by Matt Ristaino
6/12/2019

The Conservation Commission heard about two proposed construction projects in the Queens neighborhood during their meeting Tuesday evening.

The first project is at 31 Westfield Dr., where a retaining wall that is directly next to Jarr Brook is threatening to collapse due to the flooding in the area. If the wall were to collapse, the property would erode into the brook.

After hearing the details of the situation, the Commission decided to recommend that the old retaining wall be taken out and a new one be built. This would only have a temporary impact on Jarr Brook and the surrounding wetlands, while building a new wall around the existing one would have a more permanent impact.

The Commission also recommended that the work be done during the same time that the construction to replace the collapsed culvert in that area of Westfield Dr. is being done, which will be sometime before the end of August.

The second project is at 88 Travis Rd., where the homeowners would like to build an addition and a shed on their property, which is adjacent to Jarr Brook and in a floodplain.

According to the proposal, the addition would not require any additional foundation to be dug, and all the plans are outside of the designated buffer zones around Jarr Brook. The Commission voted unanimously to approve the project, which should take four or five weeks to complete.

In other business, the Commission agreed in principle to grant an extension of the Order of Conditions for the Hopping Brook Road extension project. The previous Order had expired in the spring of 2018, but the project will not be complete until next spring.

The developer requires an extension of the Order to finish the project, including installing gas lines, planting trees, and installing sidewalks and a utility pole.

The extension will be for two years, retroactive to spring 2018, and will be voted on at the Commission’s next meeting on June 25th, once the filing fees for the extension have been received.

The Commission also closed the public hearing from its last meeting on the construction of a single-family home at lot 33A on Fairview St. and approved the Order of Conditions for the project.