Neighbors press board over marked trees, timbering and trail plan at town park

Several residents urged the board for clearer notice and oversight after survey ribbons and tree markings appeared on town parkland intended for new trails. Chuck Kaczynski opened the comment with a firsthand description: "I walked out through my own woods out there, and I see 500 yards of pink ribbon where somebody had surveyed my entire eastern border without any knowledge on my phone." He asked whether the town had followed proper bidding and notification procedures and whether adjoining landowners had been informed.

Town leadership responded that the markings were made by a forester (identified in discussion as Matt Hart of Wagner Lumber) as part of a preliminary feasibility assessment and that the town had not signed a contract; the board said any payments would be placed in an escrow account designated for park improvements, not the general fund. A staff member explained New York's parkland legal constraints: "there's a doctrine called parkland alienation... harvesting timber to generate revenue is not allowed. Removing trees in order to make improvements to the park is allowed." Residents pushed for community involvement in planning, expressed concern over post-harvest cleanup and skidder damage, and asked that neighboring Hamlet residents be included in design conversations.

The board said it would continue public discussion as designs progress and indicated it would not form an oversized committee but would bring plans back for public comment at future meetings.