By Sharron Luttrell
The representative of a Washington Street property owner agreed Thursday night to give the Conservation Commission a plan to remove timber left in wetlands during an unlicensed logging operation last February.
In a Facebook post earlier this week Gary Smith praised the property owner John Gannett and his wife, Ute, for their decades-long philanthropy and expressed concern that the Conservation Commission was treating the couple unfairly.
Conservation Commission Chair Bob Sweet opened the discussion by stating that wasn’t the case.
“It’s not our place to determine whether a person is a good person or a bad person. It is our place to uphold the Wetlands Protection Act and DEP laws,” he said.
The Gannetts, who are in their late 80s, have willed their land at 51 and 53 Washington St. and other properties in town to the conservation organization, the Metacomet Land Trust, a point Smith, representing the couple, brought up during the meeting.
Last February, logger Jim McCarthy of Worcester asked Gannett permission to cut trees on several of his properties, including the Washington Street parcels. Smith said Gannett was trying to help out a friend when he gave McCarthy the OK, and was unaware that McCarthy’s license to harvest timber expired in 2018 or that he did not submit an approved forest cutting plan. The plan is required when cutting more than 50 cords of wood.
The Conservation Commission stepped in after receiving complaints and, upon identifying wetlands on the property, ordered the work be stopped. They issued an enforcement order requiring a Wetlands Resource Area Impact Report.
Gannett, who Smith said was eager to correct the violation, hired Creative Land & Water Engineering, LLC of Southborough to flag the wetlands and prepare the report by an April 9 deadline. Consultant Desheng Wang requested and received extensions from the Conservation Commission in March and again in May. But when the assessment was only partially complete by its June 11 meeting, the commission issued a letter notifying Gannett, McCarthy and a subcontractor, David Cobb, that they were out of compliance.
Smith accused the Conservation Commission of coming down too hard on Gannett. A better option, he said, would be to leave the wood where it is. He said the damaged areas would recover in two years. The Conservation Commission pointed out that Wang recommended that the wood be removed from the site.
Several conservation commissioners expressed empathy for Gannett’s situation while noting that their role is to oversee and enforce the Wetlands Protection Act and the town’s Wetlands Protection Bylaw.
“Our issuing an enforcement order is not making an example of anyone. It’s being fair and equitable and treating everyone the same way,” Commissioner Carl Hommel said.
In a conversation after the meeting, Anne Mazar, who chairs Mendon’s Land Use and Community Preservation committees, said she has spoken to John Gannett about the situation.
“I’ve known John for 30 years. He has a love for protecting open space. He feels bad about this mishap and is very willing to rectify the situation,” she said.
Wang and Conservation Agent Isabella Genova will walk the property with McCarthy to pinpoint the timber and brush that must be removed and how to best do it without causing further damage. Smith agreed to submit the removal plan to the board in two weeks.
Photo top of page: Evidence of foresting on Washington Street (Martin Luttrell)
