Lenox CPC prepares for new projects

LENOX – The Community Preservation Committee (CPC) is beginning to prepare for another round of requests as the Dec. 31 deadline for applications quickly approaches.

According to Town Planner Mary Albertson, the volunteer fire department, affordable housing committee, The Mount and the Church on the Hill cemetery have expressed interest in applying for the next fiscal year, although no group has filled yet.

The CPC was also briefed by Ms. Albertson on last year’s approved projects at its most recent meeting.

One project from last year that has received a lot of attention recently is the Church on the Hill Cemetery Restoration Plan. One of the findings from that plan, presented in full Dec. 12, was the dire condition of many stones in the cemetery.

This condition led the town to place warning signs around the property. At a recent meeting of the selectmen, W. David Roche reported the immediate cost to make the cemetery safe would be $40,000-45,000, but that would be to only fix the 50 stones in the worst condition.

At the CPC meeting, Historical Commission Member Albert Harper reported over 300 stones need some work and the total cost to implement the plan could cost between $250,000 and $400,000.

In last year’s CPC cycle, the funding provided was just to do the study; now the town is looking to raise the funds for the repairs.

“We should be a partner on any kind of restoration, but keying off of the selectman as to how to approach this project,” said CPC Chairman Frederick Keator. “This is going to be a large project with many different groups being involved; we are just one piece.”

The town was awarded $20,000 for the development of an open space and recreation plan. A committee has been formed to work with the Conway School of Design to complete that plan, and it is expected to be finished by March. Currently, the project is expected to cost between $6,500 and $10,000, meaning the rest would be returned to the CPC fund.

Both The Mount and The Curtis have completed the projects they applied for and the The Curtis came in under-budget for the porch restoration and will return some of its $28,000 allocation.

According to Adele Gravitz, who filed the application, Ventfort Hall will most likely not be able to raise the matching funds for its project and will have to return the $20,000 it received at Town Meeting.

The Berkshire Scenic Railway was awarded $100,000 at the 2011 Town Meeting for a landscape restoration project. The project was granted an extension through June 2013 to be completed, but Jay Green of the Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum Inc. reported that he did not expect the project to be “shovel ready” by then.

If that is the case, the funding would also return to the CPC.

Posted by Kameron Z. Spaulding on December 13, 2012. Filed under Community News,News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry