Open-space committee selects Prospect Hill team for one-year natural-resources inventory

The open-space committee selected a consultant team for a phase-1 natural-resources inventory that will feed development of an island-wide open-space plan.

Committee members said they interviewed several firms and chose a team led by Robin Drake, an island resident who previously worked with Waterkeeper/Riverkeeper organizations, and partner Jenny (last name given in the meeting as Skagini) of Prospect Hill. The contract will begin with a kickoff meeting in the coming weeks and the inventory is expected to take about one year. The inventory will aggregate existing data, identify gaps, and be formatted for usability by town departments such as Parks and Planning so the data can be used for grant-writing, trail planning and other implementation steps. Committee members emphasized they want the work to result in usable outcomes, not a study “that sits on a shelf.”

Members noted recent changes to state wetlands mapping that could affect open-space priorities on the island and said the consultant team has relevant water-resource experience. The committee described the inventory as phase 1; phase 2 will be a full open-space plan that applies the inventory to recommendations and implementation steps, including grant targeting and potential protection of critical habitat or wildlife corridors.

The panel discussed community engagement as part of later phases and requested the consultant coordinate public meetings and advisory-board updates as the work proceeds.