One vacancy remains on board
SOUTHWICK — The Select Board approved the applications of Kirk Sanders, Mark Rankin, and Erik Davidson to join the Historical Commission July 26 after the Historical Commission had dropped to just two people.
The Select Board approved their applications to join the commission during the same meeting that Historical Commission member Barbara Phelps submitted her resignation.
Sanders, Rankin, and Davidson will join Lee D. Hamberg and Jim Putnam on the Historical Commission, leaving one remaining vacancy.
The Historical Commission’s main topics of discussion include the preservation of Southwick’s oldest monuments, archiving gravestones, and the best use of Community Preservation Act funds.
One of the major projects the Historical Commission has been involved in is the documentation and preservation of the Hampshire and Hampden Canal. They have been working on the project with the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, which has been trying to get the canal on to the National List of Historic Places.
On June 21, the Historical Commission voted unanimously to approve $15,000 in funds for the PVPC’s efforts to fully document the canal. Westfield and Easthampton’s historical commissions voted to do the same.
The Historical Commission meets somewhat irregularly. When it does meet, it is typically Monday evenings at 7 p.m. in Town Hall.
