John Britton Appointed to Fill Vacancy on Conservation Commission

By Kim Siebert MacPhail

John Britton of Sibley Drive was unanimously appointed by the Selectmen on August 19 to complete the unexpired Conservation Commission term, ending on June 30, 2014, recently vacated by Art Smith. Britton, the owner of a residential construction company, provides the Commission with expertise in the building trades. He received an enthusiastic letter of endorsement from current Conservation Commission Chair Steve Hagan.

“John Britton earns his living in construction. . . and has a sterling reputation in that area,” Hagan wrote in his recommendation to the Selectmen. “The skillset, hands-on experience as a professional construction person, is the single skill most lacking in the Conservation Commission, making John the top recommended candidate.”

Britton, when asked by Selectman Chair Bill Moonan why he wanted to serve on the Commission, replied, “I have been living in this town for 34 years but I haven’t been very involved in the goings-on here. It’s been bothering me lately. I have some talent that I understand will be useful on this committee –usually [issues that come before the Commission] involve some sort of structural process that’s going on. I’m also very environmentally conscious—I’ve fished pretty much everywhere from the St. Lawrence to Route 2 in my life. I’m certainly not a zealot, but I feel I’m more than up to the job.”

The responsibilities of the Conservation Commission, as stated by Selectman Mark Siegenthaler at the meeting and as written on the Town’s website, include the review of applications for building projects that are proposed 1) within 100 feet of wetlands, bodies of water, waterways and floodplains, or 2) within 200 feet of perennial streams and rivers, as subject to The Wetlands Protection Act and state and local wetland protection bylaws. The Commission holds public hearings, issues decisions permitting or prohibiting work, and inspects projects as they progress. It may issue enforcement orders if unauthorized activities cannot be resolved “through amicable means.”