Facing public pressure, Newfields Select Board advances purchase of Rugg woodlands

NEWFIELDS — Two months following voters’ approval, the town will enter into an agreement to purchase 101 acres of woodlands for conservation and outdoor recreation use.

The Select Board Tuesday voted to execute a purchase-and-sale agreement with the Trust for Public Land for the acquisition of the town’s 101-acre portion of 148 acres owned by the Rugg family, located between the Newfields and Exeter town forests.

The land includes portions of the popular Fort Rock Farm trails, and Exeter has agreed in concept to purchase the remaining 47 contiguous acres of Rugg land for sale in their town.

Derek Rugg, one of the owners of the land who is also a Newfields resident, said that he felt “great” about the outcome of the meeting.

“I thought there were some clarifications that needed to be made, and I think the town board and the audience did a great job of hammering down exactly what the intent is and the direction that we’re going,” he said. “I’m excited that they’ve (Select Board) clarified their position. I don’t see why we wouldn’t want to do this. Everybody seems to be in support of it.”

In March, Newfields residents overwhelmingly approved the acquisition of the Rugg property as part of a joint effort with Exeter to conserve the area. The 148-acre property is appraised at nearly $5.2 million — Newfields’ 101 acres are just over $3.5 million while Exeter’s 47 acres are valued at just over $1.64 million.

The project was led by Trust for Public Land (TPL) and Southeast Land Trust (SELT), both of which are nonprofits that help towns with the process of conserving land and protecting it from development.

Tense talk at Newfields Select Board meeting before agreement was reached

A large crowd of residents showed up at Tuesday's meeting to question the Select Board about a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) the board had put out on April 29 on the town website seeking a third-party vendor to consult on the land purchase as part of its due diligence.

Shawn McGowan, a resident who's a part of a nonprofit that has worked with TPL, expressed his confidence in the organization.

"As a taxpayer of the town, for me I think it's a duplication of effort," he said of the RFQ.

Select Board member Mark Kasper, one of the board's three members, stated he wasn’t even aware of the RFQ being put out. He said he was concerned about the “potential overlap of roles” and the potential high cost of the additional consultant.

“This approach is expensive. It exceeds our budget and presents challenges in meeting deadlines and requirements,” he said of the RFQ. “There’s a lack of clarity on the cost and funding source for this expanded scope as fiduciaries, meaning we must consider TPL’s free service.”

Kasper asked Select Board Chair Michael Sununu, who drafted the RFQ, why the request didn’t include seeking vendors with experience in conservation. It’s a conservation land acquisition, he said.

"The scope here is to solicit people who have competence and experience in this and talk to us about this so we can better evaluate not only what they can provide… but get a third-party independent review if what TPL is saying is what we want to do right now," Sununu said.

However, resident Anthony Hagen said that information wasn't clarified in the RFQ.

"If that's what it said, I don't think we would have 60-plus people in the room tonight, but that's not what it said," said Hagen. "(The RFQ) talks about contracting out vendors on behalf of the town for an agreement the town does not have with the property, so it goes too far. If what you had just said was in your RFQ, this meeting wouldn't be happening tonight."

In a May 3 letter, In response to the RFQ, the Trust for Public Lands told selectmen the organization has been and will continue to provide services such as due diligence “for free.”

“To date and for over a year, TPL has worked in close coordination with the Town, and has provided extensive fundraising, grant writing, public information and due diligence contracting and review services at no cost to the town,” the letter reads. “Regarding due diligence, TPL has contracted a qualified appraiser to provide an initial appraisal to federal Yellow Book standards, contracted title work including a title commitment, and coordinated initial boundary survey work.”

Representing TPL, Lynnette Batt clarified that the organization is “an independent third party facilitator,” meaning that they will help towns with the acquisition process, such as contracting vendors for due diligence, eliminating the need for towns to carry out these processes on their own.

Batt said the town should have entered into a purchase-and-sale agreement with the organization first to discuss the direction of the project. She said TPL is still waiting for a response from the town following a request made on March 25.

However, both Sununu and Select Board member Hobart “Hoby” Harmon said they weren’t aware of such a request.

“I haven’t seen the purchase and sale, I haven’t seen the option agreement. We have seen none of this,” said Sununu. “You’re asking me to sign something without actually having this run by the legal counsel? Of course not.”

Harmon clarified to residents he is not against the project. However, he said, proper steps needed to be taken to avoid legal repercussions.

“The town voted and it’s going to happen,” he said.

As a result of the meeting, TPL will draft a purchase-and-sale agreement with the town where both parties will also discuss the scope and direction of the project moving forward. Batt said following the agreement and discussion, the Select Board may resume its search for a third-party vendor for due diligence if it still feels one is necessary.

"We’re heartened to see the Newfields Select Board honor the guidance in the March warrant article to work 'in collaboration with and facilitated by conservation organizations’ to bring the community forest project to completion," said Batt. "Trust for Public Land has decades-long experience and a successful track record of working with public entities to acquire land and connect people to the outdoors. We have led the conservation of 264,000 acres of land in the State of New Hampshire to date – we know what it takes to succeed, and this is a crucial step forward."

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Newfields Select Board agrees to advance purchase of Rugg woodlands