Much has been said and written about the West Tisbury Mill Pond in the last decade, as a small group of residents has relentlessly sought money to dredge the pond.
The residents of West Tisbury will be meeting on April 8 to vote on an array of articles applicable to CPC-approved funding for critical initiatives in our town.
The bucolic pond that graces the entrance to town has been the source of long-running disagreement over environmental management methods. At the annual town meeting next week voters will again consider dredging and a watershed study.
At West Tisbury’s annual town meeting on Tuesday, April 8, at the West Tisbury School gym, there will be a warrant article asking the town to vote to use $30,000 of Community Preservation Act funds for design and permitting costs to dredge the Mill Pond.
The West Tisbury selectmen voted this week to approve a request for proposals (RFP) for a study of the Mill Brook watershed. Drafted by the town conservation commission, the RFP seeks consultants qualified “to prepare and deliver a study of the watershed of Mill Brook,” which includes Mill Pond as well as Fisher Pond, Crocker Pond, and Priester’s Pond and several tributaries.
The RFP limits the cost of the proposed study to $15,000, the amount approved by voters at the annual town meeting in April.
Passing by the Mill Pond, I am always struck by its beauty and the variety of wildlife that enjoy its waters all year round: the otters sliding on the ice or diving under water, the ducks and geese
I thank the town of West Tisbury for the opportunity to hear about the different options related to the future of the Mill Pond. I was troubled by the insistence of the Mill Pond committee on dredging the pond, in particular the implication that natural sediments (referred to as black gold) be positioned as a commodity.
Mill Pond, the historic man-made pond in the heart of West Tisbury, was once again the center of debate this week over what, if anything, should be done to address fears that the pond is disappearing and the health of its species are in decline.
At a public forum Wednesday, representatives from the state division of ecological restoration, The Nature Conservancy and the town’s Mill Pond committee addressed a standing-room-only crowd at Howes House with competing visions for the pond’s future. Options included dredging and dam removal.
West Tisbury’s historic Mill Pond on the Mill Brook has been the subject of considerable attention going on five years now. The scenic pond at one of the gateways to the town has existed since the 17th century and is in the heart of West Tisbury’s historic district. Together with several surviving structures in the area, it has endured over 300 years of increasing human activity and development and been rejuvenated many times by having its accumulated sediment removed, most recently around 1970.
