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Conservation commission to draft language for possible cemetery land donation
Summary
Members discussed a potential donated parcel for a future cemetery, possible right-of-first-refusal and sunset provisions, and whether legal/title costs should come from the conservation fund or the open-space bond; staff will receive a draft for review and bring it to the open-space group next week.
Members of the Brentwood Town Conservation Commission discussed language for a possible future cemetery on land that was presented to the town as a donation and agreed to prepare draft language for review.
The discussion began after commissioners said Jim Azure had made a presentation about the need for a cemetery and that a memo proposing donation of land had been circulated. Commissioner Matt moved to approve and seal the January nonpublic minutes earlier in the meeting, and later the commission returned to public session to consider the donation topic. A commissioner said she had given the donation packet to Andrea, who has the materials and will be involved in next steps.
Commissioners debated provisions the town should seek in any donation agreement. One participant proposed including a right of first refusal so the town could use the land if needed, while also considering a sunset or reversion clause if the land were not used for a cemetery within a fixed term. Another commissioner said the commission could draft the language and present a rough draft at the open-space meeting the following week. A member noted past transactions like easement donations had been handled through the conservation commission and suggested the commission could use the conservation fund to cover title and legal costs rather than the open-space bond.
The commission did not adopt formal language or take a binding vote on terms during the meeting; members directed that draft language be prepared for near-term review. The discussion included a request to return a draft to the commission by next month if the timeline calls for action this year.
Votes at a glance
- Motion to approve and seal the January nonpublic minutes as amended (moved by Matt). Motion seconded; chair called for and received affirmative votes. The meeting record shows the motion was approved and the minutes sealed. (Transcript excerpt: “So, I'd like to move to approve the January non public minutes as amended and seal them and seal those minutes.” — Matt.)
Context: The cemetery discussion arose during regular business and public-session conversation after the commission reopened from nonpublic session; commissioners asked staff to prepare draft language and bring it to the open-space subgroup for review.
