Trustees approve easement to secure access to Poor Farm cemetery

Brentwood — The Brentwood Cemetery Trustees voted May 7 to accept an easement that will formalize town access to the Poor Farm cemetery and clear the way to update deed and GIS records. Trustee Jillian moved to approve the easement with a single wording change adding “existing driveway and existing trail”; Skip seconded and the board approved the measure by voice vote.

The easement, approved after trustees reviewed the plan and map labels, grants the trustees permission to access the cemetery from the public road along the routes marked on the easement plan. Trustee Bruce Stevens reported the town-sponsored environmental survey concluded there were no environmental issues on the property. "[The consultant] wrote a letter concurring that there were no environmental issues on the property," he said.

Chair said the next steps are to remove the draft watermark, circulate the final document to Paul (town staff) and the landowners for signatures, and have the select board sign with the trustees so the deed can be recorded and the cemetery will show up on the town GIS. Chair said the trustees prefer this be completed at a select board meeting if schedules permit.

Trustees also clarified language for future clarity: the change to read "existing driveway and existing trail" was intended to prevent confusion for future landowners and to ensure access is unambiguous in the deed and GIS annotation. The chair said the office will provide copies of the final easement and plan to the landowners and the town planner so mapping updates can proceed.

The trustees discussed placing documentation (advertisements and abandoned-cemetery paperwork) in the local files to preserve the chain of custody and background on the town's decision to manage the site.

Next procedural steps: chair will prepare the final easement copy, send it to town staff and the landowners, and coordinate recording so the cemetery appears in the municipal property record.