Bolton reviews Brandy Street drainage plan to route runoff to farm pond; commissioners seek more design details

Commissioners at the Bolton Inland Wetlands Commission meeting on July 22 reviewed a town-sponsored drainage project on Brandy Street that would remove an existing headwall, install a catch basin, and use a 250‑linear‑foot HDPE pipe to direct stormwater into an existing farm pond with a riprap outlet.

Wetlands Agent Alyssa Barroso described the scope as replacing the headwall and directing water to the pond with some grading to smooth the area. Engineer Joe Dillon said the intent is to redirect water that currently drains onto farm fields into the pond to alleviate field flooding. Attorney Rich Barger noted that the Connecticut Farmland Trust holds an easement ensuring the property remains farmland and recommended marking the location of the new pipe for future reference.

Commission members pressed the project team for additional details. Member Michael McDonnell asked for cross sections and trench-excavation details, criticized the apron detail for lacking type and size, and urged extended erosion-and-sediment controls beyond the limit of disturbance to reduce siltation of the pond. McDonnell also asked about whether the property is actively farmed and requested calculations of the pipe’s load capacity. Chair Ross Lally asked about the status of an easement; Dillon said an easement will be acquired later to allow maintenance of the drainage structures. Commissioners also raised the potential effects of winter road treatments including salt on pond health; Dillon said much drainage will come from nearby tennis courts and school property rather than solely from the roadway.

The commission did not vote on the project; members agreed to add the item to the August agenda for further discussion and for the applicant or town engineer to provide the requested engineering details and E&S clarifications.