Brewster Academy parking redesign continued after neighbors press traffic concerns

The Wolfeboro Planning Board on July 15 continued a public hearing on Brewster Academy's proposed academic courtyard and parking reconfiguration, scheduling the matter for further review on Aug. 19 after extended public comment and board discussion about traffic, pedestrian safety and stormwater review.

Brewster representatives presented a revised layout intended to improve campus circulation and emergency access. Architect Andy Smith said the new proposal extends Academy Drive to provide a continuous exit and removes a previously proposed hammerhead turnaround to improve emergency access: "The new proposal is making a slight adjustment to provide a continuous exit along Academy Drive," he said.

Board members and many nearby residents questioned whether the layout would reduce traffic on Green Street — a narrow, residential street that residents say now carries school and event traffic. Several public commenters told the board the plan as submitted could increase pressure on Green Street because the revised circulation removes some direct through routes and funnels vehicles into a parking lot that requires multiple turns to reach Main Street.

"Green Street is almost dead," said Peter Batchelder, a Green Street resident who said Brewster's ongoing campus expansion has already changed the character of the neighborhood. Other residents described near‑misses, backing buses and a sustained increase in summer traffic tied to fields and campus activity.

Brewster representatives offered a series of operational and design proposals intended to reduce neighborhood impacts. Peter Gilgen, representing Brewster operations, said the school would be willing to consider a Clark Road exit as an exit‑only route and encourage gym and campus users to use the main entrance rather than Green Street. Brewster also agreed to consider installing speed bumps near the Smith Center/Green Street area and to work with the town on signage: "We'd still be okay with the speed bump at the end of Green Street," Gilgen said, adding the campus would ask members to avoid using Green Street as a primary entrance.

Planning staff and the applicant asked for additional time for third‑party engineering review. The board requested a timely submittal of revised materials and asked the applicant to coordinate with Ty and Bond (the town's consulting reviewer) on stormwater numbers; planning staff advised that a clear, consistent set of construction documents is necessary because the set of plan sheets in the room contained differing iterations. The board required that the Clark Road proposal (if pursued) include outreach to Clark Road residents and engineering details for any pavement/elevation work.

Why it matters: neighbors describe persistent safety and quality‑of‑life impacts on Green Street from campus traffic and want a design that reduces through‑traffic and bus movements on the residential street. Brewster says its campus activity levels are unchanged and that the reconfiguration is intended to consolidate curb cuts and improve emergency access while preserving parking capacity.

The board continued the hearing to Aug. 19 to give Ty and Bond and planning staff time to review revised plans and to allow additional outreach on any Clark Road exit proposal. The board asked the applicant to submit revised material at least one week before the continued hearing so third‑party review can be completed in time for the August session.

Ending: The application remains open. Brewster must submit a single, consistent set of revised construction documents and address Ty and Bond's stormwater review, a proposed Clark Road exit (if pursued) and the board's requested mitigation measures before the Aug. 19 hearing.