LEVERETT — Mediation aimed at resolving a Land Court lawsuit over access to town conservation land in East Leverett is expected to resume by the end of October, after the two sides were unable to reach a deal during an initial day-long session with a professional mediator this summer.
In a joint report filed Friday in Land Court, attorneys representing both the plaintiffs Norma S. Evans, David A. Evans and Julie Evans Marlowe, and the town and its Conservation Commission as the defendants, told Judge Michael D. Vhay that they anticipate meeting again with retired Superior Court Judge Mark Mason. The first in-person mediation took place on July 10.
“The case can be settled through a second mediation session with the same mediator,” rather than moving to a status conference, wrote Michael Pill, of Green Miles Lipton, LLP of Northampton, representing the plaintiffs, and Donna L. MacNicol, of Greenfield, counsel for the town.
Filed against the town and members of Conservation Commission in June 2024 by the owners of a home at 101 Shutesbury Road, the lawsuit has taken away the easiest route for the public to get to the Gordon King Life Estate, a former Christmas tree farm that is also known as the Blueberry Patch.
A trailhead next to the home has been blocked by a gate and “no trespassing” signs, forcing those who want to get to the 65 acres to take significantly longer walks by entering through either the East Leverett Meadow Conservation Area or the 4-H Forest.
The site was deeded to the town by longtime resident Gordon King in late 2000. Since then, volunteers have placed a memorial bench for King, who died at 98 in 2016, on a covered bridge built by his sons. King taught arboriculture and the park management program at the Stockbridge School of Agriculture at the University of Massachusetts.
The Conservation Commission is scheduled to meet in executive session with MacNicol Aug. 25 at 4:30 p.m., after which the mediation will be scheduled.
