The vacant field adjacent to the Hancock Depot Cabaret, which the Depot Association has used for parking in the past, has been officially designated as a municipal parking lot by the Hancock Select Board.
The board hopes this designation will alleviate limited parking space availability for the town’s summer events such as the farmers’ market and Old Home Days. The field has been lightly prepped by the town’s Public Works department, and especially wet and muddy areas have been roped off. Additionally, an entrance and exit have been designated. The field will be used for municipal parking from Memorial Day through Labor Day.
Additionally, the horse sheds behind Hancock’s First Congregational Church have been fully cleaned out and prepared for storage use by the Recreation Department and the department’s summer camp, among other town departments. The old Hancock fire station is also being cleaned out for storage use.
The Hancock Town Beach on Norway Pond is officially open, with the dock and raft having been put out last weekend. The Select Board reminds residents who use the beach not to leave trash behind.
Additionally, the town is in the final stages of completing an application for a state trail maintenance grant, which the town would use to clean up the Hancock side of the Old Railroad Trail, from South Elmwood to Cavender Road. However, the Hancock Conservation Commission must first receive permission to conduct the trail work from the property-owners along the trail, and the town is still waiting for a cost estimate for the work.
The Select Board hopes to get the application in by the June 14 deadline, but if not, the board will submit an application early next year. Since the work on the application has been done, the submission process won’t take as long. If the application is successful, the select board hopes to apply for future grants to maintain other trails in town.