At the Warren Select Board’s April 12 meeting Sally Campbell came before the board to request paving a section of Golf Course Road to protect the trees and vista. The area in question is, according to Campbell, approximately three-tenths of a mile from West Hill to near the Sugarbush Golf Course.
“It’s a beautiful vista lined with maple trees,” she said. “Over the past 10 years there’s been steady deterioration of the trees probably due to constant grading and ditching along the road and plows hitting them. Paving could save the trees and help during mud season.” She noted there is significant scarring on trees in the area. “Many trees have debris. Materials run down into the sugar orchard. I’m afraid this is going to damage the trees,” she said.
Select board member Bob Ackland said that paving the road would require rebuilding the road entirely. He also noted that salt on paved roads may be even more harmful to trees. Campbell conceded that paving may not be the answer but that something needs to be done to protect the trees. The select board decided to ask Megan Moffroid of Broadleaf Landscape Architecture to look at the trees on that section of Golf Course Road and recommend a solution.
Another paving request, pertaining to Fuller Road, was moved to the board’s April 26 meeting.
The select board also approved two 9-1-1 road signs naming streets so emergency vehicles could find them. It approved naming a small road with three houses off Route 100 Bent Birch Way. The other request had not yet been assessed by the 9-1-1 emergency services. The board conditionally approved the three-lot road being named Valley House View contingent upon emergency services’ approval.
During public comment Jon Rickard asked for an update on the downtown traffic study conducted by VHB consultants and the status of the project. He was told that the town had applied for a $147,000 grant to make changes to pedestrian walkways and roads to curb speeding as recommended by VHB Consultants. It expects to hear whether the town received the grant by April 25. The board wants to take the consultant’s recommendations to square off some intersections and restripe roads to narrow the roads and create pedestrian walkways. The board decided not to take the recommendation to create a rotary at the intersection of Brook Road and Main Street.
