Pepperell Planning Board Accepts $100,000 Bond for Unfinished Chamberlain Way Driveway

PEPPERELL — December 27, 2021 — Pepperell Planning Board unanimously accepts $100,000 bond for unfinished common driveway at 25 to 33 Pierce Street. The board voted 3-0 at a December 27 special session to approve the bond — drawn directly from closing funds — securing completion of Chamberlain Way under Special Permit 2020-02, approved July 24, 2020. Town Engineer Ken Kalinowski and Conservation Administrator Paula Tarazi flagged undisclosed alignment changes, missing stormwater calculations, and a naturally spring-fed site with standing water "almost flowing through beneath the road everywhere," with Tarazi saying she found an unsupported pipe hanging off an unstabilized embankment near the wetland buffer. The board conditioned the bond so that no completion determination may be made before May 1, 2022 — unless both Kalinowski and Tarazi jointly certify that conditions allow a reliable inspection — with a final deadline of June 1, 2022. Applicant's representative Kenneth Laney of Cornerstone Land said paving was expected within two weeks and expressed hope for an early bond release, but board member Joyce pushed back: "For every action there's a reaction — we would not be reacting to this issue if the developer and his service providers completed the job when they had the weather."