Soon, Roy’s Market will have a new look and a more accessible entrance, following the preliminary plans presented to the Peterborough Planning Board on Monday.
The board was also presented with a letter from New Hampshire Ball Bearings outlining preliminary plans to purchase the South Municipal Well Site, which was identified in 1982 as contaminated by the company.
The plan to expand Roy’s Market into the building formerly known as Maggie’s Market includes a ramp entrance in compliance with ADA on Main Street and an additional formal entrance from Depot Square, a large awning covering the front entrance with a smaller one covering the Depot entrance, and 11 more parking spaces in Depot Square.
The loading docks for Maggie’s Market building will be removed and the floor will be raised approximately nine inches following FEMA standards, according to Chris Anderson, co-owner of Roy’s Market.
With their application nearly complete for the next planning board meeting, Chad Branon, owner of Fieldstone Land Consultants, presented the improvement plans on behalf of Hope Properties LLC to gather comments and concerns before submitting the final application.
“We are here conceptually, but at the same time, we want to share as much information as possible to get the best feedback as possible,” Branon said.
While Hope Properties LLC owns four lots, including Roy’s Market (U17-7), Maggie’s Market (U17-6), the parking lot behind it (U17-8), and Little Roy’s (U17-9), the application will require them to merge Maggie’s Market lot with the parking lot.
In addition to these changes, Branon said that the historic entrance to Roy’s Market will be closed and replaced with a more formal entrance at the Maggie’s property, creating a more accessible access point to the store.
The owners pointed out there have been issues with the old corner door not complying as a vestibule.
With no plans to remove the classic corner for now, Anderson said they might want to make up the square footage in the future. Once the other entrance is functional, customers will find a potted plant or items in front of the door restricting access.
“We’ll take this in. It seems very reasonable,” said Bonnie Tucker, a representative of the Select Board at the Planning Board meeting.
While there was some discussion about adding another handicap parking spot to Main Street in front of the market, Branon said that is outside their property, but can be discussed at the town level.
Hope Properties LLC plans to present its application to the planning board at its next meeting on September 14.
NHBB plans to purchase well
After three decades of unsuccessful attempts to clean the South Municipal Water Supply Well, NHBB placed an offer on the well site owned by the Town of Peterborough.
Originally built in 1952, the well provided water for Peterborough residents for 30 years. In 1982, the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services identified NHBB as the cause of contamination. Since then, the well has been unusable, and NHBB has worked with the US Environmental Protection Agency to remedy the situation.
The well was added to the Superfund National Priority List in 1984, designating the site as severely contaminated in the United States.
NHBB has requested to purchase the site for $110,000, which is $95,000 above the property assessment, along with a list of conditions.
If the Peterborough Select Board accepts, the town will set aside the claims and obligations against NHBB, including the inability for the town to use the property or groundwater within the Groundwater Protection Zone for drinking water, the shortage of accessible drinking water from the area, and the lost revenue from drinking water or other purposes from the property for customers of Peterborough’s municipal wells.
In addition, the town will commit to not pump any water from the site for 99 years.
Once NHBB owns the property, the site will be subject to a conservation restriction, and the town will collect taxes on the property.
According to Danica Melone, the town’s director of planning & building, they will have to continue to remediate the contamination even after purchasing the property.
“It is really a risk mitigation for them,” Tucker said.
NHBB’s request requires advice from the planning board, conservation commission and the heritage commission about the purchase and conditions; then the select board will hear their case. Following that process, there will be public hearings and discussion about how to move forward.
The majority of the board supported the purchase because of the company’s ongoing efforts to remedy the situation and the benefits of the unanticipated revenue and taxes on the site.
Andy Dunbar, a member of the board, expressed concerns about the property’s value and requested written confirmation that NHBB will continue to remediate the situation after it owns the site. He wanted to know how much the town spent on the well in the 1950s.
“I see the major benefits of Ball Bearing, but I don’t see a major benefit to us,” Dunbar said.
Melone reaffirmed that NHBB will continue to remediate and the property cannot be built on or used, as proven by the failed remedies and floodways on the site.
“They’re about a century away from ever being able to even consider doing anything with this property,” Melone said.
The board decided to recommend the purchase in a letter drafted by Melone outlining their concerns and overall support.
Four-unit multi-family housing
Additionally, the planning board unanimously approved the construction of a four-unit multi-family housing building with site improvements at 159 Grove St.
The application was granted a variance by the Zoning Board in January, which permitted the square footage within the General Residence District.
The new site plans depict a pond in front of the property, with modifications to create enough space for the driveway.
The board had questions about the parking lot and the pavement’s visibility from the street. In the older site plans, the property’s slope leading down to the street does not allow for easy placement of parking behind the building.
Additional improvements include a proposed berm to cover the backyards.
The board’s approval came with two conditions: additional landscaping at the front of the property in collaboration with the Peterborough Office of Planning & Building, and confirmation that the impervious coverage meets the percentage set for the General Residence District.