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Heritage commission, staff press for tree protection and screening on Jacks Bridge site
Summary
Town staff and Heritage Commission raised concerns that the proposed warehouse relies on vegetation outside the site limit for screening along I‑93; staff recommended marking trees 15 inches or greater to be saved, providing tree-protection details and adding formal screening similar to nearby 26 Jacks Bridge.
During the Aug. 5 hearing on the Jacks Bridge Road warehouse, staff and Heritage Commission representatives urged the applicant to provide stronger protections for existing buffers and trees that the applicant relies on for screening along Interstate 93.
Staff pointed to the risk of relying on vegetation located in the highway right of way and recommended a partial waiver: allow some relief for marking trees within the limit of work but require the applicant to mark larger trees (15 inches in diameter or greater) to be saved and to submit a tree-protection detail and a screening approach. A staff official summarized the concern: "...the applicant is impacting the existing buffer and tree line along much of the perimeter of this proposed site and to a great extent relying on existing vegetation on the abutting property or at the edges of the property line and along the wetlands to the buffer."
Board members emphasized the visual impact of headlights and asked the applicant to consider replicating the screening used at 26 Jacks Bridge (a combination of fencing and plantings). One board member said, "I take those buffers seriously," pressing for marked protection and construction details to preserve larger trees when possible. The applicant agreed to work with staff and the Heritage Commission and the board deferred action on waiver 5 to allow those details to be developed before the Sept. 2 continuance.
Staff requested that the applicant mark trees within the limit of work and adjust the limit where feasible to preserve significant trees; the board asked for a clear plan showing which trees will be protected and how screening will be provided along the highway-facing elevation.
