By David Fortier
A local group fighting the development of private land abutting the Hoppers-Birge Pond Preserve is very encouraged by the news that the city of Bristol is seeking funds to purchase the property.
“We love the idea, we are very, very happy,” said Michelle Rudy, president of the Friends of the Hoppers-Birge Pond Preserve in a phone conversation late last week.
“That is the ideal solution, for the city to add to its holdings. It is already managing the rest of the preserve so one more piece is not going to make or break the city,” Rudy said.
The group posted on its Facebook page yesterday the news about the city pursuing funds to purchase the 10-plus acres being considered by P & B Properties for a 16-house open space development.
“We are very excited about this and fully support the city’s actions toward the land purchase,” the post states.
Admittedly, the purchase is not a done deal.
“The new progress is not set in stone, but depends upon many things coming together in time to meet the application due date,” the post continues. “The developer has to be willing to sell and a price must be agreed upon, not to mention a whole host of things that are required by the application.”
The sentiment was confirmed by the city’s grant writer in an email late last week.
And one of the P & B Properties partners, said in a phone call also last week, that he has followed up on a request to the Park Board of Commissioners, to walk the property to determine if they might bring soil boring equipment through Park property to obtain the samples as part of an inlands/wetlands application which they intend to resubmit.
The walk took place early last week.
Dawn Leger, the city’s grant writer, said the city is not entering the process lightly, since it involves “many time consuming and costly steps.”
“The open space grants from DEEP (Department of Energy and Environmental Protection) are extremely competitive as well as a demanding application process,” she said.
The deadline for the grant application is Dec. 2, she said, and there is a list of to-do’s, including property appraisals, title searches, and a survey.
“I contacted the Friends to obtain permission to use some of their materials in the application related to the unique geographical characteristics of the site, the possible presence of endangered species and the community support for open space designation,” Leger said.
Before anything can happen, she said, a first-step is to secure an agreement with the current owners.
The matter will also have to come before the city council.
Tim Bobroske, the builder who is a partner in P & B Properties, said he had walked the property last week with Bristol Park, Recreation, Youth and Community Service superintendent Josh Mederios and Public Works director Ray Rogozinski.
The builders pulled back their original inland/wetlands application to respond to a list of requirements recommended by the city as part of preparing a follow-up application. One of the new requirements asks for soil samples from the top of the property that the builders had not expected.
The builders approached the Park Board of Commissioners at the September meeting for permission to bring boring equipment through city property to obtain the samples.
“If the park board says, no,” Bobroske said, “it’s basically that we could still do all our designing work but we have to look at worse case scenario.”
One of the reasons he is pursuing this development is that this would be the city’s first zero-carbon subdivision, which would involve solar energy, heat pumps and possibly geothermal technology.
“It’s not easy,” he said. “There’s a lot of hurdles, which we are willing to do.”
Bobroske declined to comment on grant situation.
During the Park Board of Commissioners meeting last month, one of the public speakers, former Mayor Ellen Zoppo-Sassu, highlighted aspects of the park commission’s mission regarding the city’s master plan regarding the 10-plus acre property under consideration.
“When you look at the city’s master plan, specifically about the Roberts Property, it talks about retaining it as a passive park with enhanced open space, pathways and trails,” Zoppo-Sassu said.
She provided statistics about walking trails being the No. 1 item identified in the plan and that the city falls short when it comes to standards for its size.
“You are 12 percent in deficit on the trail that are currently per our population density,” she said, with the recommendation being .050 miles per 1,000 people and Bristol at .029 miles, not including recent improvements to Kern Park and the Barnes Nature Center, the latter of which is not city owned.
She said that one of her concerns is that Parks and Recreation have more of a voice when it comes to determine what is done with the property and that it should be ready, if the proposed development were not to work out, to make an offer on the property.
“I think, you need to be very assertive in what you believe what is best for parks and the acreage under your purview and do what’s right in terms of positioning yourself, if there is, in fact, an opportunity to purchase this from either the Schaffricks or the developers,” Zoppo-Sassu said, adding “if the opportunity were to present in the future to make them whole on what ever investment has been made and restore this section for the city.”
The Board of Park Commissioners decided that more information was necessary before voting on the builder’s request and recommended that Parks and Public Works work together to develop a plan and bring their recommendations back to the commissioners at their next meeting or if necessary at a special meeting.
The proposed development, which is off Perkins Street on the former Schaffrick property, borders the Hopper-Birge Pond Preserve, which is city property, as well as a city-owned dog park. It contains rare geological formations, kettles and eskers, as well as being part of a core forest.
Rudy, the Friends’ president, said “They [the city] are looking for our support. We are going to write a letter of support for them and we are going to get a petition going, so that everyone signs that letter of support.”
The latest post on the Friends’ Facebook page includes the information about the grant as well as the words for the petition.
The post instructs people who would like to sign the petition, which is required to show public support for the open space grant, to email friendsofhehoppers@gmail.com for further instructions. For the post, click here.
All TBE readers, supporters and donors
The Bristol Edition will be limiting the number of stories non-members and free readers may access each week. This decision is based on our financial projections and, most certainly, to remind people that TBE is serious about providing accurate, timely and thorough reporting for Bristol. To do this we have devised a financial support structure that makes unlimited access extremely affordable, beginning with a $6 monthly donation.
- Non-members will be able to access four (4) articles per week.
- Free readers and people who have subscribed by email will be able to access four (4) articles per week.
- Donors and financial supporters will have unlimited access as long as they log in.
Note: Donors may have to contact TBE if they find they are being limited, since we will need to set up a membership account for you. Email editor@bristoledition.org for instructions. Sorry for any inconvenience. People with financial difficulties may write editor@bristoledition.org to be considered for free access.