Francestown commission approves purchase of two weed-wrench tools, outlines 2026 conservation projects

At its March 2 meeting the Francestown Conservation Commission approved a motion to purchase two invasive-plant removal tools ("weed wrenches") to be loaned to the public through the town library. The motion was made by Jim St. Jean and seconded by Elizabeth Hunter Lavallee; the minutes record the motion passed unanimously without objection. Funds for the purchase were to come from the commission’s conservation fund.

The vote occurred within a broader discussion of the commission’s 2026 work plan. Members identified a series of maintenance and small projects: maintaining or adding duck boxes (about seven or eight existing boxes in Crotched Town Forest; Betsy has three additional spare boxes), addressing a patch of Japanese knotweed on the Fisher Hill Town Forest along Route 47, replacing or adding signage (with David Gleason offering assistance), mowing the field near the duck blinds at Crotched Forest, installing replacement picnic tables, adding new signage at the Dinsmore conservation area (including near the apartments), repairing the bridge on the Link trail, and revisiting a rogue trail off Bullard Hill Road with potential closure if it remains in use.

Commissioners discussed the possibility of purchasing tools and making them available for loan to support citizen and volunteer invasive-species removal efforts; the minutes record the library as the proposed loan point. The minutes do not list the specific tool brand or per-unit cost; they record only the number of tools (two) and the funding source (conservation fund).

The commission recorded no dissent on the motion and did not attach restrictions beyond using conservation-fund dollars for the purchase. The minutes show the vote and the work-plan items as items for the commission’s implementation and volunteer coordination in 2026.