Charlton planning board continues hearing on L & B Enterprises site plan at 29 Southbridge Road

The Charlton Planning Board on Sept. 17 continued a public hearing on a site‑plan application by L & B Enterprises LLC to add a 1,280‑square‑foot addition to an existing building at 29 Southbridge Road (Map 33, Block B, Parcel 22.1). The board voted to continue the hearing to Oct. 1 to allow the applicant to deliver revised elevations, final building plans and outstanding responses to Graves Engineering’s peer review.

The applicant’s surveyor and project representative, Mika Lassell of Topland Land Survey, told the board the property is subject to conservation jurisdiction and falls largely inside riverfront and wetland buffer zones. “Because of Caddy Brook, we have flood plain,” Lassell said, and described a proposed 1:1 restoration approach for riverfront alterations. Lassell also described stormwater controls including a storm separator (storm scepter) and roof‑area infiltration and said the finished floor elevation will be 624, roughly 3.3 feet above the 100‑year flood elevation of 621.

Why it matters: The parcel sits adjacent to Caddy Brook and inside a wellhead protection radius and riverfront area, which triggers state and local environmental review requirements. The board and conservation commission will review whether proposed mitigation and the infiltration approach sufficiently protect water quality and avoid increased flood risk.

Board members and staff noted several outstanding items in Graves Engineering’s recent peer review and in the town building inspector’s comments. Lassell said Graves’ comments were largely clarifications and that the project team had submitted a response the day before the meeting; she provided paper copies at the hearing. The applicant described plans for a holding tank to receive floor‑drain plumbing from overhead doors and said the existing on‑site septic system, installed last year, is adequate for the proposed uses.

On parking and occupancy, Lassell said one tenant (identified in discussion as a sign/graphic business) and another tenant (Precision Welding, which assembles medical equipment) are expected to occupy portions of the building. The applicant proposes 15 parking spaces on site, though Lassell told the board that current occupancy likely requires far fewer spaces — roughly four to five spaces for the identified tenants — and that the plan provides “bookends” so future tenant changes can be evaluated. She said the team can pursue additional parking on adjacent property if future demand requires it.

The application treats roof runoff as clean water and directs it to infiltration measures; new paved areas will have pretreatment before discharge. Lassell described corrugated piping for roof runoff conveyance and indicated typical dimensions used on the plan (an 8‑inch corrugated line discharging to a 6‑inch outlet). She also noted the property lies within an IWPA (wellhead protection) radius and that the plan places infiltration and pretreatment measures consistent with IWPA guidance.

Conservation commission interaction: Lassell said she had met with the Charlton Conservation Commission (ConCom) and that conservation staff appeared receptive to the 1:1 mitigation approach for riverfront work. She said DEP did not provide comments on the submission. The applicant intends to present the same materials to ConCom while addressing Graves Engineering’s outstanding checklist items.

Next steps and conditions: Board members instructed the applicant to submit final building elevations, architecture and signed responses to outstanding engineering comments before the Oct. 1 meeting. The board also asked that soil test pits and any remaining test holes for subsurface soils be completed or conditioned prior to site work. The board formally continued the public hearing to Oct. 1; a motion to continue carried unanimously.

Additional context: The property is in the Community Business zoning district and is approximately 58,460 square feet. The board and staff emphasized that a change in tenant use that increases parking or alters the use classification would require return to the board or a building inspector determination. Lassell said the applicant planned to remove an on‑site storage container and several old dumpsters and would clean and repave portions of the lot in staged work.

The board did not take a final site‑plan vote on Sept. 17 and deferred decision until receipt of the outstanding engineering and architectural materials.