The Mass. Department of Conservation Services in late January approved the town of Natick’s 2020 Open Space and Recreation Plan. The plan allows the town to be eligible for grants through 2027 and lays out a strategy for implementing key open space and recreation goals and actions. The final plan can be found on the natickma.gov website, www.natickma.gov/1666/Open-Space-Trails.

In this interview with Natick Local Town Pages, Martin Kessel, chair of the Open Space Advisory Committee, speaks about the importance of the plan, the planning process, recent accomplishments, and goals.

Whitty: Why was an update to the plan needed?

The state requires cities and towns to update their Open Space and Recreation Plan every seven years to be eligible for various state grants to help with the purchase of open space and developing parks. The plan was recently approved by the Division of Conservation Services (part of the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs), which means we are now eligible [for grants] for seven more years. 

At least as important is that Natick now has a set of goals for the next seven years. Very often, when there’s a Town Meeting Article seeking funding for some project, or a landowner seeking a conservation restriction, the proponents will cite specific goals and objectives in the Open Space and Recreation Plan that their project addresses.

Conservation restrictions provide a way for landowners to receive tax benefits in exchange for voluntary protecting their land from further development.

Whitty: Who was involved in completing the plan?

Primary responsibility lies with the Open Space Advisory Committee, which was created by Town Bylaws for that purpose. This year we were fortunate to have the project spearheaded by Marianne Iarossi, who was hired in August 2019 as Natick’s Open Space Planner/Conservation Agent. The state provides a 16-month timetable for the process, but thanks to Marianne’s whirlwind effort, we had a completed draft ready for submission in just six months.

Whitty: What was your role in completing the plan?

Marianne Iarossi did most of the writing and research, and the Open Space Advisory Committee, which I chair, reviewed and refined everything – doubling our regular monthly meeting schedule to get everything done. The committee gave the most attention to the Seven-Year Action Plan, which is really the heart of the project. This gives the goals and objectives for the next seven years, along with the particular detailed action items we want to achieve. 

I personally took charge of the Open Space Inventory, which lists every open space parcel in town currently or potentially dedicated to conservation or recreational uses, with details about current use, ownership, and whether the land is protected from development. It turns out there were a lot of errors in the last version of the plan, with deeds not being filed properly and parcels not listed correctly by the Assessor. It was also important to accurately identify and catalog all the conservation restrictions, legal documents that were often quite confusing. 

Whitty: When was the plan timeline?

We started in earnest last January and submitted the draft to the state in July. We had a meeting scheduled for March 12, which happened to be the day that Natick and the state went into shutdown mode. But by April we were meeting on Zoom, and in fact, we doubled our meeting schedule to twice a month so we could keep the project on track. 

A key part of the process is getting broad public input so that the plan really does address the needs and interests of the community, and this usually involves a lot of meetings with board and committees and with residents. Because of COVID, we had to be particularly creative, so we used a lot of social media, recorded videos, an online survey, participation at various town forums, and so forth. 

Whitty: Can you comment on recent accomplishments related to the plan and what you hope to accomplish in 2021 and beyond?

That list [on pages 7-8 of the plan] is actually a pretty good snapshot showing just how much has happened just in the last few months. It’s a tribute to the dedication of hundreds of volunteers serving on town committees and helping with trails, as well as those serving in town government. 

The new Trails and Forest Stewardship Committee has big plans in 2021 to install much-needed trail signage, perform important trail improvements, implement a program for regular maintenance led by trail stewards, and increase public awareness of trails and open space. Also in 2021, the Cochituate Rail Trail (CRT) should finally be completed, thanks to dedication of the CRT Advisory Committee and the independent Friends of Natick Trails. And our committee will keep exploring new trail opportunities as well as ways of preserving open space that is not yet protected.

For more information and to see the approved plan, visit www.natickma.gov/1666/Open-Space-Trails. For questions, email [email protected].