Turtle study suggests extensive conservation of Pope property

SALISBURY — As the Pope Land Design Committee continues talks around a three-pronged housing, recreation and conservation proposal on a large downtown-adjacent property, a Thursday, Aug. 7, presentation advocated for the consideration of a particular long-term resident: the wood turtle.

“Conservation is the dominant use of this property,” said herpetologist Michael Klemens, who has spent decades studying the wood turtle’s Connecticut population and helmed the Pope study, which has been considered a vital early step in the planning process for the project. Klemens also chairs the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission, though affirmed he conducted this work purely as a “consultant” and would recuse himself from applications to P&Z regarding the project to ensure there is no conflict of interest.

In reporting his findings to the Zoom audience, which included members of the Committee, First Selectman Curtis Rand, Selectman Katherine Kiefer, Litchfield County Center for Housing Opportunity Director Jocelyn Ayer and town Recreation Director Lisa McAuliffe, among others, Klemens suggested the 72.3 acres of the Pope Property and Trotta Field be restructured into three parcels: 6.6 acres for housing, 13.5 acres for recreation and 50.4 easement-protected acres dedicated to wood turtle conservation.

Klemens said his motivation in the recommendations was “approaching this as a conservation issue, not a development issue.” Klemens holds a doctorate degree in ecology and conservation biology and has led research on reptile and amphibian conservation for over forty years, most recently co-authoring a 2021 book on the conservation status of many species in Connecticut.

He noted that experts from the Natural Diversity Data Base section of the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection have endorsed the study and findings, agreeing the site is of special ecological value. “The state considers the wood turtle to be the principal and primary conservation concern of the site,” said Klemens.

The wood turtle, a smallish turtle endemic to the Northeast U.S., Great Lakes and southeastern Canada, is listed as a species of special concern in Connecticut and is protected by the Connecticut Endangered Species Act. They spend their lives in and around streams, roaming riparian (river-adjacent) forests and grasslands for meals and mating and nesting opportunities. Their primary threats in the Northwest Corner are depredation, being hit by cars and, notably with broad fields on the Trotta and Pope parcels, strikes from mowing equipment.

Klemens reported the landscape of much of the proposed project area is prime wood turtle habitat: a network of braided stream channels surrounded by extensive wetlands and native forests, with all the watercourses ultimately feeding Salmon Kill which also supports the species. He said the land is part of a broader ecosystem which extends to some abutting private property and land owned by the Salisbury Winter Sports Association.

Four turtles have been found in the area comprising the current Pope and Trotta parcels, including one spotted during the study which Klemens described as a “very healthy female, quite young, very large.” He said there are likely many more, but surveying the area is difficult due to complex and varied terrain.

Klemens produced a map from the study’s findings, which he shared with the Committee and assembled local leadership. The map showcases the boundaries of the various parcels and management zones he proposed, along with a low-profile turtle exclusion fence between the conservation areas and recreation and housing parcels. He said since the map had received positive feedback from the state, he was not open to altering it — “this map has buy-in.”

He reported he will be working with experts both from DEEP and the private sector over the next month to develop a wood turtle-specific management plan for the proposed conservation area.

Klemens explained that while it will be a conversation further along in the planning process, he does not foresee the conservation parcel to be open to passive recreation, like hiking or dog-walking. “So-called passive recreation is not always so passive” when it comes to protecting sensitive species, he said.

McAuliffe said recreation plans will not be substantially altered by the new layout, despite losing a few acres of land to turtle conservation. Elizabeth Slotnick, member of the Pope Land Design Committee and vice chair of the Salisbury Affordable Housing Commission, said while the proposed housing development will need to be moved from its previously planned location, she didn’t think it would lose units. The most recent development plan showed a maximum of 64 residential units on the property.

Klemens countered, stating he felt the proposed residential component will need to be downsized. “I personally believe 64 units is unrealistic given everything we know,” he said.

The project has several more steppingstones to overcome before development planning and applications can begin in earnest, including an 8-24 review by P&Z which screens whether the proposal is compliant with Salisbury’s Plan of Conservation and Development. That process is expected to begin later this year.

A color-coded map from the study is available online at lakevillejournal.com