Approved May 17, 2010
TOWN OF WELLESLEY
NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION
MEETING MINUTES
April 5, 2010, 7 PM
Room 309, Wellesley Middle School
Preceding Annual Town Meeting
Attending: Neal Seaborn, Chair, Heidi Gross, Secretary, Paul Cramer, Vice Chair, Ursula King, Joan Gaughan, Janet Hartke Bowser, NRC Director.
Guests: Joe Roberts, Representative, Wellesley Little League Representative.
Public Voice
No one attending the meeting spoke at Public Voice.
Discussion: Re: Proposed Site Improvements at Reidy Little League Field
Mr. Joe Roberts of the Wellesley Little League discussed a proposal to install a pad to a portion of the brick wall directly behind home plate at Reidy Field, which is parkland under NRC jurisdiction. He stated that Little League has had an issue with pitches that get pass the catcher, which is often the case in Little League, rebounding off of the brick wall much harder than anticipated. He stated that the pad would cushion the ball and would eliminate or greatly improve the problem. He reviewed with the NRC information on the specifications for the padding options. He proposed that the color would match the brick wall to blend in as much as possible, and he reviewed with the NRC information displaying color options. He stated that they are proposing a total width of 12 feet, which would equate to 6
feet on each side of home plate. Mr. Roberts outlined two options as follows:
1. The first option would cover just the brick portion of the wall, some 20”, so that it would not break up the design element of the 4” limestone cap as shown in the photo that was distributed to the NRC. He said that aesthetically, this would be the best option, although it would leave roughly 4” of limestone exposed, which would result in the continued, although greatly reduced, instances of bounce back.
2. The second option would completely eliminate the bounce back issue outlined in Option 1 and would require the installation of a 24” high pad. In considering this option in terms of aesthetics of the limestone cap, the pad’s designed so that the bottom 20” would be a brick color, and the top 4” would match the limestone color.
After further discussion, a motion was made and seconded, and the NRC voted 5 – 0 to approve the installation of Option 1 as described above, which would provide for installation of a pad in order to protect the back portion of the back wall directly behind home plate at the Wellesley Little League’s Reidy Field.
Review and Approval of the NRC March 9, March 23 and March 25, 2010 Meeting Minutes
After a motion was made and seconded, the NRC voted 5-0 to approve the NRC Meeting Minutes of March 9, March 23, and March 25, 2010 as written.
Director’s Report
Review/Approve 2010 Parasitic Fly Release in Centennial Reservation to Control Winter Moth
Ms. Bowser stated that this is the second year of a parasitic fly release in Centennial Reservation by the State Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) to control the winter moth. Ms. Bowser stated that a team of scientists from the DCR released approximately 1,000 parasitic flies in the Reservation to control the infestation of winter moths, which are stripping trees of foliage throughout the State, and in particularly in eastern Massachusetts. This was the largest release of the parasitic flies in the State, which are also being released in pilot projects in Hingham, Wenham, and Falmouth. She stated that Professor Joseph Elkinton, a professor of entomology at UMASS Amherst, is again organizing this year’s project, which is a joint project between UMASS, the Federal government and the DCR. Ms.
Bowser stated that this particular specie of fly, which is the “cyzenis albicans”, is a natural enemy of the winter moth and has been released in other areas to help eradicate the winter moth. Ms. Bowser stated that based on past years’ projects, the scientists believe that the fly will only attack the winter moth and not other insect species, and that it will likely take at least five years for the flies to have a significant impact on the large population of winter moths in the area. It was noted that the change this year will be the use of 3-4 portable release cages, which will measure approximately 4’x4’ x 8’ tall, which will be used in order to ensure that the flies mate at the Reservation and will return to this area and not migrate to other areas. The cage units will only be required for a short time, approximately three weeks, and then will be removed. The current plan is for this project with the cages and the release
to be held between April 20 – April 23. The actual installation will take place previous to that date. After a motion was made and seconded, the NRC voted 5-0 to approve the release of parasitic flies in Centennial Reservation to counter the impact of the winter moth as outlined by the State Department of Conservation and Recreation. Ms. Bowser will keep the NRC updated on the status of this project.
Review Permit to Use Perrin Park for an Exercise Boot Camp
Ms. Bowser reviewed with the NRC an application for a Permit to Use Perrin Parkland for an Exercise Boot Camp, which was also run last year. Ms. Bowser reviewed the application with the NRC and noted that the camp will follow Perrin’s Off-leash Dog Hours at 9:30 AM, and the camp will run until 10:30. After further discussion, a motion was made and seconded, and the NRC voted 5 – 0 to approve the permit application for the use of Perrin Park for an Boot Camp, as long as it does not conflict with the Off-leash Dog Hours.
Update on Unauthorized Tree Removals at Boulder Brook Reservation
The NRC briefly discussed the status of this matter and Ms. Bowser updated the NRC on the progress being made to hire an independent arborist to review damage due to the tree removals and to make recommendations for remediation.
Update on Fuller Brook Park Master Plan Phase 1 Funding Request and Preparation for April 8th Meeting with Abutters and Annual Town Meeting
Mr. Seaborn and Ms. Bowser updated the NRC on the status of this FY11 Funding Request and discussed the presentation to be made at the April 8th Meeting with Abutters and Annual Town Meeting.
Update on Board of Public Works Revisions to Brookside Garden Regulations
Ms. Bowser reported that she attended the BPW’s meeting as requested to review the NRC’s recommendations for revising the BPW’s Brookside Garden Regulations to allow only one garden plot per family due to the long waiting list for garden plots. Ms. Bowser stated that the BPW concurred with the NRC’s recommendations and rationale and approved the revised regulations and rationale and approved the revised regulation by a vote of 3-0. The BPW also approved an updated Brookside Garden Agreement.
Next Scheduled NRC Meeting
The next NRC meeting was scheduled for April 8, 2010 at 7 PM in the Kingsbury Room in the Police Station and the focus will be on the Public Meeting with the abutters to the Fuller Brook Park to outline the next steps in the project and to discuss the current DPW Survey that is taking place along the Fuller Brook.
Adjournment
After a motion was made and seconded, the NRC voted 4-0 to adjourn the meeting.
The meeting adjourned at 7:30 PM and the NRC Members proceeded to attend the Annual Town Meeting.
Respectfully submitted:
Janet Hartke Bowser
NRC Director
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