Pepperell Planning Board Continues Liquor Junction Sign Hearing, Approves Forge Crossing Subdivision

PEPPERELL — June 16, 2026 — Pepperell Planning Board continues Liquor Junction sign dispute to August, citing landlord's violation of a comprehensive signage agreement. At its June 16 meeting the board voted to continue a special permit hearing for a second wall sign at Liquor Junction, 174 Wilson Road, after members said the commercial landlord — a party to an existing signage plan capping individual tenants at 75 square feet — directed the business to install an oversized primary sign and seek relief for an additional 42.84-square-foot secondary sign without consulting the town. "This is not a situation of asking forgiveness after the fact," one member said, asking the landlord to appear at the August 17 hearing. In other action, the board voted 3-1 to approve the five-lot Forge Crossing subdivision at 35 West Prescott Street subject to conditions including a resolution of trash-hauler logistics, voted unanimously to approve covenants and endorse mylars for three separate subdivisions on Littleton Road and Powers Road, and unanimously approved an amendment to the Tech Park West development agreement that restructures Phase 3 payments so the town receives half of the owed amount at building-permit issuance rather than waiting for certificates of occupancy — accelerating cash flow without reducing the total sum. The board also set a tentative July 27 special meeting to begin work on a battery energy storage and solar energy zoning bylaw, with Town Planner Jeff Deneault noting that a state mandate effective October 1, 2026 will require the town to accept BESS applications whether or not local zoning is in place.