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Committee urges updates to encroachment policy; staff to coordinate hedgerow, sidewalk work and 1 Big Beach easement summaries
Summary
Town staff and committee members discussed revising the town encroachment policy to improve enforcement, arranging DPW hedge trimming in problem locations and assembling a GIS layer and summaries for "1 Big Beach" easements that allow limited public access.
Committee members and staff discussed several access and maintenance items on May 20, including the encroachment policy, sidewalk conditions, hedge- and sight-line trimming, and mapping of "1 Big Beach" easements.
Tracy McDonald said the town has an intern this summer who will help assemble a list of "1 Big Beach" easement locations and summarize each easement's exact pedestrian or use rights. "The 1 Big Beach easements are interesting . . . majority of the time, they do involve some type of pedestrian access, but then a lot of times they're not full beach access," McDonald said; staff proposed compiling a GIS layer and a short summary of rights so the public knows where pedestrian use is permitted and where lingering or recreational use is restricted.
Members and staff agreed the town's encroachment policy needs revision to aid enforcement. Tracy McDonald said she and Bob have discussed amendments and proposed convening a focused meeting to identify suggested changes for legal review. "We do believe it does need some amendment," McDonald said; she also noted actual enforcement work is carried out by the Department of Public Works (DPW) after requests are routed through staff.
Several committee members raised specific maintenance issues: repeated hedge growth that blocks sidewalks (Williams Lane example), sight-line trimming for vehicle safety, and sidewalk repairs. Staff reported DPW would be asked to maintain several hedge and sight-line locations on a regular schedule and to prioritize safety-related trimming. On Williams Lane staff said DPW has been asked to stake and trim hedges, and DPW will cut hedges where elderly homeowners cannot maintain them themselves.
Why it matters: Committee members framed these issues as safety and accessibility concerns — sight lines and obstructed sidewalks affect pedestrian and vehicle safety — and as matters of predictable town maintenance and clearer public information about access rights.
What the meeting decided: Staff will collect and map "1 Big Beach" easements and prepare summaries of easement rights; staff will work with DPW to schedule hedge trimming and sight-line maintenance in identified trouble spots; staff and committee members will convene a follow-up meeting to propose specific encroachment policy amendments for legal review.
