Conservation Commission

City of Torrington CONSERVATION COMMISSION Meeting Minutes March 26, 2024 Regular Meeting 1. Call to Order: Meeting called to order at 6:31 pm Members present in person in Room 215 of Torrington City Hall unless otherwise noted. Roll Call & Announcements: Members Present in Person:, Christine Altman (Chair), Karen Svetz, and George Craig, and Jeremy Spitz Members Present Via Teams: Michael Kaneb Members Absent: Dan McGuiness (Vice-Chair), and Erin Stelma (Secretary) Staff: Nate Nardi-Cyrus – Assistant City Planner Members from the Public (Via Teams): Tom Carter (Trout Unlimited) 2. Minutes: a. February 27, 2024 Regular Meeting A motion to approve the minutes was made by Ms. Svetz, seconded by Mr. Spitz. All commissioners voted aye. 3. New Business: a. Open Space Fee/Easement land on 301 Sycamore Drive Mr. Nardi-Cyrus presented a proposal from the developer at 301 Sycamore Drive (143/002/001) who is developing a single-family zone on the lot. There is some title inconsistences related to the designation of open space land and they are looking to correct this by donating ~22,000 SF of land in the rear of the lot as a mixture of fee and easement open space. Discussion ensued regarding the value of this land for conservation vs. the cost of monitoring and maintenance. Mr. Nardi-Cyrus asked for a motion to recommend the city acquisition of fee and easement land on 301 Sycamore Drive, as proposed. Mr. Spitz made the motion, seconded by Mr. Craig. All voted aye. b. 505 University Drive Open Space – motion added by vote Mr. Spitz made a motion to add this new item to the agenda and Ms. Svetz seconded. All voted aye. Mr. Nardi-Cyrus presented a resubdivision approval, requiring approval from the Conservation Commission, due to a conservation restriction noted on the property. Mr. Nardi-Cyrus indicated that the office did not know who held the restriction but that, just in case in was the City Conservation Commission, they should make a motion to make a motion stating the resubdivision  was compliant with the terms of the restriction. Mr. Nardi-Cyrus also indicated that this is the subdivision that was already done, then the lots were combined, and now it is being resubdivided in the exact same way. Mr. Spitz made the motion and Ms. Svetz seconded. 4. Old Business a. HVA Event - Planning Details were given by Mr. Nardi-Cyrus for the event scheduled for 4/6 at 9am at Sunnybrook State Park. Many members planned on attending but the workshop will be primarily led by HVA. b. Earth Day Event – Planning Last minute planning details and logistics were discussed by the commission including: - Asking Write Way signs for new yard signs - Ms. Altman is OK with her number on the maps to distribute - Mr. Spitz will modify the map handout numbers in Adobe - Ms. Svetz will pick up the plastic trash bag donation from Lowes c. Location Conservation Group Roundtable – Planning Item was deferred because Mr. McGuinness was not present d. Staff updates: i. Torrington waste management update from recycling coordinator Linda Orr was not around for a discussion but Mr. Nardi-Cyrus will circle back to have a discussion ii. Eastside flooding – Pamphlet mailing project No call from residents receiving mailing. iii. Northwest CT Land Conservancy – Letter of support Mr. Nardi-Cyrus sent letter of support per Commission’s request iv. Food Forest Planning – Northwest Conservation District has started plans and will get back to commission on plan for Bannon Street site. v. Red Mountain Trail – Consultant SLR has been retained and is in the process of drafting a new site plan. They are now working on re-mapping extensive wetlands on site. vi. Urban Forest Management Plan – Mr. Nardi-Cyrus discussed this funding opportunity, which the City intends on applying for to complete some combination of Street Tree Inventory and Forest Management Plan. Mr. Nardi-Cyrus will submit application by the April 17th deadline vii. Open Space Inventory –Next site visit scheduled for a large parcel along the Naugatuck River in May viii. Natural Resources Inventory - Nothing new to report. 5. Adjournment: A motion to adjourn was made by Ms. Svetz, seconded by Mr. Spitz. All commissioners voted aye. Meeting adjourned at 8:13 pm. Nate Nardi-Cyrus Nate Nardi-Cyrus, Assistant City Planner Staff to Conservation Commission