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Planning Board approves Melville Place amended site plan; duplex footprints enlarged, no new units
Summary
The Planning Board approved amendments to the Melville Place plan at the former St. Patrick’s School site, increasing duplex footprints from 1,590 to 2,334 sq ft and reducing building separation from 20 to 16 feet while keeping the same unit count; waivers and a Conditional Use Permit were granted unanimously.
The Town of Jaffrey Planning Board on June 9 approved an amended site plan for Melville Place, the MJ & MJ Realty Ventures project at the former St. Patrick’s School site at 70 Main St. The board voted 5-0-0 to accept the revised plans and later approved the amended site plan (PB 24-14) by a 5-0-0 vote following findings of fact that characterized the changes as minor and consistent with testimony and submitted plans.
Jonathan Devine of TFMoran presented the revisions and said they resulted from a scaling discrepancy between the architectural and civil plans discovered during foundation layout. Devine described a change in each duplex footprint from 1,590 square feet to 2,334 square feet to allow for a 13-foot-wide garage; building separation was reduced from 20 feet to 16 feet. Devine stated the revised spacing meets applicable fire and building code requirements and that there is no increase in the number of dwelling units and no change to the roadway layout.
The board granted related procedural motions during the hearing: it first voted to accept the application as sufficiently complete (motion by John Brouder, seconded by Peter Maki) and then voted to waive a site walk (motion by Margaret Dillon, seconded by Keith Dupuis), each by recorded 5-0-0 votes. The board also granted waivers from Land Use Code Appendix A(a) (Roadway Travel Width) and Land Use Code Section 6.4 (Workforce Housing Number of Units/Building) and approved a Conditional Use Permit, all by 5-0-0 votes.
Devine and staff reported environmental and permitting items: a wetland-impact variance granted in 2024 remains in effect; the revised plan relocates but ultimately reduces total wetland disturbance. An amended Alteration of Terrain (AOT) permit application was submitted on June 9 and was expected to be issued in approximately 30 days, according to Devine. He also said the stormwater basin has been enlarged and that proposed additional grading — roughly 20,000 square feet in the rear of the site to accommodate on-site material storage — will not change existing stormwater flow patterns.
The board’s approval included a notation from staff that the final plans reference pre-subdivision parcel numbers; Dumont said that correction to lot numbers may be handled administratively before signature. Devine said the road name 'Melville Circle' will be finalized and that address assignments and 911 confirmation will follow once the roadway name is set.
