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Massachusetts

Leverett

Town of Leverett
9 Montague Road
Leverett, MA 01054
Town Clerk: (413) 548-9150
Tax Collector: (413) 548-9666
Assessor: (413) 548-4945
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Historical Commission Meeting

Monday, May 11, 2020, 7:00 pm until 8:30 pm
Town Hall - online
A meeting of the Historical Commission

Meeting of Historical Commission

Members: (Quorum)

  • Absent: Edie Field, Honorary
  • Present: Ann Tweedy, at 7:00 PM
  • Present: Sara Robinson, at 7:00 PM
  • Present: Susan Mareneck, Chair, at 7:00 PM
  • Present: Susan Lynton, at 7:00 PM
  • Present: Anne Schuyler, at 7:00 PM
  • Present: Eva Gibavic, at 7:00 PM

See original Agenda Final Minutes

Meeting opened: 7:05 PM

Meeting closed: 8:40 PM

  1. Meeting Preliminaries

  2. Access to Historical Commission monthly meeting - contact Susan Mareneck for access to the meeting

    • SM contact - leveretthistoryinfo@gmail.com Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/4753797345 Meeting ID: 475-379-7345

      General Discussion...
      Discussed that "Go-to-Meeting", an online option that the town has offered, does nto have good screen-sharing capability. Plan to stick with zoom for the time being.

  3. History-related Cultural Events

    • Leverett 250 - Planning for "semiquincentennial" (or, "quartermillenial", or "sestercenternnial") in Leverett. Planning for next gathering.

      General Discussion...
      Plan to send out an invite for 5/31, 3pm with a zoom link. Reports are that Rattlesnake Gutter is a popular destination on the weekends these days.

    • Schooling in Leverett - "One-Room School House" Oral History Project. "Go Local..." MBLC grant update; transcriptions.

      General Discussion...
      MBLC relaxing deadlines. Could we have a virtual library event in September then in-person in Spring of 2021? Ann T. will check with Natane, Librarian. Grad students who are transcribing the interviews are also interested in designing. We will schedule a time to digitize visuals at Field Family Museum to share with grad. students. Could we shift some of the funding for the gathering which was meant to celebrate the publication of transcripts to printing more than one copy? Sara reports that Karin Gravina is willing to look at videos of interviews to think about some kind of compilation; Susan M. will deliver DVD's to Karin. Ann T. suggests virtual voice excerpts from the audio tapes of the LES students interviewing the seniors on the website. Could we also get our own UTube channel for non-profits? Ann will look into it.

  4. Strategic Planning for Historical Assets

    • Historical Assets - HAS - - Next steps -- Strategies for reporting findings, educating and engaging community. Planning for historical assets future adaptation for sustainability and reuse.

      General Discussion...
      MA Preservation has a "Most Endangered" list. Should we send in one of our most endangered historical assets?

      Susan Lynton will check out the Roving Archivist, "Field Fellow" grant. We would like to have assistance to inventory the collections of the Leverett Historical Society at both the Field Family Museum and the Moore's Corner School House. A proposal for restoration and reuse of those two important buildings is a goal for the 250th in 2024.

    • MAHumanities Discussion Grant for community engagement - "A Sense of Where You Are: Conversations about Leverett's historic industrial landscape and community." Spring 2020 Walk & Talk.

      General Discussion...
      Eva and Pleun would like to film the Zebina Field Mill. Pleun is working on background research. There is an issue re permission to access the Field Mill location. Sara R. or Edie will try to negotiate with the owner, whom they know for permission to take video footage. We will explain that it would be for a one-time virtual event, hopefully, the third week of June. Pleun will narrate the video. Another location, the Nathaniel and JD Maynard saw/shingle mill on Brushy Mtn. was called a "community" mill by Forrest Briggs, Leverett historian and would require permission of a different owner. We want to be sure the invitation goes out to our elected officials.

    • Slarrow Sawmill - Sale of historic property by current owners

      General Discussion...
      Amy is still interested and pursuing next steps. She would prefer and in-person open house with social distancing at the mill. If Town Meeting is set for 6/20/20, we would like to choose a date before that time.

    • Zoning Bylaws - PB Zoning Bylaw Revisions

  5. Cemeteries

    • Cemetery Conservation

    • Individual Cemetery Issues - Leverett Cemetery Association; Town website corrections; 2017 Form E submissions - MHC approval of National Register applications for North and Hillsboro/Long Plain.

    • Veterans Recognition Project - Bill Rathbun - Signage design.

  6. MHC - Archaeology requirements

    • Requirements - Next Steps

  7. LHC - Schedules/ Meetings/ Duties

    • CPA Monitoring - Protocols for Historic Preservation Restrictions TBD

    • LHC Membership - LHC Vacancy

    • Policy addition - Town advice regarding town boards fee process

      General Discussion...
      SM will check with Margie about whether this adoption of a new regulation to the Town Code needs to be approved by Town Meeting?

      MOTION, moved by Susan Lynton, seconded by Sara Robinson: To adopt the "Employment of Outside Consultants" regulation recommended by town counsel as adapted and written by Marjorie McGinnis, Administrator/LMLP Manager, Town of Leverett for the Leverett Historical Commission to allow for charges to be levied when outside consultants need to be employed by the LHC for review of an application.

      Pass: Aye: Ann Tweedy, Susan Mareneck, Eva Gibavic, Sara Robinson, Susan Lynton, Anne Schuyler. Not Present: Edie Field.

      We discussed examples of when this might be needed at the March meeting.

    • Town website - Update history section on Town website -"Leverett History" on town website

  8. CPA - Reconnaissance

    • Reporting - Template for monitoring CPA funded properties

  9. New Business

    • LHC Budget

    • Opportunities

    • Reports

  11. Meeting Wrap-up

The listing of matters is those reasonably anticipated by the Chair which may be discussed at the meeting. Not all items listed may in fact be discussed and other items not listed may also be brought up for discussion to the extent permitted by law.

Minutes prepared by sm

Minutes approved on Thursday, Jul 9, 2020