Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Recreation Trails topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Ware commission approves chair’s signature for snowmobile club grant, seeks legal agreement to protect trails
Summary
The commission unanimously authorized its chair to sign a landowner permission form so the local snowmobile club can apply for grant aid for two new trails and asked the chair to consult town counsel about a formal agreement to secure public access and protect the town’s interests.
The Ware Conservation Commission voted unanimously to allow its chair to sign a landowner permission form that the local Snowmobile Club needs to include with a grant application for new trails, and later authorized the chair to seek town-counsel advice about a binding agreement to protect the trails in the future.
Ralph, speaking for the Snowmobile Club, presented a map of the Phelps Farm area and surrounding town parcels and described two potential trail loops and a shorter connector that would provide improved access and parking near Merrill Road. He told the commission the club trimmed brush this year and wants to apply for grant aid; the grant timeline requires a permissions form by May 2.
"To apply for the grant, I need that permission slip," Ralph said, asking the commission to authorize a town official to sign on the club’s behalf. Commissioner Steve moved that the chair sign the application; Mark seconded the motion and the commission approved it unanimously.
The club asked for flexibility about access-control infrastructure. Members discussed removable schedule-40 pipe gates (slid into I-beam sleeves) to block unauthorized off-road vehicles while permitting authorized entry for logging or maintenance. Commissioners and the club also discussed short, removable bridges or corduroy at wet crossings and the possibility of a gate on Peaslee Road to deter long-wheelbase vehicles that have been damaging trails.
Because some trail segments would cross land under conservation easement or private ownership, the commission later considered how to protect the club’s investment. Commissioner Steve moved — and Ray seconded — that the chair be authorized to ask town counsel about a written agreement or easement to codify trail use and long-term responsibilities. The motion carried.
Ralph asked the commission to provide contact information to complete the permissions form; commission members agreed Mark would send the paperwork and contact details so the club could submit its grant application on time.
The motions to authorize the chair’s signature for the grant permission and to consult town counsel passed with no recorded opposition. The commission instructed staff to vet any easement language and coordinate with PLC where easement-holding language may restrict motorized use.
