Berlin Conservation Commission Continues Two Hearings, Advances Mount Pisgah Trail Reroute Plan

BERLIN — May 20, 2026 — Berlin Conservation Commission defers executive session, advances Mount Pisgah trail reroute at May 20 meeting. The commission postponed a scheduled executive session after key documents arrived around 1 p.m. — too late for adequate member review — and continued two public hearings, for a garage addition and a deck extension at 197 River Road West, to June 3. The commission's most substantive discussion centered on a proposed half-mile trail reroute on Mount Pisgah, intended to replace a waterlogged fall-line route that one member described as "basically a river runs through it" each spring; the plan calls for engaging local contractor Rob Horn at roughly two to three dollars per unit against a typical market rate of seven to eight, with funding to be sought through open space funds or a MassTrails grant. Members also reviewed a Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources request to authorize spotted lanternfly pesticide treatment at the Berlin Meadows garden at 0 Pleasant Street, expressing concern about a provision allowing destruction of trees and shrubs and the presence of a newly installed beehive at the site; the commission agreed the Town Administrator, not the commission chair, should sign any authorization.