Recreation Forum

12 May 2005

Summary

A group of Benson residents gathered together on May 12, 2005, to respond to a series of questions regarding the current status of, and future outlook for, various recreational activities in the community. Meeting participants were invited because they regularly engage in one or more recreational activities. Specific questions addressed by the participants included the following:

(1) What type of land/water/facility is required for your recreational activity? At the present time, is there sufficient access in Benson to that land/water/facility for you to participate in your recreational activity?

(2) What factors impact access? Have those factors changed in recent years? What factors do you anticipate will impact access in the future?

(3) Are there presently any obstacles that interfere with or limit participation in your recreational activity? Are these obstacles particular to Benson?

(4) What could be done to address or overcome (identified) obstacles? What other steps could be taken to improve your recreation activity over time?

(5) Are there other recreational activities in Benson that are, or are not, compatible with your activity? For those that are seen as incompatible, why is that the case? Is there anything that could/should be done to reduce those incompatibilities (e.g., education; allocation of trail use by day or time)?

The result of the meeting was a free-ranging discussion in which most of the questions were addressed by participants, but not necessarily in the specific order in which they are listed. The major points raised at the meeting are summarized below.

Current Recreation Activities

Benson residents are engaged in a number of recreational activities. Among those identified at the meeting included:

Walking
Jogging
Hiking
Cross-country Skiing
Snowshoeing
All-terrain Vehicle (ATV) Riding
Hunting
Fishing
Snowmobiling
Target Shooting
Rock Climbing
Biking (Mountain & Road)
Ice Skating (and Skiing) on lakes and ponds
Kite Flying
Organized Sports (i.e. little league baseball, adult softball, volley ball)

Access

Recreation is presently occurring on private land with the permission of individual landowners. Many Benson landowners have been generous in allowing access, although posting is becoming more common and makes establishing/maintaining a interconnected trail network difficult

Motorized recreation (i.e., ATVs, snowmobiles) is more restricted by landowners than non-motorized, although motorized recreation enthusiasts are better organized.

There is a perception of a lack of swimming access, although that may be the result of limited information about public accesses.

Access to Sunset Lake should be improved, as this is an important recreational resource for families with young children.

Facilities for organized sports (e.g., little league baseball) are limited in Benson.

Factors Influencing Access

Many landowners are concerned over liability if someone is injured while recreating on their property.

Noise, especially from snowmobiles late at night, has disturbed several Village residents.

Some people (mountain bikers?) have cut trails on others’ property, and in some instances have done a poor job of pruning which has resulted in damaged trees.

As new people move into town, they may be less aware of existing recreational activities and more likely to deny access and post property.

Participants felt these factors were having the effect of discouraging recreation access.

Obstacles to Recreation

In addition to the factors influencing access listed above, the following obstacles were identified:

The lack of shoulders and heavy truck traffic on paved roads (especially state highways) makes walking, jogging and biking dangerous.

The lack of a sidewalk or other walking path connecting the village to the school discourages use of recreation facilities at the school.

The limited number of ballfields makes scheduling difficult.

There is no formal trail network for non-motorized recreation (e.g., walking, hiking, skiing) in Town.

There is no “Town Beach” that provides good access for public swimming. Limited parking opportunities at Sunset Lake was also mentioned.

Many local residents are not aware of the recreation opportunities that exist ­ more out-of-towners visit the TNC property on Shaw Mountain than local residents.

Ways to Improve Access/Address Obstacles

Allowing ATVs to use Class 4 Roads addressed many of the problems that were occurring before the roads were opened up to ATV use.

Getting organized has helped snowmobilers (through the Vermont Association of Snow Travelers or “VAST”) and ATVers address their respective needs; there has been some talk of organizing a cross-country ski club. It was also suggested that neighbors should cooperate on creating local trail networks in different areas of town.

Community outreach has helped clubs work constructively with the larger community (e.g., ATV club’s participation in Green-up Day).

Public education, such as making landowners aware of laws that protect them from liability and making new residents aware of local activities and resources, might expand opportunities. (For instance, many people don’t realize that Shaw Mountain or the State-owned Wildlife Management Area are open to public recreation.)

Other Issues/Comments

The point was made that indoor recreation is also important, especially in the winter-time. Social and cultural events should be promoted, and perhaps a coffee house organized (similar to the community coffee house organized in the town hall in Ripton).

One person cautioned that too much awareness could attract people from outside town to come recreate in Benson.