*,$-02&#0-2#!2'-,-$ &0-,_1.#,.!# 3*7TRST 2010LeafRoffAerialPhotograph–NHGranit PreparedbytheSharonOpenSpacePlanningCommittee,asubcommitteeofthe SharonConservationCommission,withassistancefromTheMonadnockConservancy’s MonadnockCommunityConservationPartnership, andwithinputfromthepeopleofSharon. APlanfortheProtectionofSharon’sOpenSpace A. Introduction Openspaceprotectionisaneffectivetoolforpreservingcommunitycharacter,protectingtheenvironmentand enhancingqualityoflife.Consensusabouttheroleofopenspaceprotectionincommunityplanningiscritical. Having taken into consideration other community goals, an Open Space Plan is the basis for establishing prioritiesandpolicies. B. BackgroundandJustification The population of New Hampshire grew 6.5% from 2000 to 2010, with a population estimate of 1,316,470 accordingto2010censusfigures.HillsboroughCountyhadthegreatestpopulationincreaseoftheState’sten counties.Whiletherearesomepositiveaspectstogrowth,withitcomemanychallenges,nottheleastofwhich are stresses on the environment. One of the most serious concerns is the permanent loss of open spaces. Statewide,itisestimatedthat15,000acresofopenlandaredevelopedeveryyear. The 2002 Master Plan states that Sharon’s environment is fragile with a limited capacity to support further development.TheMasterPlanalsonotesthatin2002,“muchofthemostsuitablelandfordevelopmenthas beenutilized.Increasingly,buildinglotswillbeproposedonmarginalland;landwithsteepslopes,wetlands,or withotherlimitations.Unlessprecautionsaretaken,futuredevelopmentcouldalsodiminishordestroysomeof theTown’sremaininghistoriclandmarks.” C. Purposes ThisOpenSpacePlansupportsandfulfillsmanyofthegoalsandrecommendationsofthe2002SharonMaster Plan.Principallytheseincludeseveralappearingunderthesection“GoalsandRecommendations”onpage18of theMasterPlan. Goals: 1. “Topreservetheessentiallyruralcharacterinagrowingandurbanizingworld.” 2. “Toprotectstreams,riversandwetlands.” 7. “Torecognizeandprotectenvironmentallysensitivelandsandsurfacewaters.” 8. “ToestablishandmaintainanopenspacesystemcomprisedoftheTown’senvironmentallysensitive areas,whicharelinkedbytrailsandcorridorstoprovidewildlifeandpedestrianpassagethroughout thetown.” 9. “Topreservelargetractsofopenwoodland.” 10 ”Toprotectourforestedhillsides.” 11 “TopreservetheruralcharacterofallroadsinSharon.” Recommendations: “CompletetheprotectionoftheslopesofTempleMountain.” “Expand the Town Forest, linking it with our two other major open space areas to the east and southwest.” “ProtecttheentirelengthoftheGridleyRiveranditswatershedfromsedimentation,erosion,pollution orinappropriatedevelopment.” “Take steps to assure that our children, new Town residents and the residents of an increasingly urbanizingstateunderstandtheimportanceofkeepingSharonrural.” Page1 APlanfortheProtectionofSharon’sOpenSpace “Developaconservationplan.” “Developahillsidedevelopmentordinance.” “MakeeveryefforttopreservetheGridleyaquifer.” “Makeeveryefforttopurchaseorprotectenvironmentallysensitivegravelbearinglands” ThisPlansetsforthcriteria,goalsandrecommendationsforimplementinganOpenSpaceProtectionPlanand establishes a role for Town government in land conservation as a matter of public policy. That public policy acknowledgesthatbyprotectingcertainnaturalfeaturesdescribedhereunder“OpenSpacePlanGoals,”Town government is protecting or enhancing certain resource values. At a minimum, the Plan directs the Town of Sharontopromotelandconservationandtobevigilantinseekingopportunitiestoprotectland.Theroleof Towngovernmentinthisareamayalsobetoeducatelandownersaboutthetopic,networkamonglandowners andlandtrustsandacquirelandorconservationeasements. D. PlanningApproach Inthespringof2010,theTownofSharonbeganaprocesstodevelopatownopenspaceconservationplan.An adhocSharonOpenSpaceCommitteewasformedasasubRcommitteeoftheSharonConservationCommission. ItjoinedtheMonadnockConservancy’sMonadnockCommunityConservationPartnershipprogram.TheSharon OpenSpaceCommitteeincludedmembersoftheConservationCommission,PlanningBoard,SelectBoard,and citizensatlarge. TheCommitteeconductedaConservationSurveytocollectinputfromresidentsastowhattheyvaluemost aboutthetownandwhatresourcestheyfeelcontributemosttothetown’squalityoflife.Residentswereasked toindicateonatownmapwherespecialplacesarelocatedandwhatmakestheseplacesunique.Residentswho attended the 2010 Sharon Town Picnic were asked to complete the survey and during the fall of 2010, the surveywasmailedtoall118householdsintown.Atotalof57surveyswerereturned.Inaddition,volunteers fromtheplanningcommitteeinterceptedcitizenscomingtothetownofficesduringofficehoursonTuesdays evenings and invited them to identify special places in town by placing sticky dots on a map. Between the surveysandtheeveningsatthetownoffice,298dotswereplacedonthetownmap. The planning committee also reviewed