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Planning board to send letter of support for updated Open Space and Recreation Plan
Summary
The Planning Board agreed to send a letter of support for the town’s updated Open Space and Recreation Plan (OSRP) to the state; the board discussed the plan’s purpose, funding origins and next steps for state approval.
The Falmouth Planning Board on Jan. 14 agreed to provide a letter of support for the town’s updated Open Space and Recreation Plan (OSRP), which staff said is ready to submit to the Massachusetts Division of Conservation Services once the board and Select Board letters are collected.
Town Planner Jed Cornock and planning staff summarized the OSRP process: a 2022 grant from the Cape Cod Commission funded early work, the town later added Town Meeting capital funding to finish the draft, and consultants completed required elements including an ADA self-evaluation and a seven-year action plan. Cornock told the board the OSRP will help the town plan for conservation and recreation, maintain eligibility for grant funding and support planned initiatives such as conservation of the Benjamin Nye site.
Cornock asked the board to sign a letter of support; the Select Board had already approved a letter the prior week and staff said they are working with the Cape Cod Commission to secure its endorsement. Board members discussed minor drafting changes to the proposed letter, including shortening lists of historic planning-board member names in the staff-drafted proclamation. The board agreed that preserving the named historic members in the proclamation was appropriate and that staff could simplify the cover letter.
Board members voted in favor of sending the letter of support; staff said the packet would be forwarded to the state once the planning-board signature and the Cape Cod Commission letter are in hand. Cornock and staff urged residents and board members to review the plan on the town website, and said having the OSRP approved by DCS keeps the town eligible for conservation and recreation grants.
The board’s action is administrative: the letter supports submission of the draft OSRP to the state approving authority and does not itself change land-use policy.
