Developers on July 14 presented plans for a 150,000‑square‑foot single‑story commercial building at 308 South River Road but the Bedford Planning Board voted to table the application for further review and scheduled a continuation for August 11.

The applicant team — Dante Angelucci (development), Keith Curran (civil engineering), Brandon Conforti (architecture) and Jeff (last name recorded as Derk/Dirk, traffic consultant, Vanessa & Associates) — described the layout, stormwater design and landscaping and answered detailed board questions about truck access, loading docks, parking and lighting. The plan shows 36 loading bays, a day‑one parking field of 122 spaces with another 153 spaces banked for future build‑out, an infiltration basin and a gravel wetland for stormwater treatment, and a gated north‑side emergency access.

Traffic analysis reviewed by the applicant’s consultant assumed the highest trip‑generating use (manufacturing) to bound impacts; under that scenario the study projected about 760 daily vehicle trips with roughly 70 tractor‑trailer trips per day and peak‑hour generation of about 10–15 vehicle trips (about five tractor‑trailers) during commuter peaks. Vanessa & Associates told the board it will pursue DOT driveway permitting and that, subject to state approval, the developer expects to construct a northbound left‑turn lane at the Frederick Parkway driveway to manage ingress and queuing.

Board members asked for clearer commitments on: how the developer will prevent tractor‑trailers from using the northern residential portion of the corridor (applicant said tenant leases and on‑site signage would instruct truck drivers to approach from the south); the extent and species of vegetation that will provide year‑round screening; illumination levels along the loading dock and their measurement with existing trees in place; and snow storage. Several residents raised concerns about traffic, noise from backing alarms and business hours; one resident asked whether the town should require a sound wall on the turnpike side to shield houses across the highway.

Architect Brandon Conforti said the design uses tilt‑up concrete panels with overlapped panels and small façade recesses to break up the 750‑foot exterior walls and that the building is planned with one story and single‑slope roofing to minimize height. The applicant said the building is intended for light manufacturing, warehousing, or manufacturing uses allowed in the Performance Zone, and presented renderings and landscape plans showing a long vegetated buffer to the north.

After discussion the board accepted the applicant’s request to continue the application to the August 11 meeting and asked staff and the applicant to arrange a site walk so board members could inspect existing vegetation and buffer conditions. The board identified outstanding items for follow‑up: DOT driveway permit coordination, final peer‑review comments on stormwater and traffic, a lighting plan with photometrics, and confirmation of year‑round screening species and snow management plans.