North Yarmouth’s newly formed Open Space Planning Committee seeks to preserve spaces for future generations, like Knight’s Pond Preserve, which stretches across the town line into Cumberland. Rachel Vitello / File photo, The Forecaster

A new committee charged with identifying open space in town is soliciting input from residents as it tries to form a plan to protect undeveloped land for future generations.

In April of last year, the North Yarmouth Select Board appointed the Open Space Planning Committee to catalog public and conservation land, identify unprotected parcels for potential acquisition, and formalize a plan to protect and expand open space within the town.

To frame the scope of its work, the committee recently distributed a resident survey, defining its view of open space as “any undeveloped or lightly developed area of land. These areas may provide wildlife habitat, recreational access, hunting and fishing opportunities, scenic vistas, and community gathering spots, among other benefits. Examples of open space include parks, water access points, forestland, farmland, conserved or other privately owned lands with and without trails, community gardens, and playgrounds.”

The survey clarified that “open spaces do not need to be open to the public, nor do they need to be permanently conserved; however, conservation of priority open spaces will ensure that future generations enjoy their benefits.”

Through this project, the town hopes to protect wildlife habitat, enhance recreational opportunities, preserve farmland and scenic views, and promote community health and resilience. The committee’s primary focus will be creating an Open Space Acquisition Plan complete with an acquisition evaluation process, which, according to its website, will be used to evaluate potential acquisitions in a consistent manner.

“Right now we are in the information gathering phase,” said Chris Franklin, chair of the committee.

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He said that the recent community resident survey received over 100 responses. In its findings, about 80% of respondents voiced that they thought it was very important for the town to prioritize planning to acquire and secure more open space. The survey also investigated which forms of open space citizens were most concerned with protecting and expanding. Franklin said the top priorities were habitat preservation, water quality, recreation, working farms, and maintaining that “sense of openness” within North Yarmouth.

To continue incorporating community input into its work, the committee will hold a public forum on Wednesday, Jan. 29. The meeting’s focus will be “to get input from residents, but also an opportunity to educate people,” said Franklin, on what land conservation looks like, how it gets accomplished and why it is important.

Franklin said the committee is aiming to complete the Open Space Acquisition Plan by next winter, drafting the document in the summer, revising it in the fall and engaging with the public again this time next year before its official presentation. The committee’s term will run for two years and has seven voting members, three alternate members and two non-voting Select Board liaisons.

In these beginning stages, Franklin emphasized how the committee has not yet identified specific land parcels to potentially acquire but is concentrating on internally polishing its communication and recommendation strategies for the project.

“We want to be fully transparent in the work we do,” he said. “We want to encourage landowners who are interested in preserving their land to indicate to us that they would like to have those conversations.” These conversations, he said, will help shape the project into more of a collective community discussion rather than one where private landowners feel that they are being targeted.

The public forum on Jan. 29 runs from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the North Yarmouth Community Center.

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