Monadnock Ledger-Transcript
Published: 11/10/2021 11:10:14 AM
The Monadnock Rod & Gun Club and the Walden Eco Village will be waiting at least until the next Peterborough Planning Board meeting for a decision, after both hearings were continued Monday night.
The discussion on the proposed 20-lot Eco Village subdivision was continued, as the town’s appointed third-party consultant on the property’s wetlands and hydrology has not yet supplied the Planning Board with the completed study, which served as a matter of contention between the Eco Village representatives and the board members.
Eco Village has faced various challenges, including lawsuits over permit and safety violations, and the hearing for its current proposal for subdivision has been continued each month since July, when the town requested the third-party review.
Chad Branon, an engineer with Fieldstone Land Consultants, spoke on behalf of the Eco Village project and said that the town, in the meeting packet that outlined considerations related to the project proposal, had accused the Eco Village project team of falsifying wetlands mapping and otherwise producing falsehoods, “which we take extreme exception to.”
“It contains the assertion that we’ve done something wrong, which is wrong,” he said.
Branon said the Eco Village group was doing everything it could to move the project along and get the proposal fully ready to present.
“We’re here tonight to answer any questions that the board may have, but we appreciate your time this evening and we look forward to continuing this project and moving it hopefully toward an approval,” he said.
Board member Stephanie Hurley responded to Branon by saying that the town was not blaming the Eco Village team, but rather the other way around.
“I just feel like you’re making it sound like we’re being horrible,” she said. “We’re just looking for the right information and we’re getting kind of frustrated by not having it.”
Vice Chair Ivy Vann said further discussion of the matter was not going to go anywhere until the third-party report came in, and the board voted to continue the matter until the December meeting.
Monadnock Rod & Gun Club was also not discussed at length, as town Code Enforcement Officer Tim Herlihy submitted a letter containing an administrative decision that halted the Planning Board’s ability to rule on the club’s application for a shooting range on the property. The club, which has been shut down after being sued by the town and abutters to the property when it violated town permitting and crossed the property line with one of its ranges, is hoping to recoup legal costs by allowing the business to function again.
In order for the application to move forward, the site would need to be acknowledged as being grandfathered use, due to the town’s restriction on outdoor shooting ranges. Herlihy’s letter stated that the site would not be considered grandfathered. The club will need to appeal Herlihy’s decision to the Zoning Board of Adjustment in order to move forward.
“You’ll definitely have to go to the Zoning Board before you come to see us,” Chair Rich Clark informed club president Ken Caisse.
Until that time, the hearing was continued.
The Planning Board’s next meeting is scheduled for Dec. 13 at 6:30 p.m.
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