Berlin Conservation Commission Approves Two CPA Applications, Powder House Hill Funding

BERLIN — October 15, 2025 — Berlin Conservation Commission unanimously approves two CPA applications and $13,387.50 for a Powder House Hill conservation restriction. At the October 15 meeting, Chair Carolyn McDonald and fellow members voted to submit a $100,000 open-space acquisition fund application and an estimated $30,000 trail-restoration request for the Clark Reservation, which has been closed to the public since a September 2025 tornado; both face a November 7 Community Preservation Act deadline for consideration at the May 2026 Town Meeting. The commission also authorized $13,387.50 from its open-space fund — covering title review, recording fees, a $4,200 stewardship endowment, and a $2,000 legal defense fund — to advance a conservation restriction on Powder House Hill through Sudbury Valley Trustees. Member Ethan Bickford is collecting tree-removal quotes for the Clark Reservation work, with a placeholder of $30,000 entered on the application.