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Selectboard discusses transferring Town Forest on Putney Mountain to local association
Summary
Conservation commissioners asked the board to transfer Town Forest land on Putney Mountain to the Putney Mountain Association for protection; the board requested review of prior Town Meeting votes, noted assessed values for parcels, and asked for a drafted article for Town Meeting.
Tom Hinckley, vice chair of the Conservation Commission, asked the Selectboard to transfer the Town Forest on Putney Mountain to the Putney Mountain Association so the land would be protected from sale or logging. The Town Manager clarified the property in question includes 49 acres in Putney (assessed value $297,400) and 85 acres in Brookline (assessed value $171,000 and taxed). Geordie Heller noted that if a conservation easement were placed on the property the easement value would be about $29,740.
Board members voiced caution about abandoning an asset without further review. Aileen Tulloch said the current Selectboard should review prior votes and bring specific article language back to the board; Lies Pasterkamp of the Putney Mountain Association asked what due diligence would be required to advance a vote. The minutes record the Town Manager answering, "I don't know would have to research," when asked what the Town would lose by giving up the land.
