BUCKLAND — The Open Space and Recreation Committee plans to review a final draft of its updated Open Space and Recreation Plan on Thursday.
“The committee did a great job,” said Town Administrator Heather Butler. “They took it incredibly to heart. One of the goals we had as a committee as we worked on this plan was that it wasn’t going to be a plan that sat on a shelf and collected dust.”
The forum, which is scheduled for Thursday at 6:30 p.m. via Zoom, will involve a final read-through and review of the draft plan before it’s brought to the Selectboard for a vote to adopt.
“So many of these reports — you finish them, they get approved and they sit on a shelf somewhere,” Butler said. “Our goal, as we were writing this, was that we were writing it with the understanding that we would be taking action on the goals.”
Butler explained that the review of the current Open Space and Recreation Plan began with a small Direct Local Technical Assistance (DLTA) grant through the Franklin Regional Council of Governments, which is assisting the committee with the review process. Initially, she said, the committee was pursuing a “low-level” update on a few chapters of the plan.
“When we realized that the committee was prepared to delve a little deeper into the Open Space and Recreation Plan and that they wanted to do more updating and more work than the DLTA funds would support, I wrote and was awarded a (state) Community Compact grant for $20,000 to do the project at the level the committee wanted to see it done,” Butler said.
Some of the priority areas in the plan include replacing the community swimming pool — which the Recreation Committee has already undertaken a fundraising campaign for — and finding a way to create public access to the Deerfield River from the Buckland side of the Iron Bridge.
“Those are two goals that came out as things I really need to look at and support from a town administrator’s perspective,” Butler said.
Another priority area identified is Crittenden Hill Road, which Butler described as a “low profile passive recreation area” for running, walking and bicycling. In particular, the committee is looking to apply for grants that would help to improve the infrastructure of the road, specifically the drainage.
“Once we’ve had that updated plan, we are eligible to apply for grants, like the state Parkland Acquisition and Renovations for Communities (PARC) Program grant,” Butler explained.
After its final read-through on Thursday night, it will go to the Selectboard to be voted on and adopted before it can be filed with the state.
“There’s a lot of pressure for us to get this done,” Butler said. “We’re hoping that residents will come out and listen, and they’ll be inspired to get involved in the different projects and priorities outlined.”
The final draft of the plan can be reviewed on the town website at town.buckland.ma.us, via the Recreation Committee.
The Zoom meeting can be accessed at /bit.ly/3ppemL0.
Mary Byrne can be reached at mbyrne@recorder.com or 413-930-4429. Twitter: @MaryEByrne