COCHITUATE RAIL TRAIL TASK FORCE
MINUTES OF MEETING
APRIL 16, 2008
Members present: Karla Sangrey, Josh Ostroff, Dave Camacho, John Griffith, Karen Patterson Greene
Alternate Members present: Peter Henry, Matt Daniels, Harry Newell
Advisors/visitors present: none
Note: The March meeting of the CRT Task Force was canceled. This April 16, 2008 meeting is the first meeting of the CRT Task Force since February 20, 2008.
Chair Karla Sangrey called the meeting to order at 7:10.
1) Minutes of January 16th and February 20
Reviewed revisions to the minutes from January 16, 2008 as well as the minutes from February 20, 2008; several spelling corrections and other language refinements were offered and accepted. Minutes for both sessions were approved unanimously.
2) CSX Update
a. Request for Quotation: The Request for Quotation (RFQ) for an appraisal has been issued. The Task Force considered whether the RFQ went to a short list of appraisers and whether that list included those recommend by Dick Miller.
b. Repairs: Repairs to the culvert and Route 9 bridge have still not been undertaken by CSX; Josh will continue to pursue. The Town is working with CSX on Willow Street drainage improvements which are related to the culvert repair.
c. Rail Banking: The May 5th Board of Selectman (BOS) meeting will include the vote to renew rail banking. Rail banking needs to be renewed every 180 days, and the current extension is set to expire soon, but can be updated with an electronic transmission.
d. Newspaper Articles: Karla presented two Boston Globe articles regarding CSX and Commuter Rail liability issues. Task Force discussion centered on whether bundling discussions of rail trail acquisition for Natick with other communities and/or CSX negotiations regarding the main line would be practicable. The feeling was that we should look to collaborate with other communities. Bundling rail trail negotiations with current CSX Worcester to Framingham main line negotiations may not be successful per the advice of Tom Cahir, Exec Office of Transportation.
3) Warrant Article Report
The CRT Warrant Article (Number 36 on the Town Meeting agenda) has not yet been presented at Town Meeting. Karla circulated photocopies of her proposed slideshow for the Town Meeting, and the Task Force offered comments in anticipation of questions that might be asked at Town Meeting. Discussion topics included language, amount of material appropriate for slides, order of slides, whether to provide handouts at Town Meeting, presentation of project map, and whether the last slide should be a “Next Steps” slide.
4) Outreach
a. FAQ – The Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section of the web page has not been revised. Josh is working on the revisions. The Task Force decided that further feedback would be provided to Harry Newell electronically.
b. May 8th Meeting – The draft outline for the meeting was circulated. Dave, Karen, Dick and Josh are the subtask group. The discussion centered on the agenda. Karen thought that inviting other rail trail communities to the meeting would take us away from our core issues. A presentation by Craig Della Penna would be enough to present the rail trail experience to the community. The Task Force then discussed the meeting format, how the Question and Answer session would work, whether there would be a moderator for the meeting and what types of refreshments to offer. The presentation of
GIS and other maps related to the trail was discussed. Karen will contact Charlie at the library regarding tables and easels. Josh will work with Randy (Natick Pegasus). Josh suggested reissuing the outline with these new inputs.
c. Outreach for the meeting – Josh offers to create a flyer as part of outreach. Karla has email addresses, and Dave offers to help Karla organize those addresses into a more compact and useable format. Josh suggests that a postcard emailing to abutters would be appropriate. Karla will email interested parties such as the Public Works Department, Open Space Committee, ZBA, state senators and representatives, Natick Labs, maybe Boston Scientific, too. Karla will attach the flyer to the email invitations. Flyers might also be distributed at Landry’s, REI, the Natick Outdoor Store and to neighborhood
associations.
5) Other Regional Issues
The Framingham CRT cleanup is scheduled for May 10th. We discussed whether it would be appropriate to organize a clean up for portions of the Natick CRT, under CSX ownership but with waivers of liability. The Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization is funding alternative methods of transportation, and Josh will talk with Pat Reffett regarding opportunities. Natick Days are coming again soon, and the CRT Task Force (Karen) will request a table.
6) Meeting Dates - The Public Meeting is scheduled for May 8th, but may be delayed by the Town Meeting. May 15th and June 17th were selected as the next dates, both meetings to be held at 7:00 p.m.
7) Other Business – There was no other business. The meeting was adjourned at 8:37 p.m.
Respectfully submitted by Matt Daniels and Karla Sangrey
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