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COMMISSION ITEMS <br /> Catherine Laurent, DPW-Discussion of Proposed Pickle Ball Courts <br /> Ms. Laurent was present to discuss a request to build pickle ball courts at one of two locations and <br /> plans for the Town to seek funds from the Community Preservation Committee to build the court. Ms. <br /> Laurent was seeking feedback from the Historic District Commission regarding the feasibility of pickle <br /> ball courts at 400 Main Street, presently the location of the Community Gardens. <br /> Chairman Mills stated that the proposed site was located in the Historic District. Ms. Laurent <br /> responded that she was in attendance at the Commission meeting due to the site's location in the <br /> Historic District and as a result of regulations that required any structure, such as a fence, fell under the <br /> jurisdiction of the Historic District Commission. There was not yet an application to build at the site <br /> because Ms. Laurent was seeking to gain a sense from the community and Commission their position <br /> on using the site for pickle ball courts. Should this site not be preferable to the community, the Town <br /> would pursue the alternate site. Ms. Baird inquired about the fencing structure and Ms. Laurent <br /> confirmed that it would surround court pavement. Mr. Fudala confirmed that pavement was not under <br /> the jurisdiction of the Commission. <br /> Ms. Baird inquired about the number of courts at the site, adding the likelihood that it would require a <br /> chain link fence, and stated that the site was the former location of the historic Attaquin Hotel. Ms. <br /> Baird stated that it was an extremely historic site with former presidents staying on site to go fishing. <br /> Regarding the garden in the Historic District, it was her opinion that it had not been given sufficient <br /> opportunity to succeed. Ms. Baird stated that there was little marketing effort to inform residents of <br /> the mission of the garden and whether it was available for farming or for food access. Ms. Baird felt <br /> that there were sites better suited for pickle ball courts. Ms. Laurent responded that DPW was not <br /> responsible for the marketing of the gardens but had been tasked with cleaning out the weeds due to a <br /> lack of maintenance at the site. <br /> Mr. Balzarini inquired about the second option and Ms. Laurent responded that the other option was <br /> not located in the Historic District. Mr. Balzarini agreed that the community gardens was not a good <br /> site for the courts and inquired about plans for parking. The Chair suggested that the Pickle Ball <br /> Committee needed to become more informed about the historic use and value of the site. Mr. Pittsley <br /> agreed that pickle ball courts were not an appropriate use of the site. Mr. Hyde thanked Ms. Laurent <br /> for her leadership in the Town. As a representative of the Historic Commission, Mr. Hyde referenced <br /> his role to preserve the spirit and historic integrity of the historic town center and questioned whether <br /> pickle ball courts would fulfill that role. Additionally, Mr. Hyde referenced the preservation of the <br /> places with historic significance to the Town of Mashpee, such as the site of the Attaquin Hotel, which <br /> added significant historic value to the Town. Mr. Hyde distributed information about the Hotel and <br /> referenced the plans to preserve history through the Voices of Mashpee Park. Ms. Laurent stated that <br /> they would pursue the other location. <br /> The Chair requested that the people he invited to the meeting, discuss the historic area. Lisa Frye <br /> appreciated the history of the site and indicated that conversations were initiated to utilize the location <br /> as a means to refocus on the community center of Mashpee. Ms. Frye referenced the facility located at <br /> Brooks Park in Harwich and with no intention of overrunning anything historical, suggested the <br /> possibility of reuse of the community gardens to further enhance the community center with pickle ball <br /> courts. Ms. Frye mentioned the idea of images of Hotel Attaquin on the windscreens. Chairman Mills <br /> responded that Brooks Park had historically been a baseball park, very different from Mashpee's <br /> Historic District, The Chair stated that he was writing a book, already 300 pages, about the historic <br /> site including Daniel.Webster and President Cleveland's' stays at the hotel. <br /> 2 <br />