natural resource information and maps provided by the Monadnock Conservancy.ThecommitteereachedconsensusonasetofOpenSpaceGoalsandNaturalFeaturesImportant toProtect.Inallcases,thegoalsandfeaturesweredeterminedtobeessentialtocommunitywellRbeinginsome basicway,orarepartofhowresidentsdefineSharon’scommunitycharacter.Ultimately,allarebasictothe environmentalqualityandruralcharacterofSharon. E. CommunityValues In summarizing the results of the Conservation Survey, it was found that survey respondents have the same primaryvalueasstatedinthe2002MasterPlan:“Ourprimarygoal,andourresponsibility,istoforgeablueprint thatwillensurethattwentyyearsfromnow,Sharonremainsasmall,rural,beautifulcommunity.”Thesurvey resultsindicatedthatpeoplebelievethatalloftheresourcesaddressedinthesurveycontributetocommunity characterandqualityoflife,withcleanwater,cleanair,wildlifehabitat,andpeaceandquietconsideredtobe mostimportant.Thesurveyfurtherhighlightedthattheundeveloped,unspoiledlandscape,thepeaceandquiet and isolation, and the small scale of the town were the features that most contribute to the town’s unique qualities.Whenaskedtoidentifyplacesmostimportanttoconserve,landsalongtheGridleyRiver,theTown Forest and Meadow Brook, the mountain area along the eastern town boundary and the undeveloped road frontageswereareasmostfrequentlyidentified. Page2 APlanfortheProtectionofSharon’sOpenSpace F. OpenSpacePlanGoals 1. ConserveandprotectrivercorridorsandwetlandsassociatedwiththeGridleyRiver,MeadowBrook,Town Line Brook, and their tributaries. This will buffer these high quality streams from the adverse effects of developmentandprovideimportantcorridorsforwildlife. 2. Conserve and protect the current and potential drinking water resources including the stratified drift aquifersandtheirrechargeareaslocatedthroughouttheTown. 3. Maintain the large blocks of undeveloped land by conserving lands adjacent to existing conserved lands, including: TheblockbetweenJarmanyHillRoadandNHRte.124; TheTownForestblocknorthofJarmanyHillRoad;and TheblockbetweenNHRte.123andTempleMountain. Eachoftheseblocksisasignificantcontributortothehealthofwildlifepopulationsandthewaterqualityin thethreestreams. 4. Conservelandthatcanprovideconnectorsandcorridorsbetweenthelargeblocksofundevelopedland,as wellassteepslopesandviewsheds. 5. Protectridgelines,viewshedsandsteepslopes.RegulatecutRandRfilltopreventlandslidesandtopreserve waterquality/safety. 6. Preserve the rural character of Sharon’s roads, particularly those with scenic and undeveloped road frontages. ThesegoalsreaffirmandexpandonthegoalsandrecommendationssetforthinSharon’s2002MasterPlan. TheGoalsalsoreflectthe“landswithimportantconservationvalues”thatwereidentifiedthroughthisplanning process and are displayed on the final map of the Natural and Community Resources Inventory, attached as AppendixAtothisplan. G. ImplementationStrategies WaterTesting:TheConservationCommissionwillcontinuethewatertestingithasconductedeachyearsince 2002. BuildCommunitySupport:TheConservationCommissionwillencouragethepeopleofSharontogetoutonto theland.TrailsintheTownForesthavebeenclearedandmarked,andadditionaltrailsarebeingdeveloped.A mapisbeingcreatedandwillbemadeavailabletothepublic,bothontheTownwebsiteandatthetrailheads. Community Awareness: The Open Space Committee shared survey results at the 2011 Town Picnic and on a posterboardintheTownHouse.TheCommitteewillsharetheNaturalResourceInventoryandOpenSpacePlan witheveryoneinthecommunityandwillinvitecitizencommentandinput. LandownerOutreach:Whenappropriate,talkwithlandownersaboutthespecialcharacteristicsoftheirland; share natural resource information; share information about conservation options; provide access to best managementpracticesformanagingtheirland. H. OverviewofLandConservation There are two primary ways to protect land for conservation purposes: Conservation Land Transactions and Regulation. This plan focuses primarily on the former, which involves working directly with interested landowners.ThetwomostcommonConservationLandTransactionsareacquisitionoftheland,whichcanbe Page3 APlanfortheProtectionofSharon’sOpenSpace done through a landowner donation or by purchasing the land, and acquisition of a conservation easement, whichalsocanbedonethroughalandownerdonationoftheeasementorbypurchasingtheeasement. ConservationLandTransactionscanbeinitiatedintwoways: Activeandstrategic:IdentifyinghighRpriorityparcelsandactivelyencouragingthelandownertoconserve theirland.Whensuccessful,theseprojectshavethegreatestpotentialtoachievecommunitygoals. Responsive to opportunities as they arise: Most land protection accomplishments come as the result of beingvigilantandreadytorespondwhenalandownerdecidestoconserveorselltheirland.Havingthe OpenSpacePlaninplacewillhelpguidetowndecisionstosupportaprojectwhentheseopportunitiesarise.