Hollis Conservation Commission reports roughly $1.25M on hand, approves routine bills

At the May 20 meeting the Hollis Conservation Commission received a treasurer's report from Thomas (speaker 5) showing the commission's balance at the end of April was roughly $1.25 million, most of it rolled into a short‑term certificate of deposit. Thomas said earnings from the CD have helped the commission budget for upcoming land acquisitions.

The commission approved several routine bills by voice vote. A motion to pay $49.32 in recording fees for the Birch Hill Conservation Easement carried after a second; the chair asked for an all‑in‑favor voice vote and members responded "Aye." The commission next approved payment of $1,350 to Craig Burch for four annual monitoring reports; members noted the reports will also be discussed later in the agenda. The group then approved $1,275 to DND Appraisal Services (Donna Neroff) for the Walker‑parcel appraisal.

Members discussed one larger appraisal that required two reports because federal coordination was involved; the total for that appraisal was described as about $4,000 and both halves have been paid and will appear on the treasurer's report. The commission noted limited recent expenses (about $1,164 in "other" expenses) and reiterated that land‑use change taxes supply a portion of their acquisition funds.

Why it matters: The payments clear routine administrative steps needed to keep land acquisitions, easement recordings and annual monitoring on schedule. The treasurer's practice of placing funds into short‑term CDs has provided modest interest income to offset future acquisition expenses.

The commission did not set any new spending authorizations beyond the items approved at the meeting.