GREENSBORO — The Greensboro Association’s (GA) annual meeting last Wednesday was attended by over 50 people in the barn at Jennifer Ranz’s Turning Stone Farm on a warm and sunny afternoon.
photo by Karen Gowen
The association’s membership accepted revisions to the bylaws recommended by the governance committee supporting outreach efforts by the membership committee for creating a more inclusive and representative association, enhancing transparency in nominating members to leadership roles and supporting efforts to connect with the next generation of members.
Members no longer need to be a year-round or seasonal resident, or the owner or lessee of Greensboro property; they now need only have a connection to the Greensboro community and support the association’s mission statement.
Committee reports were shared before the meeting, with Stew Arnold of the Lakes & Environmental Stewardship Committee delivering a summary at the meeting. He noted three greeters are stationed at the Caspian Lake Boat Launch from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., every day of the week, where they assess the risk from each boat entering the lake, inspect it for invasive plants and animals, then assist with decontaminating it, or turn it away.
Lake monitoring for clarity and phosphorus readings shows improvement from effects of July storms the past two summers, said Arnold.
Loons continue to be active, with an average of 10 to 12 average and a mating pair that were successful at hatching two chicks that are growing fast, he reported.
A LakeWise assessment was completed, with Caspian Lake scoring high in all categories: driveways and runoff, structures and septic, recreation areas and lakeshore. More assessments are planned this season.
The lake is now about an inch over the spillway, which is about four inches below its historical average, and well below the last two years post-storm levels, said Arnold. The dam’s weir opening has remained four inches above the 2019 to 2024 base setting as an experiment to find the best year round setting.
Almost 1,000 trees and shrubs were planted on two properties along the Lamoille River in late-May and early-June through the Streamwise program with some GA funding. Culverts have been adopted by about 35 people and there’s a proposal being considered to enroll in the national Adopt-a-drain program to educate citizens and prevent water pollution from debris that is washed into local waters.
Arnold reported the town’s petition to the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation to ban wakeboats on Caspian was denied. The committee continues to work with Responsible Wakes for Vermont Lakes, the Federation of Vermont Lakes and Ponds and the Caspian Lake group to plan next steps. Hardwick Electric maintains a ban on wakeboats launching at the Caspian Lake boat ramp.
Following Arnold’s remarks, some lakeshore property owners expressed concern about silt that’s collected in shallow areas used by children and the effect of water levels on those activities, which, it was suggested, should be a higher priority than the time spent on concerns about wakeboats. Arnold said the two activities needn’t detract from each other and indicated more attention can be given to maintenance and management of the dam by working with Hardwick Electric Department, the town and the state.
In other reports, the GA maintains a fund for Greensboro to invest in organizations, infrastructure and initiatives supporting its mission, with a Caspian Lake Reserve Fund dedicated to lake and watershed protection through community education and targeted programs to prevent, eradicate or mitigate environmental threats.
GA grants in the last year provided support to a variety of community organizations and initiatives, with the grants committee awarding $32,000 in annual grants to 21 grantees that will support community programming, town initiatives and general operations for organizations that provide essential services to the Greater Greensboro community. The Community Relief Fund awarded $9,150 to three organizations addressing food security and emergency services.
The membership committee continued its efforts towards greater inclusivity and broader outreach by proposing the expanded membership eligibility definition in the GA’s bylaws to ensure it remains a welcoming and representative organization for both full-time and part-time residents. The committee report by co-chairs Chloe Cubbage and Joann LaCasse, said it is prioritizing targeted outreach through community events and increased communications efforts designed to raise awareness of the GA and encourage participation across all segments of the Greensboro community.
The GA Communications Committee reported it is undertaking a complete redesign of the website with work, guided by Betsy Hunt, expected to be completed before 2025 is over.
The GA uses social media and area news media to communicate with its greater Greensboro community, said Meaghan Meachem, communications committee chair, in her report.
The many community initiatives and events supporters or organized by the GA include February’s Tour de Greensboro cross country skiing event; the Funky Fourth Independence Day weekend celebration; the July Caspian Challenge, with around-the-lake and 5K running and walking age group events; a Bend Block Party in August; the Caspian Lake Sailing Series; the Greensboro Community Garden; Pollinator Friendly Greensboro; a new community meals series and the Caspian Lake Swim Program at the public beach.
The GA Mission Statement says simply, “Our Mission is to advance initiatives that connect and enhance our greater Greensboro community, protect our lakes and environment and support a vibrant local economy.” Learn more at greensboroassociation.org.
Paul Fixx is editor of The Hardwick Gazette and lives in Hardwick.
