Striking a balance between community and conservation
To the Editor,
In early 2020, as Executive Director of Sustainable Woodstock, I attended a meeting of the Woodstock Conservation Commission. At that meeting, and in the 2020 Community Project Grant application for $73,163 from the Economic Development Commission (EDC), Sustainable Woodstock supported the proposed Woodstock Riverwalk (WR) in order to provide valuable recreational access to the river. Sustainable Woodstock partnered with the WR Team to put together a work plan, to map and plan the trail, and to design trail signage and the trailhead kiosk. (Sustainable Woodstock’s Executive Director is included in the list of Woodstock Riverwalk Team members named in the 2020 EDC grant application.) As the organization whose leadership and East End Action Group volunteers invested ten years in the process of cleaning up a brownfield in the East End, moving the Town’s snow dump to a new site and creating East End Park, Sustainable Woodstock regards the trail as an extension of the many recreational opportunities available from that site for the residents of the local community, the region and visitors to the area.
Since it was initiated in 2021, the process of obtaining WISPr (Watershed Infrastructure Sponsorship Program) funding from the State of Vermont for conservation projects in Woodstock has been conducted with transparency and with all of the required approvals from the Town and Village of Woodstock. In August of 2021, a letter of support was obtained from the Municipal Manager, and permission to apply for the funding was obtained in public hearings from the Village Trustees and Select Board, with both bodies voting unanimously to support using WISPr funding to purchase the parcel in the East End (where the Ottauquechee River Trail begins) as a conservation project (not for development). The landowner (Woodstock Inn & Resort) has been a steady partner in obtaining this funding and supporting the sale to the Town. In the past few years, discussions of this WISPr funded project and updates have occurred in a number of public meetings.
Recent work in the East End parcel has impacted the site’s conservation values and it will not be eligible for WISPr funding unless it is restored. These values include the ecological and community services of flood and erosion control, riverbank stabilization, water quality protection, recreational opportunities and the provision of wildlife habitat, food and nesting sites.
Sustainable Woodstock recently met with partners on this project, and we look forward to working with the Town, Village, State, Woodstock Inn & Resort, Ottauquechee River Trail team and other community-minded organizations and individuals to restore the habitat while maintaining the accessible trail. Since its inception in 2009, Sustainable Woodstock has always worked for, and advocated in support of both meeting the needs of community members and conserving our natural resources. When a project proceeds with the goal of balancing both recreation and conservation as priorities it can be designed to accommodate multiple purposes, to the benefit of all. Sustainable projects can be developed in such a way as to find this balance so that everyone can enjoy and have access to the richness of resources in our community and the natural environments that we share.
Thank you,
Michael Caduto
Executive Director, Sustainable Woodstock
We need to work together on the ORT
To the Editor,
Last week, Tom Ayers wrote an article for this publication with the headline Accessible River Trail Project Mired in Regulatory Weeds. While Mr. Ayers clearly did some research, the article is missing some important facts about the Ottauquechee River Trail (ORT) and this project.
We are disappointed by the unfounded criticism of ORT’s universal access project and the improvements ORT has made to date to protect the parcel of land on Maxham Meadow Way where the Ottauquechee River Trail begins. With limited funds and many hours of hard work, ORT volunteers have built a trail that is loved by the Woodstock community while also significantly improving this neglected property.
Over the years, this small piece of land has suffered numerous conservation injustices — partly to provide necessities to the Town of Woodstock, including the installation of sewer lines and a water treatment plant. These are the realities of balancing conservation with sustainable development – we cannot create an ideal world, but good intentions, reasonable regulation and transparent communication can lead us to positive compromises and outcomes.
It may not be obvious now, but the entire riverbank running from this property past the Woodstock Water Treatment Plant is a giant man-made stone riprap berm built by the Army Corps of Engineers in the 1960s. At about the same time, large sewer lines were installed that run through this parcel and along the berm to the treatment plant. As you hike the trail, you can see three manhole covers. While we can and have worked with these sewer realities, they have diminished the natural beauty and riparian and floodplain qualities of the land. They have also affected the vegetation and the creation and sustainability of the trail.
As Phil Robinson shared in a letter last week, a failing culvert that channels water off of Mt. Peg and Route 4 led to years of somewhat polluted water regularly flooding the area and preventing the natural growth of trees and other vegetation on the East End of this parcel. Similar to East End Park – which was at one point declared a brownfield – the upper part of this property was also used as a dump for years, and continues to sometime be used illicitly.
Partly because this parcel is an altered, vulnerable and challenged landscape, the 1.23 acres have also been overwhelmed by invasive species, especially since hurricane Irene. There are a number of problematic invasive plants, and unfortunately, a significant portion of the property has been overrun by knotweed. The Vermont Agency of Natural Resources tells us that “knotweed outcompetes and replaces native vegetation, and causes many problems for native plants, insect populations and waterways.” Knotweed was a significant obstacle to the creation of the ORT, and volunteers have spent countless hours over many years researching, soliciting expert advice, and attending workshops in our ongoing efforts to control this problematic invasive infestation.
