Hatfield Select Board likes idea of improving Day Pond for recreation

HATFIELD — A small pond near Smith Academy that for more than 80 years has been the site of an annual youth fishing derby could be in line for improvements.

Members of the Hatfield Fish & Game Club are pitching the idea of having the town invest in Day Pond, a municipal body of water, so that it might be available for more recreational activities, including ice skating in the winter.

“It would be a good place for kids to go fishing throughout the year,” Michael Szych, the club’s president, told the Select Board on Tuesday.

In addition, he noted that the high school now has a fly fishing club, and students could use the site to practice.

The Poppy Thayer Memorial Fishing Derby dates to at least 1937, taking the name of W. Robert Thayer Sr., an avid sportsman, boater and retired police officer, following his death in 1991. The derby has welcomed girls and boys 14 and under to the competition that awards various prizes. Participants bring their own fishing rods and bait.

Szych explained that the pond is too shallow, requiring that an oxygenator be in place when trout are stocked in advance of the fishing derby, and those that are not caught are later released into the Mill River. In addition, the pond’s dam needs to be fixed.

The request for pond improvements comes at a time when such work could be linked to other projects, such as a walking trail being built at the high school and a pedestrian path for senior citizens that would extend from the Capowonk Housing property.

Select Board members appeared supportive of the pitch, though uncertain whether any application for money could be ready to present to voters at Town Meeting in the coming months.

“There’s a million great reasons to do this,” Chairwoman Diana Szynal said, noting that her own children enjoyed being part of the fishing derby.

Szynal said it seems like a Community Preservation Act project that could use money from the account created from a surcharge on property tax bills, supporting recreation, affordable housing and open space. Szynal said the project should be done in a thoughtful way and in conjunction with other work.

“It’s a great spot now, but has a lot of potential,” Szynal said.

Select Board member Ed Jaworski, who is also on the Hatfield Fish and Game board, said the Conservation Commission and Open Space Committee might also want to take on the project and consider supporting an application.

Access to the pond is generally from Smith Academy, though those who live on the nearby Day Avenue are notified when the fishing derby is held, as some people access the site via private property.

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.