Planning Board Walks Layton Street Site for Potential 40R Overlay District

PEPPERELL — October 12, 2022 — Pepperell Planning Board walks Layton Street parcel ahead of potential 40R overlay district vote. The board conducted an approximately one-hour outdoor site walk October 12 of an 18-acre parcel owned by Gary Lorden, the only candidate site identified so far for a proposed 40R smart-growth zoning overlay district. Conservation Agent Paula explained the regulatory stakes on site: a conventional subdivision would carry a 100-foot local wetland buffer, while a 40R development would fall under a 50-foot state standard, with a strict no-touch zone within 50 feet of any flagged wetland edge. The site's wetlands were delineated roughly five months ago and are marked by numbered blue flags surveyed onto a one-inch-equals-60-feet plan. Town water supply wells Jersey One and Jersey Two are located more than 400 feet from the eastern portion of the parcel, confirmed by Ken Kalinowski. No development application has been submitted; the next step is a zoning article that would go before Town Meeting.