Commission details steps for Newnie Munger land purchase; surveys, stewardship fund and grants discussed

The Brentwood Town Conservation Commission discussed next steps in the planned purchase of an 11.12‑acre property on South Road and options for stewarding the land after acquisition.

The commission chair reported the town has bond bank approval in place and the bond has been sent out for bids; interest rates are expected to be announced this month. The town will draft a warranty deed that references conservation and public access and will take that draft to the select board for review. The chair said the anticipated closing with the landowners, Jill Nooney and Bob Munger, is likely in September or October, with bond proceeds expected in August.

Commission members discussed whether to order a retracement survey now or first conduct a walk of the overgrown parcel to locate existing boundary markers. Surveyor Northam provided a proposal of about $7,300 that could be reduced in limited cases, but told the commission it cannot make a donation to the town; Northam said he could hold the price through the year. The commission agreed to schedule a walk of the property with volunteer members (and possible assistance from Bob, who has the electronic survey) to see which markers can be found before deciding whether to proceed with a full retracement survey.

Members raised maintenance and stewardship issues for the parcel. The commission noted a small man‑made, quarter‑acre pond on the property with a wooden dock that is currently rickety and a potential liability; members agreed the dock should be removed after closing. They also discussed preparing or updating a stewardship/management plan for the Newnie Munger parcel and for an adjacent town property and suggested obtaining a combined quote to update both plans together (a 10‑year review cycle was mentioned).

The commission reviewed funding options for mowing and initial clearing. The Fish and Game small grants program (application cycle recently opened) can contribute up to $10,000 over 10 years, generally with per‑property caps (applicants cited roughly $4,000 per property per grant cycle and $1,000 per acre for bush‑hogging in some program guidance). Commission members said they will update the Fish and Game application to request brush‑hogging of specific areas and may combine town budgeted maintenance funds and volunteer mowing to leverage grant funds.

The chair also raised a separate stewardship‑fund proposal: a capital reserve or trustees‑held trust to accumulate funds for maintenance and legal defense of conserved properties. She said this would likely require discussions with the trustees of the trust funds and possibly a town‑meeting step if seed money were requested; donations could also seed a trustees‑held fund without an appropriation. The commission agreed to pursue an initial conversation with the trustees to clarify the process and required deed-of-gift language.

Finally, the chair announced she will step aside as chair in August but offered to remain on the commission to help with the transition. Members discussed next steps: schedule the walk to find markers, pursue the Fish and Game grant application for mowing/brush‑hogging work, obtain quotes for a management/stewardship plan update, and remove the dock after closing.