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Open Space Acquisition Committee

Committees: Open Space Acquisition Committee

2007 Annual Report

The Open Space Acquisition Committee, established by Article 15 of the 1997 Town Meeting, is comprised of five members, three appointed by the Conservation Commission and one each by the Planning Board and the Selectmen. With assistance from Conservation Officer Cliff Prentiss, the Committee evaluates opportunities for the acquisition and protection of open space parcels against a number of criteria, including whether the Town’s acquisition of the parcel would (i) help preserve Hingham’s character, (ii) protect Hingham’s water resources, (iii) abut or link up existing conservation lands, (iv) provide public access for walking, biking or other passive recreation, (v) preserve or enhance distinctive streetscapes, views or vistas, or (vi) preserve important wildlife or vegetation habitat. When appropriate, the Committee negotiates the terms and conditions for the Town’s acquisition of the parcel for presentation to the Community Preservation Committee and Town Meeting. Since the Town’s adoption of the Community Preservation Act in 2001, the Town’s Community Preservation fund, composed of a 1.5% surtax on Town property taxes and state matching grants, has the principal source of funding for the Town’s acquisitions of open space.

The Committee was instrumental in the Town’s acquisition of the 17.5-acre parcel known as “Schultz’s Field” near the golf driving range in 2003 and approximately six acres of relatively rare open wetlands and emergent marshlands off Downer Avenue near Foster School in 2004, and assisted in the Town’s acquisition of the house and 3.88-acre lot off the southern end of Scotland Street approved at the 2006 annual Town Meeting. The house is used by the Hingham Housing Authority for affordable housing, and the excess land was added to the surrounding McKenna Marsh conservation land owned by the Conservation Commission.

The Committee was disappointed with the 2007 Town Meeting’s failure to approve its article, recommended by the Community Preservation Committee, for the Town’s acquisition of a four acre parcel behind 667 Main Street and bordering on the Crooked Meadow River.

As of the writing of this report, the Community Preservation Committee has under consideration the Open Space Committee’s proposed acquisition of a 3.3-acre parcel on Rockland Street abutting the Weir River salt marshes, - one of the parcels included in the Weir River Estuary Park Committee’s Land Protection Plan, and is pursuing other possible open space acquisition opportunities.

The Committee is grateful for the invaluable engineering and land planning skills and sound advice of Rod Gaskell, who has left the Committee due to the press of other responsibilities, and welcomes his replacement, James Morris.