Planning board reviews Sewell open-space subdivision plan; developer seeks waivers for cul‑de‑sac length and upland percentage

GREENLAND, N.H. — Developers presented a revised open-space subdivision design for the Sewell property off Breckfors Hill/Breakfast Hill Road during the May 1 Greenland Planning Board meeting, describing substantial conserved acreage, two requested waivers and plans to extend a municipal water main into the development.

Colvin Gield Associates (presenter name as given in the record) described a proposal that would protect a large contiguous block of conservation land and provide roughly 26.8 acres of proposed conservation land within the open-space tract. The design would produce roughly 16 single-family lots under the yield plan, with individual lots generally in the neighborhood of three‑quarters to one acre in size, the presenters said.

Developer requests and rationale Project consultants asked the board for two primary waivers: to extend the permissible cul‑de‑sac length from the town’s 1,000-foot standard to 1,300 feet to produce wider, more buildable lots, and to reduce the open-space upland percentage requirement from 85 percent to 70 percent. The applicant said the property has extensive wetlands and that meeting the upland percentage by adding wetlands to private lots would put wetlands on private parcels rather than preserving them within the conserved tract.

Colvin Gield Associates said the development would still provide a substantial amount of open space — a figure the applicant described as “almost two times the requirement” for an open-space subdivision — and that the 70 percent upland figure equates to about 52.6 acres of uplands preserved under the proposed plan.

Infrastructure and intermunicipal coordination The project team told the board it plans to extend municipal water from an existing main, coordinating with both the Rye and Portsmouth water districts; town staff noted that an N.H. Department of Transportation excavation permit will be required for work in the road right-of-way. The proposal includes at least one new fire hydrant because homes would be served by town water.

Public comment and planning board concerns Residents asked about tree clearing, wetland locations and whether lots meet 50-foot wetland setbacks; the consultant said building envelopes and septic setbacks were shown and that all lots comply with the setback requirement. Kathleen Bevin Johnson and other residents raised environmental concerns about habitat and water‑quality impacts from lawns and fertilizers near the rail trail and wetlands.

Board members asked for detail on trail connections, deed restrictions and conservation easement drafting; the applicant said it would consider public access and potential easement arrangements but noted that the town attorney should review any proposal that creates public access or transfers easement responsibilities to the town.

The board did not take a formal vote on the waivers during the design-review session. Planning staff said the project will return to the board with formal waiver requests and supporting materials for a future public hearing, and the developer was advised to include engineering details for wetland-buffer flagging, stormwater control and water-main permitting.