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Board approves small shoreline-buffer disturbance for accessible trail at Merrimack River conservation area
Summary
The zoning board unanimously granted a variance allowing the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forest to permanently disturb up to 255 square feet of the 75-foot shoreland protection buffer to construct an accessible turnaround and benches at the Merrimack River Outdoor Education and Conservation Area trail.
The Concord Zoning Board of Adjustment unanimously approved a variance to allow a small, permanent disturbance of the shoreland protection buffer at the Merrimack River Outdoor Education and Conservation Area so the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forest can construct an accessible turnaround and two benches at a river-view point.
Dylan Summers, representing the Forest Society, told the board the project upgrades roughly a quarter-mile of trail to federal accessible-trail standards and that the requested disturbance—about 255 square feet—would be required to create a turning area and seating for people using mobility devices. "The intention of the project is to benefit the public by making our trail more accessible to people in wheelchairs and with other mobility disabilities," Summers said.
Summers and the applicant's materials said the design preserves a 50-foot vegetated buffer to the Merrimack River and that the disturbed area would remain short of the full 75-foot shoreland buffer. The Society argued erosion controls, the site's topography and the small size of the impacted area would prevent runoff from reaching the river.
Supporters from the public, including Janet Zeller and Sam Bodock, testified in favor of the project, saying the upgrades would allow more Concord residents, including visitors from a nearby retirement community and students on field trips, to reach the river viewpoint. "That work by the river would serve a real public benefit," Zeller said, urging the board to grant the variance.
Board members cited the property's physical constraints—steep bluffs, irregular lot shape and existing trail alignment—as supporting a finding of hardship. Several members also noted that increasing access to natural areas can improve stewardship and community appreciation of conserved land. The board found the statutory variance criteria satisfied and voted unanimously to grant the request for up to 255 square feet of buffer disturbance.
The board recorded no additional permit conditions in the hearing record; the project is subject to any state and regional permits related to shoreland or wetlands that may be required outside the zoning variance process.
The Society intends to proceed with construction of the accessible trail improvements and the small river-side turnaround area if the board's approval satisfies permitting requirements from other agencies.
