Volunteers Green and Browns Court Project Committee 4/22/26

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VGBC Minutes 04-22-26 193 KB

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DRAFT  Volunteers Green, Browns Court, Round Church Green 

 3 Parks Improvement Committee (ARPA Funds)

Minutes from meeting held on April 22, 2026

Members Attending:  Kendra Ziskie, Denise Barnard, Fran Thomas, Tess Storrs, Jeanne Agner 

Members Absent: Megan Andrews

Guests in person:  Mark Schiewetz, Jayne Sheridan 

Guest attending virtually:  Martha Nye

Public comment on items not on agenda: 

Minutes Approved from last meeting on March 12, 2026 

Next scheduled meeting: Thursday, June 4, 2026 

7:06

Agenda Items: 

1. Updates from selectboard and other meetings re 3 parks 

       Denise - had a conversation with Bob Neeld.  He has started to work on the structural design.  Josh is sending the signed contract to him. 

        Selectboard did approve  spending the funds that we have in reserve for the parking lot. Selectboard suggested a better material for the top layer that everyone agrees will hold up much better. 

    Fran and Denise met with folks from the Water Department and the Highway Department  to review the plans for Brown’s Court water and parking lot installation.  The water has been turned on and the parking lot is almost complete. 

7:10

2. Browns Court 

       We need to check with Josh A. to be sure that we have authorization to pay for the 4 trees and mulch from our funds. Even though funds have been approved, line item spending must get further approval. 

   Denise read an email from Josh A. regarding the great work our committee has done on the parking lot and park. We are getting lots of positive comments about how great the park looks. A neighbor voiced concerns about the width of the walking area. Pete Gosselin removed some debris from the walking area.   

1.  Pete Gosselin and his crew from the Highway Department have done great work on this project. The parking lot is almost complete. The plastic coated chains should arrive by next week.   Pete will be getting us an invoice. We need the final numbers for our budget.
2. Water and Sewer has turned the water to the spigot on. The spigot will remain locked except for maintenance.
3. Mulching update - The Friends of Pickleball      group has organized mulching the trees around the court. There is a notice on Front Porch Forum asking for volunteers to help this Saturday. Several pickleball players, neighbors and other volunteers  have already signed up. They will be using cardboard under the mulch rather than landscape fabric. 9 cubic yards have been delivered.  6 cu yds are paid for from our budget, 3 cu yds were donated from Richmond Hardware and delivery of all was also donated. 

            7:20

3. Friends of Pickleball update

1. The group is planning a soft opening on May 9 from 10 to 1. ( May 16 rain date)  Members of the group will offer lessons, review rules and they will have equipment for people to use during that time.
2. Some equipment was purchased for court maintenance with the town pickleball budget. Other items were purchased and donated by members.
3. The Town Highway and Town Water departments want to learn to play (on their own time) and are planning a tournament against each other.
4. Fence - balls were getting out through a narrow spot under the fence. There is a slight pitch for drainage.  Someone has put up a thin piece of board to catch the balls and it does not interfere with drainage. Denise will contact the company that installed the court to see if they have any suggestions. We don’t want to do anything to the fence that might void the warranty..
5. Signage-  There will be new metal signs with the rules on each of the two gates.  We reviewed the language and made a motion to approve the language with three minor changes. Jayne will get the updated language to Josh for printing. In the meantime, the laminated paper signs have been put back up. 

4. Kiosk  - Denise will talk with Bob Reap and with Lane Marshall to see if one of them might build the kiosk.

 5. Bike Rack - Jeanne will check with Pete G to see if the town has a bike rack in storage. If he does not, Denise will check with Gene from the bike store to see if he has any suggestions. If not, Jeanne will contact Justin Mansfield and order one. 

6. Baseball field updates - Josh A., who also has been very active with Little League over the years, sent an email to Kendra explaining that Camels Hump Little League and the new president. The baseball field will need to have the clay base upgraded. We had budgeted a certain dollar amount for improvement specifically to the field.  Fran will talk with Josh A to see if and when anything has to be done on our part. 

            6. Property line - The property owners and Josh are waiting for the town’s lawyer to present the contracts. 

            7. Other - 

    -Trees have been planted around the porta potty. 

                -We wrote  thank you notes to both the Highway Department and the Water & Sewer Department for all of their work on improvements to Browns Court Park. 

8:26   

3. Round Church Green 

Wendy DeForest has volunteered to check the benches and table periodically and wash them as needed.  Jeanne will contact Paul Garrett and Susan Fredrick, previous volunteers, to see if they are still interested in helping to monitor the condition of the benches that they washed last year. 

8:28

4. Volunteers  Green

1. Structural engineering report for two pavilion designs. Nothing new as of yet. Once we have a report, we will be able to get some estimates as to what it might cost to build each of the designs. 

2. Next steps re getting estimates - table until we get the numbers

3. Ideas and steps for sharing information and gathering public input re: overall plateau 

    designs (tabled from last meeting) Tabled again until next meeting

4. Discussion of getting specific individuals and interested parties for

1. Playground review, development, planning, fundraising, grant writing
2. Pavillion/bandshell review, development, planning, fundraising, grant writing

 Overall discussion regarding Volunteer Green and community involvement planning will be the main focus of our next meeting. 

5. Budget updates 

6. Selectboard - keeping them posted on discussions and progress

8:45

7. Future - Encourage recruiting for Recreation Committee &/or volunteer or paid part time director  - Discussed this could be a recommendation our committee makes when we disband.

Possible topics for next meeting:

• Community outreach and other planning for Volunteers Green Project 

Next meeting: Thursday, June 4.

Meeting adjourned at  8:50