At a packed public hearing on Wednesday night, the Mason Planning Board accepted an application for a proposed gravel pit on Brookline Road, starting what is anticipated to be a review process that could take several months.
The Mason Elementary School multi-purpose room was filled with residents for the first public hearing on a proposed gravel removal operation on a 67-acre property that includes a single-family home, but is largely undeveloped and mostly woodland.
Planning Board Chair Dane Rota told the crowd the board would first review the application for completeness and determine whether the project would have regional impact on surrounding towns — which he warned early in the meeting was likely. If regional impact were found, he said, the hearing would be paused so affected communities could be notified and participate in future proceedings.
The board ultimately voted unanimously to find regional impact.
Before that determination, the board allowed Jeffrey Brem, an engineer with Meisner Brem Corp. of Westford, Mass., representing the applicant, to briefly outline the proposal. While board members identified deficiencies in the submission, they voted to conditionally accept the application as complete, requiring additional information before moving forward.
Brem said the plan calls for removing gravel over eight to 10 years in eight phases, with each phase completed and stabilized before work begins in the next section.
According to the application proposal, no more than five acres would be worked on at a time, which is consistent with state standards. However, Mason’s regulations allow up to three acres of open excavation on the site at one time, unless otherwise approved by the board.
Proposed hours of operation for the property are Monday through Saturday, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., with operations permitted on up to 12 Sundays per year.
Truck traffic generated the most discussion among board members. Brem said daily truck trips could range from zero to 50, averaging about 20 per day.
Board members cited concerns about traffic conditions near the site, including blind curves and corners along Brookline Road. They determined that the projected trucking activity could affect school bus routes and traffic flow in Brookline, Townsend and Greenville. As a result of the regional impact finding, those towns will receive abutter status in future hearings.
The gravel pit would be managed by Onyx Corporation, which is an earth materials, general site and road contractor, landscape and design company based in Acton, Mass.
During the completeness review, Rota questioned whether the application adequately addressed the standard requiring that the operation not be “unduly hazardous or injurious to the public welfare,” including impacts related to noise, traffic, dust, fumes or operational dangers. He said some — but not all — of those concerns were covered.
Rota stressed Mason’s rural nature and public interest in maintaining the environment. “This is Mason. This is not Sterling, Ayer, or Acton. I want clarification on your plan on simple things,” he said.
Planning Board member Chris Jones and Vice Chair Katie Boots expressed hesitation about accepting the application as complete without additional information upfront, but eventually agreed to conditionally accept the application so the board could rule on the regional impact issue and move forward.
Among the deficiencies identified were failure to show the creek bed of Lancy Brook; a lack of a detailed excavation timeline; unclear setbacks from wells and septic systems; missing information on the seasonal high water table; insufficient details about fencing and visual screening; incomplete projected end-of-project contours for later phases; and the need to identify and remove portions of the property from current-use status.
The board did not take any public comment, other than procedural questions, but did acknowledge that some comments had already been received in writing.
Brem said the applicant would address the deficiencies and respond in writing to submitted comments before the next hearing.
Board members also indicated they expect to schedule a site walk once snow conditions improve. No date has been set.
The board continued the hearing until March 25 at 7 p.m., at Mason Elementary School.