June 20, 2005
In response to comments and inquiries made by citizens, the following is a summation of the status of the Cheney farm easement.
The proposed easement document was a lengthy and somewhat complex document. In it the Town had the responsibility of monitoring and enforcing requirements that the federal government mandated. After the townspeople voted at Town Meeting in March 2005 to keep the federal government a part of the easement, the Selectmen made a concerted effort to get the best document possible. This involved numerous meetings as well as a thorough study and review of the proposed easement. In the process, we discovered some fundamental errors in the easement, which caused a significant rewrite. When the government began its review, more changes were made which increased the Town’s responsibilities and further reduced the Cheneys’ rights.
The process was not easy and the Selectmen and Ann Hackl all spent many hours on it over several months time. Everyone, including the Cheneys, became somewhat frustrated by the process. The Cheneys have now listed the property for sale and the easement is on hold pending the results of the listing.
We welcome any citizen involvement and review and all of the Selectmen’s meetings are open to the public as are the minutes of our meetings. Also, the draft versions of the proposed easement are available if anyone wishes more information.