As the clock advanced towards 6:30 pm on March 9, it looked like the Mattapoisett Conservation Commission might not reach a quorum, but with two minutes to spare, Commissioner John Jacobsen sped through the door, bringing the committee members in attendance to three, along with Trevor Francis and Chairman Mike King.
The agenda for the evening had been rather full, but as the day and time of the meeting neared, applicants were asking for continuances, bringing the hearing schedule from four to just one.
Continued until March 23 were two Notice of Intent filings: Sandy Toes Realty for 27 Nashawena Road for the construction of a new home in the flood zone and Christine and Stephen Coughlin, 40 Prince Snow Circle, for the construction of a single-family home within the buffer zone to bordering vegetated wetlands.
Also continued to the March 23 meeting was a Request to Amend a Notice of Intent filing by Jesse Davidson, 22 Pine Island Road, to permit changes to a plan of record.
The commissioners did open a Notice of Intent hearing for an application filed by the Mattapoisett Land Trust and Georgia Glick for property located at Noyes Avenue and Dyar Road to remove phragmites, an invasive plant species. The non-native variety is problematic throughout the region and requires aggressive and consecutive treatments over several growing seasons to remove, said Mike Huguenin of the MTL.
Huguenin said that salt marshes in and around the property in question were being impacted by freshwater runoff from the neighborhood. He said that he had been in discussion with property owners, “…encouraging the neighborhood to address freshwater drainage,” saying that the freshwater runoff was helping to create, “…the best-looking phragmites around.” He stated that a licensed company employing environmentally acceptable techniques and chemical compounds would be engaged and that a long-term maintenance plan would be developed.
“We plan to do this into perpetuity,” Huguenin said, adding there was neighborhood agreement. “They are highly motivated.” The commissioners conditioned the NOI.
A Certificate of Compliance was issued to Kelly Barley, 14 Melissa Anne Lane, with a request from the commission to clean-up trash and other discarded materials in jurisdictional areas.
On the topic of filling open seats on the commission, Chairman Mike King introduced his new neighbor Carl Bonnell, who recently expressed interest in ways to volunteer in the community. King said he invited Bonnell after he sent a letter of interest to the Board of Selectmen regarding a slot on the commission. Bonnell said he recently purchased a home in Mattapoisett where he now lives with his family. Other family members live in nearby towns, he said.
Bonnell shared his background, which includes being an Air Force veteran having served in Iraq, his early years growing up in Attleboro, and his career in pest control.
King said that a second candidate had also been invited to attend the meeting but was not present. King explained to Bonnell that the selectmen appoint members to the commission but that the commission makes its recommendations.
The next meeting of the Mattapoisett Conservation Commission is scheduled for March 23 at 6:30 pm in the town hall conference room.
Mattapoisett Conservation Commission
By Marilou Newell