Pittsfield ConCom Considers Conservation Restriction
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Conservation Commission supports efforts to place a conservation restriction on a Knox Road property.
At its first meeting of the year last Thursday, the panel voted to support joining the Berkshire Natural Resource Council to co-hold a conservation restriction on a 48-acre parcel of the Scace family farm. A formal vote will be taken at the next meeting and will have to be finalized by the mayor and city council.
"It's just about crossing the T's and dotting the I's," Chair and Ward 4 Councilor James Conant said.
The commissioners would like to see firmer documentation before the vote.
The BNRC is seeking $25,000 to place a conservation restriction on the land and has asked the city to be a co-holder through the Conservation Commission.
"One of the ways that we conserve land is to work with private land owners who are interested in placing either an agricultural preservation restriction or a conservation restriction on their land," BNRC's Director of Community Programs Mackenzie Greer said.
"And that's a perpetual restriction that runs with the land, not the landowner."
The property owners are interested in conserving the land at 86 Knox Road that has been in their family for multiple generations. It is in a focus area for the BNRC because it has "high-value resources" and has been identified as a habitat for rare and invasive species, made up of forest, a wetland core, and active agricultural land.
"We have been working with the Scaces on a potential conservation approach here. What we've identified together is their desire for a conservation restriction to be placed over the majority of the land, reserving a small area around the existing house lot and a little more land as well, about one acre to the north," Greer said.
"So in the process of working with them, they've offered a bargain sale of that conservation restriction at 50 percent. That's where negotiation landed."
She said the value of the restriction, which was certified by an appraiser, is about $170,000.
"The [Community Preservation Act] funding requires when used for land acquisition either a fee acquisition or acquisition of a conservation restriction," she explained.
"In this case, it does require that the city holds a type of property interest so in a project like this, it usually means co-holding that conservation restriction with an entity like the BNRC that's leading the project."
The restriction is "farm forward," which contains rights to allow an agricultural operation that is protective of the habitat values.
The BNRC's role is to craft the CR with a co-holder and once it is in place, it is recorded at the Registry of Deeds with a perpetual obligation to be monitored and restrictions to be enforced. As the primary co-holder, BNRC would monitor it annually and would be responsible for decision-making.
The terms would be spelled out in a memorandum of understanding between the city, the commission, and the BNRC.
"I think this is a little bit of a chicken and egg scenario," Greer added. "Should the CPA not fund this project, we wouldn't ask the city to co-hold the CR. From our perspective, it wouldn't be necessary. It's an extra layer of complication more for us than for you."
The organization determined that the site does not seem appropriate for public access at this time and the public benefit would be rooted in protecting the habitat. If a public trial were to seem like a good idea in the future and be agreeable to the land owners, it would be enabled through the CR.
A couple of commissioners spoke in support of the effort and also expressed a desire for more finalized documents. Greer said there would be some time before there is a final CR due to the state process.
Tags: BNRC, conservation commission, conservation restriction,
