said that the character of Gale Road has remained pretty much the same since 1966, and that even though it may be a substandard road, the look of the road should be preserved. Lawrence Pruyne said that this road was rare and deserved special consideration. He said that the trees provide a buffer zone to irreplaceable wetlands, and that he was concerned the cutting will have a negative impact on the wetland areas. Conservation Commission member Alan Berman said that he was concerned with the expansion of the road into the wetlands and that he did not want to see them filled in when the road subsides and grading pushes dirt and sand into the wetlands. Compton read aloud the letter received by the Planning Board regarding the proposed tree cutting on Gale Road. The salient points of each letter follows: Linda Styles was opposed to the cutting on Gale Road; Open Space Committee member Mary Williamson listed reservations the committee has on the scope of the cutting; Gale Road residents Don Walter and Jennifer Adams described the proposed cutting as overly ambitious, and felt that it could irreparably damage the unique scenic character of Gale Road which is why they favored only the cutting of potentially hazardous trees; MGLCT felt that the biodiversity would be threatened by the proposed cutting, supported measures to maintain public safety by the removal of only hazardous trees along the roadsides, and encouraged the Highway Department to work in cooperation with the Conservation Commission to prevent undue harm to the vernal pools. Tree Warden Dana Songer suggested that, with Highway Superintendent Tim Kilhart's approval, to make the road safe the proposed cutting of trees on Gale Road be limited to hazard trees marked by blue ribbons, dead limbs hanging over the road, and approximately 25 trees marked with orange ribbons that were not also marked by a yellow "do not cut" ribbon. He said that all trees marked with both an orange and a yellow ribbon would not be cut and the health of those trees would be reassessed in a year. There were comments made about a stubby tree about 10 feet tall that was most likely going to crumble rather than fall over, and several people favored allowing that particular tree to stand. Songer said that the trees would be cut in a collaborative effort between himself, the Highway Superintendent and the arborist from National Grid. He noted that the Tree Warden budget funds the cutting of trees. Songer also pointed out that as Tree Warden he has the authority to mark hazard trees and proceed on those trees without a hearing. Kilhart said that the smaller trees would be chipped up, while larger ones would be left in the woods to rot naturally. Frost said that no wood chips should be left on the sides of Gale Road as it would suffocate the vegetation and make it difficult for animals to move through it. Youngblood said to leave the trees laying there and leave the long logs to rot, just not near the side of the road where they would present a hazard. Songer noted that while Karro Frost and the Conservation Commission had not had the time to evaluate the proposed cutting on Kirk, Chestnut Hill and West Wilson Roads, due diligence had been done in giving the public ample time to view the sites, so he was looking to the Selectboard for guidance. He asked if a vote should be taken now, or should the Con Comm be given more time. Frost said that she could view the remaining sites within one week. Kilhart said that he was willing to walk the roads with Frost within that week. Songer MOVED to cut Kirk Road, Chestnut Hill Road and West Wilson Road as marked, with the exception of the Conservation Commission marking wetland areas within the next week and reviewing with the Highway Superintendent, and on Gale Road to cut the blue-marked hazardous trees with the exception of the one stubby tree, and limited cutting of the orange marked trees to those not also marked with yellow. Magi SECONDED. Motion CARRIED by Unanimous Vote of Selectboard, Planning Board and Tree Warden Selectboard Young said that the Roland Weld, on behalf of the Firemen's Association, had applied for two one-day beer licenses for a charity softball event being held on October 5 and 6, 2013. Lemon MOVED to approve the issuance, based on the application received, to Roland Weld on behalf of the Warwick Firemen's Association, two Special Licenses to sell beer at the charity softball game on October 5 and 6, 2013. Magi SECONDED. Motion CARRIED 3-0-0. IV. Adjournment At 7:25 pm, Magi MOVED to adjourn the meeting. Lemon SECONDED. Motion CARRIED 3-0-0. Minutes taken by Rosa Fratangelo Calcari