Friends of Arlington's Great Meadows (in Lexington) - FoAGM

Friends of Arlington's Great Meadows Newsletter June, 2002
Welcome to the first issue of the Friends of Arlington's Great Meadows newsletter!

The purpose of this newsletter is to keep you informed of our efforts to protect and maintain Arlington's Great Meadows (AGM). 
Those of you who have attended our recent meetings know that we have 3 subgroups, as follows.
1. The legal subgroup is working on identifying the current legal status and regulations regarding AGM, and investigating the possibilities for gaining future protected status.
2. The resources subgroup is working to maintain and restore AGM by organizing cleanups, maintaining and marking trails, and eventually providing signage and maps for AGM.
3. The education subgroup offers nature walks for the general public, and is planning additional special programs for children and adults.

Minutes from the March, April and May meetings are available on the FoAGM website at http://www.foagm.org
We will also be posting photos on the website, including FoAGM events and seasonal photos of AGM.

Recent activities

June 2 -  Biodiversity Days Walk

About 15 people turned out for the Arlington's Great Meadows walk. Biodiversity days is a statewide program that encourages people to learn about their local plants and animals. Equipped with field guides, binoculars, butterfly nets and magnifying glasses, the AGM group listed about 50 organisms in 2 hours. Highlights were a black-billed cuckoo, one-flowered cancerroot, lance-leaved violet and the aircraft roaring overhead from the Hanscomb Air show held that afternoon. For more information on Biodiversity Days, see the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs website at: http://data.massgis.state.ma.us/Biodiversity/BiodiversityDays.htm  --- Andrea Golden

June 22 - Successful Heavy Metal Cleanup

All the known large junk objects were successfully hauled out of Great Meadows on June 22 except an elusive bathtub, which still hides somewhere in thick brush. The enthusiastic volunteer work team consisted of Lexington Christian Academy cross country coaches Brendan Cooney, Gretchen Schimel-Pfenig, and Eric Hanson, three LCA high school students, and FoAGM steering committee members Don Miller, Bob Morse, and Mike Tabaczynski (apologies if I missed anyone). 

A diverse collection of items such as 4, 6, and 8 cylinder engine blocks, a home water heater, and a snowmobile were moved to the East Village Nursing Home parking lot and the end of Brandon Street, where they were later picked up by the Lexington Department of Public Works. A key tool in the effort proved to be a rented cement pushcart into which heavy objects could be rolled without requiring them to be lifted off the ground. A landscaping golfcart loaned by LCA rounded out our "heavy" equipment. A big thank you to Don for supplying cold drinks, Bob for providing donuts, LCA for providing strong bodies, the East Village Nursing Home for gracefully allowing us to use their parking lot, and the Lexington DPW for speedy disposal of an intimidating pile of junk. --- Mike Tabaczynski

June 23 - Natural History Walk

Infinity Pond was the destination of the first natural history walk of the summer, held last Sunday. Participants examined pond life, including green frogs, tadpoles, damselfly and dragonfly larvae and amphipods. A kingfisher was in residence at the edge of the pond. On the way back we looked at seasonal plants, especially grasses. Grasses in bloom can be spectacular flowers under a magnifier (10x is good), resembling bird of paradise and other exotic blooms. Bring a magnifying glass on your next summer walk and see for yourself!

June 24 - Arlington Board of Selectmen meeting

Lexington Christian Academy coaches Brendan Cooney, Gretchen Schimel-Pfenig, and Eric Hanson appeared before the Arlington Board of Selectmen to request permission to continue to use some of the trails in Great Meadows for their cross country team training and racing. Don Miller and Mike Tabaczynski represented FoAGM to provide informational support. After Brendan gave a presentation of the team's plans, the major concern expressed by the Board and town counsel John Maher was liability. Ultimately, they were very supportive of the LCA and, unanimously voted to permit the team to continue using the Great Meadows trails under the conditions that the town counsel is satisfied that all the paperwork is in place between the school and its students releasing the town from liability, and that they cooperate with FoAGM concerning any management issues, such as trail maintenance. This is good news because it ensures a positive relationship between LCA, FoAGM, and the town. --- Mike Tabaczynski

Ongoing Projects

FoAGM is making preliminary plans for mapping AGM and improving the AGM trail network. It is possible that some funding may be available for these projects. At the last FoAGM steering committee meeting, we discussed grant applications, specifically the state's Recreational Trails Program (RTP), which has its deadline on July 26 for the 2003 year. The RTP is appropriate for work in Great Meadows because it can provide up to $10,000 of state money and prioritizes on-the-ground work such as trail improvements and signs. Because of the imminent deadline, we decided we would be too rushed to put together a proper application and get selectmen approval for trail work this year. Stay tuned, this and other grant applications will be on the agenda next year when we are farther along in developing a more comprehensive stewardship plan for Great Meadows.

Upcoming Activities

The education committee has scheduled 2 more walks for the summer, on Sunday, July 21 and Sunday, August 25. Both walks will start at 10:00 AM. Details to be announced.

FoAGM will be present at Arlington Town Day on September 14. 

We will have a lot to discuss at the first general meeting on Tuesday, September 24. Please mark your calendars!

Please send comments and items of interest for this newsletter to Andrea Golden at andgold@attbi.com

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