NEVERSINK - The Neversink Agricultural Society heard questions regarding their recent tree cutting activities during the Town Board of Neversink’s regular meeting on March 13.

An important discussion point was the recent cutting down of trees along Chestnut Creek and its tributary at the fairgrounds.

Many were present to discuss their concerns regarding their distaste for these actions. Among the concerned was Carolyn Summers, who raised and sent the Board a list of questions, which she relayed to the public at the meeting. Those questions included:

Why did extensive tree cutting, including mature live trees, take place along Chestnut Creek and its tributary at the fairgrounds?

Who authorized the activity?

What, if any, permits for this work were sought?

Summers said that tree cutting activity this extensive raises concerns about stream bank erosion, invasion by Japanese Knotweed and other exotic species and adverse impacts to the local trout population and water quality. She asked if these concerns were discussed before the tree-cutting activity was authorized.

She also asked if there were plans to restore the stream banks and if so, where would the money come from, where did the logs go, were they sold and, if so, who received the funds.

“I understand, and I could be wrong, but my understanding is that the fairgrounds are owned by the town and are designated as a town park.” Summers asked, “Are the fairgrounds leased to the Neversink Agricultural Society and if so, is the lease available to the public?”

She mentioned that the Town Park section of the Town Code prohibits tree cutting. She asked if the Board took action to override this provision of the Town Code to permit this activity.

Larry Bracken, who is President of the Neversink Agricultural Society, stated that they run the Grahamsville Little World’s Fair. Bracken answered the question about ownership, saying that the fairgrounds are owned by the Neversink Ag. Society and leased to the Town of Neversink for use as a park when not in use. Bracken stated that, in the lease, the Town does some of the maintenance for the grounds. 

Bracken then went into detail for why the Ag. Society was there, reporting that the grounds have been getting overgrown, and it has been hard to keep up with it each year. He stated that the Ag. Society has spent over $10,000 to have trees taken down at the fairgrounds the last several years along with the ones they were able to remove themselves.

Bracken stated that the Ag. Society decided to take advantage of the mild winter and have some tree work done before the leaves were on the trees and they are harder to clean up.

“I worked with the town to look at what trees were at risk to have them taken down before they became a bigger problem,” said Bracken, “The majority of the trees were either dead or dying from disease. Some trees were a problem in the way they had grown over the stream.”

He stated that the pine trees that were harvested and could be used for building material were delivered to a local mill to be cut into usable lumber for future projects on the grounds.

He also added that the hardwood trees that were harvested were given to local families for use as a heating source for them.

According to Bracken, these trees had ‘little value’ as lumber due to disease. 

“We are working with the Rondout Stream to add some plantings back into the area to protect it,” said Bracken. “I hope with this short explanation it shows the Neversink Ag. Society works very hard and is very proud of what we do to maintain the fairgrounds safe for all to use all year.”

One of the public members in attendance, David Brittenham, posed a question about the mature trees above the stage which provide a lot of shade for people during the summer. He inquired if those trees were going to stay.

Bracken answered that they tried not to take anything that isn’t an issue to the [Little World’s] Fair.

In response, David suggested that they consider consulting an arborist that would suggest that the society take down the dead branches instead of the entire tree

“All I’m saying is, I think you will find that people, particularly in the summer, are going to be unhappy if all of that shade which is where people go to eat their meals and listen to music on the stage, is gone,” said David Brittenham.

He also noted that the fairgrounds, regardless of who owns them, are important to the community.

“When you all make a decision like this [tree cutting] that brings people out and gets their attention, consulting the community would be helpful,” suggested Brittenham. “You might get some additional input that you hadn’t considered. If nothing else, people would appreciate being consulted.”

The Ag. Society stressed that they understand the fairgrounds are sacred to a lot of people and each decision they make is not done lightly.

Jim Schulte, a member of the Ag. Society and lifelong resident of the Town of Neversink, stressed that their main goal is safety.

“We police ourselves and try to make the fair as safe as possible for everybody,” stressed Schulte, “Sometimes, we make the decisions that other people don’t agree with. Cutting these trees is one of them. We have to take it upon ourselves to make these decisions whether people like them or not.”

Town Supervisor Chris Mathews noted the positive outcomes that could stem from the controversial decision.

He said that when events are held, such as the carshows and tractor shows, people reportedly drive past and have no idea that something was happening [in the fairgrounds].

He stated that these actions did open up a line of sight for people to see and make events more successful.

Brenden Wagner talks new Program

Brenden Wagner, the Restoration Coordinator from the Neversink Rondout Stream Program which is funded by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), was present among the public.

He stated that they generally share the concern regarding the trees that were cut. He added that it was ‘pretty shocking’ to drive by and see that many trees that were lost and nothing they could do to stop what was done.

He said that there was actions that they could take to make things better going forward.

He said the main concern they have is that there’s roots in there now but over the next 20-plus years those roots rot and the stream banks can fall apart if they’re not replaced.

“We’re looking forward to working with the Town and the Ag. Society to hopefully get some trees planted in there that can come up over the next twenty years and keep some living roots and keep those stream banks in place,” said Wagner.

He mentioned that they have a program called “The Catskill Streams Buffer Initiative” which is entirely based on these kinds of stream-side plantings. There is reportedly one in each of the watersheds throughout the Catskills New York City Watershed.

“We’re lucky that, in this case, we are right down the street and we’re gonna do what we can to replace what was lost as best as we can,” said Wagner.

He also added that they plan to have an educational day in either May or June of this year that will cover this exact topic.

The day will involve looking at hazardous trees on the stream. They also have their own program to identify hazardous trees.

For example, this includes where they are leaning and where they are undermined.  The Program tries to cut them out in the winter time before they rip out so erosion is prevented from happening.

“We’re gonna talk about that, we’re gonna talk about when it’s appropriate to cut, looking at tree health, level of undermining, level of overhang, and proximity to bridges,” explained Wagner. “We will also talk about how to cut the trees, what to do with the wood and a whole number of other ecological topics that relate to riverside land management.”

This program is offered entirely by the Stream Program and funded by the DEP.