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Home My WebLink AboutDraft Minutes - 111025 November 10, 2025 Planning & Development Department 367 Main Street, Hyannis, MA 02601 – Phone: 508-862-4678 Open Space Committee Minutes November 10, 2025 at 5:30 p.m. CALL TO ORDER AND INTRODUCTION OF MEMBERS Chair Malakhoff calls the meeting to order at 5:30 with an introduction of members: Also present is Kris Clark, Town Council Liaison; Kyle Pedicini, Assistant Director – Planning & Development; and Genna Ziino, Administrative Assistant. NOTICE OF RECORDING This meeting of the Open Space Committee is being recorded and broadcast on the Town of Barnstable’s Government Access Channel. In accordance with MGL Chapter 30A §20, I must inquire whether anyone else is recording this meeting and, if so, to please make their presence known. APPROVAL OF MINUTES • October 6, 2025 – This agenda item was skipped. TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION New Business • Open Space & Recreation Plan – Kyle Pedicini says the draft plan has been put online and is available for public comment. Hard copies are available for review at all libraries and community centers. The public comment period is open through November 26th. Staff are hoping to present the next edits at the December OSC meeting and from there, Recreation Commission and Conservation Commission and ultimately Town Council. OSC members remark that the draft looked good. Regarding the park equity map, Mr. Pedicini says it is going to be removed because it is not a reliable data set. Chair Malakhoff thinks if there is a substitute way of doing it, it would be valuable to help people know how far they are from open space. • Fall Walking Weekend – The group walks through photos from the event. On Hathaways Pond, there was some type of construction and a lawn mower—Chair Malakhoff thinks it was kids trying to build a ramp . He alerted Asset Management. NEMBA volunteers went in and removed the trash and the lumber. Chair Malakhoff says there was a cache in trash out event by the geocaching community where they removed shopping carts and trash . The Meetinghouse Farm walk was a success. Town Council Liaison says the organization at Meetinghouse Farm is a strong steward and identified an encroachment issue from private property, which the Town Attorney is now addressing. The group discusses the need for harsher punishment for this kind of behavior. Chair Malakhoff wonders if the Committee could recommend for the OSRP a policy to encourage development of peripheral trails around propert ies so part of the walk would be around the boundaries. The group discusses tools to use to see property lines: Google maps, various apps. Chair Malakhoff asks if there is a town policy to not add links to private outside services. Mr. Pedicini says if the site or entity isn’t vetted then the town can’t put it on the website. The Chairman would like the state database linked if possible. Walk leaders reported that it was mostly Facebook and the town’s enews that brought people to the walks. Chair Malakhoff would like the town to post on social media a couple weeks before the event as well as a couple days before next time. The group discusses the media plan. Doug Payson will add all the things he did. They would like to review at an upcoming meeting. Chair Malakhoff would like to create a folder for resources to their Laserfiche file—Genna Ziino will create one. Member Present Absent Lev Malakhoff – Chair X Farley Lewis – Vice Chair X Elizabeth Lewis X Douglas Payson X Elissa Crowley X Anne Rowland X Tracy Pratt X Cate Gulliver X Dave Gorrill X Chair Malakhoff would like to choose weekends permanently for both events. The group discusses one week after Indigenous Peoples Day for fall, and one week before Memorial Day in the spring. Doug Payson would like to coordinate with the town for a dedication of the multi-use path to Kalmus Beach to let the public know about it. The town requires a 90-day lead time for the required permit. Councilor Clark is working on a walk that begins or ends at the Zion Museum for the spring event. She thinks it could be an opportunity to partner with a cultural institution. The group discusses possible walks. For Spring Walking Weekend, the group agrees on May 15-17. Old Business • Centerville Cranberry Bog – Anne Rowland will keep pursuing updates about this. The group discusses the update that it’s the seller’s responsibility to make sure notice goes to appropriate parties. The owner will need to clear the title. It’s also possible that the property owner filed a change of crop from cranberry bog to trees to maintain their 61A status. Anne Rowland says there are half-dead trees in pots on the bog. Councilor Clark suggests she take photos and send them to Conservation. • Potential property acquisitions – Chair Malakhoff says they discussed parcels off Attucks and Phinneys Lane by Hathaways Pond. They may be useful for the rail trail extension, so the committee could ask for staff to discuss the planning efforts after the OSRP is wrapped up. • Update on outstanding Conservation Restrictions – Farley Lewis says Harju and Prince Ave are being reviewed and put on a Town Council agenda for approval. The draft CR for Mill Pond is in progress. The Smiths Creek closing will be scheduled once Land Court provides the required documents. The final Cotuit Highground CR draft is in progress. The Woodland Bog/Parker Road application was passed by Town Council. • Update – Pathways update including walking library, Trailhead Signs, and Geocaching – Chair Malakhoff shares a whitepaper entitled “Restoring the Peace: Deterring Illegal Recreation Vehicle Use on Cape Cod.” The group d iscusses the difficulty of enforcement and the need for deterrents. The Chairman encourages the group to read the whitepaper and see what they would recommend. • Report from Tracy Pratt regarding Santuit Preserve – Tracy Pratt says the Committee’s annual walkthrough happened mid- October. David Anthony, Dan Kent, and Barnstable DPW representatives discussed things on the Mashpee side. The main issue is the dyke on Santuit pond that empties into Lovells Pond, regarding the poor condition and what to do about it. The herring run is to be improved, with the thought being to build a ramp adjacent to it. • Report from Farley Lewis regarding Community Preservation Committee Open Space applications – A letter of intent was received for $4,200 in CPA funds for the purchase of 12 hiking trail signs. The group discusses whether signs should be oriented to be parallel to oncoming drivers rather than at the trailheads. • Report from Town Council Liaison Kris Clark – Councilor Clark says there are four new councilors coming in: Thomas Keane, Barry Sheingold, Lisa Daluz, and William Crocker, Jr. They will be sworn in on the 17th. The group discusses that the town was dewatering as a function of putting in a pumping station for the sewer, which was a factor in Lisa Daluz running. MATTERS NOT REASONABLY ANTICIPATED BY THE CHAIR PUBLIC COMMENT ADJOURNMENT Cate Gulliver moves to adjourn. Tracy Pratt seconds. Vote: Aye: Lev Malakhoff, Farley Lewis, Liz Lewis, Anne Rowland, Elissa Crowley, Doug Payson, Tracy Pratt, Cate Gulliver Nay: None DOCUMENTS USED AT THIS MEETING • Photos entitled “BridgeCreek-1_2025-1017,” “BridgeCreek-2_2025-1017,” “Hathaways-1_2025-1018,” “Hathaways- 2_2025-1018,” “Hathaways-3_2025-1018,” Hathaways-4_2025-1026,” “Hathaways-5_2025-1018,” Meetinghouse-1_2025- 1019,” “Meetinghouse-2_2025-1018,” “OldJail-1_2025-1019,” “OldJail-2_2025-1019,” “Trayser-1_2025-1017,” “Trayser- 2_2025-1017” Respectfully submitted, Genna Ziino, Administrative Assistant Further detail may be obtained by viewing the video via Barnstable Government Access Channel on demand at www.town.barnstable.ma.us