Tiverton board continues Longplex Ice & Golf master‑plan hearing, schedules Aug. 5 public hearings for comp plan and zoning changes

The Tiverton Planning Board on July 1 opened and continued the public hearing on Longplex Ice & Golf’s proposed 91,000‑square‑foot indoor recreation complex, and voted to schedule related public hearings on August 5 to address required comprehensive plan and zoning ordinance changes.

The applicant described a two‑story, approximately 92,000‑square‑foot recreation facility that would include two ice rinks, bleacher seating, 12 pickleball courts across two levels, about 37 driving‑range bays, a restaurant of roughly 140 seats and other entertainment spaces. The board agreed to continue the master‑plan hearing to allow the town to pursue necessary comprehensive plan and zoning amendments and to permit additional technical review by town departments.

Why it matters: The project would introduce uses not currently specified in Tiverton’s Planned Development Park (PDP) zoning framework; before the planning board can approve a master plan it must be consistent with the town’s comprehensive plan and zoning code. Board members and town reviewers urged the applicant to resolve outstanding technical questions — notably water and sewer service capacity and fire‑and‑life‑safety occupancy calculations — before substantive approvals proceed.

Attorney Daniel Riley, representing Longplex Ice & Golf, described the facility’s program and asked the board to review the master‑plan submission alongside proposed zoning text allowing the indoor recreation uses. Project engineer Chris Duhamel said the 52‑acre combined parcel includes about 32.45 acres of upland and 18.9 acres of wetlands and buffers; the site plan concentrates development on roughly 22 acres of upland with approximately 442 parking spaces proposed against an estimated requirement of 412.

Engineering and utilities: Duhamel told the board public water is available from a 12‑inch main on Progress Road; the applicant requested a will‑serve letter for an estimated maximum day water demand of about 22,000 gallons per day, a figure the applicant said had been reviewed by North Tiverton Water and the fire district at a conceptual level. He said sewer will‑serve was being requested and would be refined at preliminary plan stage.

Fire marshal and occupancy concerns: Fire Marshal Marshall Murphy said he had not completed a detailed review at TRC because he was called away on an emergency, but presented an initial code‑based capacity analysis that showed a far larger potential occupancy than the applicant had reported. Using NFPA occupancy factors and the plans as submitted, Murphy reported calculations that could put building occupancy in the thousands (his preliminary summation ranged in the low thousands, driven by bleacher seating and restaurant areas), and emphasized that egress widths, main‑entrance capacity and other life‑safety measures must reflect the correct occupancy. He asked the applicant and the board to resolve occupancy and related water and fire‑flow assumptions before permitting.

Public comment and neighboring property issues: Nearby landowners and residents raised multiple issues. Peter Monis and other residents questioned sewer capacity and whether the existing Longplex pump station had adequate capacity or ownership to accept additional flows; Duhamel said the project team was pursuing will‑serve letters and a refined sewer analysis. Property owner Jeff Kielbasa of Maverick Properties warned that abandoning a paper road (Communication Drive) for the proposed parks plan could land‑lock his parcel unless an alternative access strategy is preserved; the applicant said the paper road in question falls within a separate area considered for future development and agreed to begin discussions with the owner.

Traffic: Multiple commenters and board members said the intersection near Route 24 and Fish Road needs state attention because the development would add substantial traffic. Project counsel said the applicant has requested state traffic commission review and the town administrator had previously sent a request to the state traffic commission. Board members asked staff to coordinate with the town administrator and state officials to pursue safety improvements.

Board actions: The board took three procedural votes: it continued the Longplex master‑plan public hearing to the board’s August 5, 2025 meeting (time clock clarified to Sept. 7, 2025, effective Sept. 8 because Sept. 7 falls on a Sunday), it scheduled and authorized advertisement for a public hearing on proposed amendments to the comprehensive community plan on Aug. 5, 2025, and it scheduled a public meeting on proposed zoning ordinance amendments related to an indoor commercial athletic/recreation facility. All three votes were unanimous among members present.

Next steps: Planning staff and the applicant will pursue additional coordination with the fire marshal, building official, North Tiverton Water and the wastewater district to produce definitive service letters and occupancy calculations. The planning board directed staff to circulate a proposed ordinance amendment to the applicant for comment before the August hearing. The board also agreed to hold a preliminary plan TRC (Technical Review Committee) meeting when engineering and architectural plans are at higher fidelity.

The board closed the item after scheduling the required hearings and moved remaining procedural zoning items to a workshop set for Aug. 21 to continue ordinance updates.