Planning Board approves Slick City propane site plan with condition tying final sign-off to retaining-wall completion

The Milford Planning Board approved an amended site plan for Slick City propane storage at 31 Beaver Street on June 2, but attached conditions requiring completion of retaining-wall repairs before the Fire Department grants final sign-off for the propane tanks.

Town Engineer Elizabeth Mainini said during a site visit she observed that most of one retaining wall had been taken down to a crushed-stone base and that builders were reinstalling blocks with the specified geo-grid. She reported that Wall #4 is leaning away from the hill it is meant to support and remains under active correction, and that Wall #5’s base “is not suitable” and is scheduled to be taken down and rebuilt. The structural engineer, Mainini said, is on site during construction and provided updated stamped plans and a letter explaining the status of each wall.

Matthew Benoit, the Town Planner, told the Board he sought clarity on a construction timeline because it appeared the applicant intended to open this month. Several board members said the fresh structural plans and the engineer’s letter addressed earlier concerns but that the Board should secure conditions to protect public safety.

Joseph Calagione, a Board member, suggested a condition preventing the Fire Department from issuing a final inspection or sign-off on the propane tanks until the Town Engineer is satisfied with completion of the walls; the Board adopted that approach. Benoit also proposed and the Board included a condition requiring relocation of a maple tree in the southwestern portion of the parking lot per the applicant’s revised plan.

Board member Christopher Wilson voiced discomfort that earlier-stamped plans had not been constructed as shown, but Marble Mainini III said the newly stamped plans and the structural engineer’s on-site oversight made him comfortable moving forward. The amended-site-plan motion — as conditioned — passed on a 4–1 roll call (Wilson opposed).

The Board’s action allows the propane storage site plan to be approved administratively while construction continues under close monitoring by the Town Engineer, subject to the conditions the Board adopted. The Town Engineer will continue site inspections and verify the retaining walls and related safety measures before the Fire Department may issue a final approval for the propane tanks.