Most of our hundreds of volunteer hours went toward a losing battle against knotweed, and it became obvious to those of us who love the trail and the river that we had to do something different. Based on our research, we decided on mechanical rather than chemical control of knotweed, particularly in this riparian zone. Regular cutting for 5-10 years is one of the few proven methods of controlling knotweed, and we had to clear out dead and dying trees and other invasives to make the repeated annual cuttings possible. We chose not to dig as this would have only spread the knotweed and destroyed valuable native species, including the beautiful ferns. Therefore, we cut at ground level, and the quick and dramatic return of both the ferns and the knotweed can be observed at the site today.
We were also determined to foster the recovery of this land with the selective cutting of the knotweed followed by a strategic planting of a mix of grasses and native species to eventually replace the knotweed infestation — similar (with much less funding) to the impressive efforts at East End Park. During the mechanical clearing process, we saved as many living native trees as possible – in stark contrast to the repeated implications that we kept only “specimen” trees. The reality of our selective cutting can easily be seen in before and after photos.
The bottom line is that we enthusiastically support the desire to protect this property, and we have been diligently working to do so for years. We went through town approval process for this project, even receiving praise from members of the Village Design and Review Board for our well-documented application. It is also important to note that, despite multiple inquiries, we have yet to receive any indication from relevant State authorities that we need additional state approval or permits. In fact, we have been told that we need to work with the town processes.
We are convinced that the ORT and our recent efforts are in Woodstock’s best interests and compatible with both conservation and public access goals. We also believe that managed access and long-term attention to the property, including the management of invasives, will help ensure that more Woodstock residents and visitors will understand and appreciate the value of riparian zones and floodplains. In fact, before the work was shut down, we were in the process of planning a related educational sign/panel along the trail. Unfortunately, we are not aware of any management plan or funding for the property if it is purchased by the Village/Town of Woodstock.
While we have been disappointed by unfair and uniformed criticism, we remain hopeful that open communication and cooperation can get things back on track. Ideally, we will be able to restart our work and receive permission to continue maintaining the trail (currently limited to mowing the field sections). If we all start to communicate and act more transparently and collaboratively, we are convinced there can be a better future for the shared interests of the Ottauquechee River, the ORT and Woodstock.
Thank you,
Jerry Fredrickson
Wendy Jackson
Randy Richardson
Phil Robertson
Tom Weschler
Ottauquechee River Trail Volunteers
The East End Park — formerly known as the Snow Dump
To the Editor,
For many years the property now known as The East End Park was the area Woodstock used to dump the snow cleared from Village streets. The cleared snow included sand, oil residue, and whatever other pollutants the snowplows picked up from the streets, all of which polluted the land and the Ottauquechee River.
Eventually the snow dump was moved, against the resistance of many of the town’s officials, because of one person’s persistence. That person was Marie Caduto, the VT Basin 3 Water Shed Coordinator. It is likely there would not be any East End Park had it not been for Marie.
The original plot of land was much larger. The park plans included an outdoor theatre and other amenities. Those plans were scrapped when Tropical Storm Irene washed away most of the land, washed away in large part because there was no riparian buffer to protect the soil from erosion, something any river engineer would have predicted.
I fully support an East End River Walk, but I suggest that before Woodstock makes any plans, it consult people like Marie or others from the Department of Environmental Conservation in order to build a river walk that will last as opposed to one that may disappear in the next storm, and cause more damage to surrounding property.
Sincerely,
Larry Kasden,
Former Chair of the Ottauquechee Natural Resources Conservation District
Former Vice President of the Vermont Association of Conservation Districts
Bridgewater Resident
Vision for Woodstock: a walkable community
In my pre-retirement days, I had the opportunity to travel to many areas of the country. My most memorable experience was Vail, Colorado, and the Betty Ford Amphitheatre. It was walkable from Village and was designed as an entertainment arena like our East End Park. In other states like Oregon, Minnesota and Florida, communities have planned, designed, and built many pedestrian trails. As our community ages we desire more exercise opportunities that are convenient and safe. Many Woodstock area residents and organizations need these resources.
The Ottauquechee River Trail (ORT) adjacent to the East End Park offers this accessible opportunity. This Trail was envisioned by a group of volunteers meeting in 2017. Development and enhancement have continued since then with over 500 users one week. Construction of a handicap-accessible ramp involves a small portion of the one-plus acre parcel and with careful planning can refurbish a valuable flood plain that works for all.
Sincerely,
Jerry Fredrickson
Community and ORT Volunteer