Agriculture Commission Agenda and Minutes November 22_2016Northampton Agricultural Commission
Agenda and Minutes
7:00 PM TuesdayNovember 22, 2016
Planning & Sustainability, 210 Main Street, 2nd floor, City Hall
Northampton, MA
Members present:
Chair John Omasta
Chip Parsons
Stan Zawalick
Vice Chair Rich Jaescke
Tim Smith
Joe Rogers (staff)
John Bobala
Robert Vollinger
Wayne Feiden (staff)
Public comment—there was no public comment
Western Mass. Agriculture Commissions conference (9:00 am-1:00 pm, Deerfield Town Hall) —Pete Westover, conference coordinator, and the commission agreed that the conference should include:
Municipal Modernization Act and its effect on Agriculture Commissions
Registry of Motor Vehicles rules
NRCS grant programs update
Agriculture Preservation Restriction program update
Nutrient management standards
Sharing of land available for new farmers
MA Depart. Of Agriculture Resources updates
Approval of Agriculture Commission minutes of October 25, 2016 by unanimous vote, upon motion by Rich Jaescke and second by Chip Parsons.
Agriculture Commission staffing—Wayne Feiden introduced Joe Rogers, who works in Planning and Sustainability, and will start staffing the Agriculture Commission in January.
Jail “work farm”—Wayne Feiden updated the Commission that the former jail “work farm” will be transferred to the city, in part for agricultural uses, hopefully in 2017.
Stormwater utility rates for pervious areas—The Mayor is working on a comprehensive review of the stormwater utility program over the winter. The Commission will be brought up to date
in the spring when this review advances.
Next meeting date—Tuesday December 20, 2016 at 7:00 PM
8:10 PM adjournment, upon motion by Chip Parsons and second by Rich Jaescke