Bedford council approves carve-out of municipal zone at Joppa Hill, moves 25 acres into conservation

The Bedford Town Council on June 11 authorized the town manager to work with the Piscataquog (Piscataway) Land Conservancy to amend the Joppa Hill Conservation Area easement to create an approximately 8.3-acre exclusionary zone and to convert 25 acres currently within the MU (municipal use) zone to conservation.

The move follows a yearlong study by a Joppa Hill Road Conservation Area committee that evaluated terrain, soils, wetlands and long-term use. Chris Bandazian, who served on the committee and said he helped draft the original easement, told the council the municipal-use portion near the road is often wet and that much of the remaining parcel is steep or prime habitat, making construction costly and environmentally disruptive. "When the property was actually mapped for wetlands and slopes fairly recently...virtually everything next to the road is a wetland," Bandazian said. He and committee member Drew Klein described walking the site and concluding that most potential building sites would require extensive grading, retaining walls and fill.

The committee recommended carving an exclusionary zone out of the easement so the town or its lessees could use already disturbed portions — including a disturbed acre for parking — while preserving the more sensitive land in perpetuity. Bandazian said the approach would reduce recurring conflicts between farm operations and the terms of the conservation easement and would concentrate potential municipal impacts on already disturbed farm property.

During public comment, Dan Muscat, whose family originally owned the Joppa Hill property, urged the council to keep the farm as open land and expressed support for converting the 25 acres to conservation. Michelle Kim, a new resident, said she and other families use the trails and urged preservation.

Councilor Michael Strand moved the authorization and Councilor Kathleen Bemis seconded. The council voted in favor and the chair recorded the outcome as unanimous. The motion directs the town manager or designee to work with the Piscataquog/Piscataway Land Conservancy to amend the conservation easement as shown in exhibit F and to convert the MU zone acreage to conservation.

Committee members and some councilors framed the change as protecting scarce conservation land and avoiding high-cost construction on wetlands and steep slopes. They also noted that shifting the town-usable footprint to already-disturbed farm property preserves more sensitive habitat, including documented field-nesting bird habitat and milkweed stands used by monarch butterflies.

The council discussion covered process and authority: councilors asked whether an amendment to the easement and any subsequent uses would come back to the council or to voters. Committee members and staff said the council would decide subsequent uses and that the amendment is the mechanism to reduce easement conflicts. Bandazian and others also reminded the council that certain small town-owned parcels near Joppa Hill were deed-restricted for specific municipal uses, limiting alternatives.

The council accepted the committee's recommendation and approved the motion to proceed with the amendment. Further steps will include working with the land conservancy and updated drafting of the amended easement for council review.