On October 26, 2006, the Manchester Planning Board held a Business Meeting. At the end of the agenda under part III. OTHER BUSINESS ITEMS, item #9 was titled: Review of new applications for determination of regional impact.

Subsequently, anyone in attendance at the meeting learned that the Manchester Housing and Redevelopment Agency had filed an application with the Planning Department to subdivide the Hackett Hill property, that is the portion of the 800+ acre property the City had obtained from UNH, minus the 300+ acres it had ceded to The Nature Conservancy, into 13 lots. The lots would subsequently be sold or leased for what has been termed "The Northwest Business Park." and would occupy over 400 acres. At the October 26 meeting, the Planning Board had to decide whether or not the planned development had regional impact.

Since the Business Meeting agenda gave no indication that a Hackett Hill development project was to be considered, it was necessary to be in attendance to learn about the application. However, the Planning Board, after reviewing the application, decided that the project might have "regional impact", specifically upon the town of Hooksett. The proposed "Business Park" would front on Hackett Hill Road, a portion of which is located in Hooksett, and all traffic from the park would exit onto this road, near the point where the former French Hall is located (see #2 on the map on the home page of this Web site. Moreover when the most recent Waterford residential development on Countryside Boulevard was proposed, traffic on Hackett Hill Road and Route 3A had been discussed extensively by the Planning Board. Of particular concern was the likelihood that a Wal-Mart and Lowe's complex is to be built adjacent to Route 3A, almost directly north of the Manchester-Hooksett town line.

The MHRA was represented by Ken Edwards, who said the park would require several million dollars to develop. Funds would be derived from the sale of French Hall and lots that border on Hackett Hill Road.

The consideration of the sub-division impact was therefore postponed until Dec. 16 at a Public Hearing. A letter was sent by Terry Harlacher, Chief Planner, to Mr. David Jodoin, Hookett Town Administrator, that notified him of the hearing and contained two maps of the subdivision plan. The two maps are also shown on this Web site.

The first map shows the first part of the planned development. The second map shows the second part of the planned development, which would not be undertaken until some time in the future. The two maps, taken together, are very similar to the stage-wise conceptual plan shown in the initial Hackett Hill Master Plan of 2000, although some of the areas scheduled for development in that view have since been ceded to The Nature Conservancy.

Note that neither of the recently-released maps shows the presence of the valuable swampland in The Nature Conservancy's ecological Preserve. The major points of opposition to the City's development concern the proximity of buildings, parking lots and roads in direct apposition to the swamps.

 

Relationship of Development Plans and Prime Wetlands Study

Plans by the City to push through its planned Business Park may be affected by the Manchester Conservation Commission's ongoing attempts to identify wetlands in the city that are appropriate for the designation of "Prime Wetlands" and then obtain official designation for them. The designation would qualify the wetlands for "special protection" such as a 100 ft. buffer. However the work for the designation and approval processes has not yet been completed. A January 4, 2007 meeting of the Conservation Commission is planned to determine what steps will be taken next.

The designation is opposed by Ken Edwards of MHRA. However, a wetlands scientist, Kym Hall, who is a Sierra Club member, feels that even with the designation, certain sensitive Atlantic white cedars will not survive development processes. Several of the planned lots extend into the watershed of critical swamps located at the base of a steep incline. She believes that runoff from development-related activities will affect the swamps and eventually cause the demise of the cedars.

 

December 14 Planning Board Public Hearing

At the November 14 public hearing of the Planning Board, citizens of Manchester were given an opportunity to present their viewpoints. No one spoke in favor of the Master Plan or the subdivision plan proposed by the MHRA. Janet Stiles spoke against the development plans - citing the same reasons that wetlands scientists had given. Pat Mattson, representing the Sierra Club, reminded the Planning Board that the Conservation Commission is partway through a process of prime wetlands designation for the Hackett Hill swamps. She noted that blasting would be necessary for the development to occur and that it was likely to cause changes in the hydrology of the region that would affect the swamps. She also said that clear-cutting of 400 acres of forestland was not in keeping with the recent agreement of Mayor Guinta and the city's aldermen to join in the Sierra Club's Cool Cities program. (The program is intended to prevent global warming and the removal of the forestland would destroy a "carbon sink" in which CO2 was removed from the atmosphere as the trees carried on photosynthetic processes.) In addition, she stated that the Sierra Club, although opposed to the development, nevertheless felt that the people of Manchester should participate in the decision-making. She suggested that residents of Manchester who are participating in the formation of a updated master plan should voice their opinions as the master plan is put together.

Of primary importance was the appearance of Mark Zankel, deputy state director for The Nature Conservancy. He was especially concerned about the heavy development planned for lots that protrude into the swamps' watershed, but he also spoke against the remainder of the development which appears to fragment the natural communities that comprise the City's property.

The Planning Board left the hearing open until January 11. At that time, the MHRA is supposed to come up with a thorough traffic plan and is also required to furnish the Board with maps that not only show the development plans, but also contain overlays of the swamp areas.

The MHRA plans were not presented at the next two meetings of the Planning Board. They were due to be considered at the next meeting on February 22.

On February 22, the Manchester Planning Board reconsidered the MHRA Hackett Hill subdivision plan. At the public hearing portion of the meeting, representatives of The Nature Conservancy and the NH Sierra Club called attention to the "sensitive development areas" that were part of the original TNC-Manchester preserve-development agreement. The areas of concern are the paved areas at the end of an access road at the highest point of the planned development and are known collectively as the "phantom parking lots" - construction that was begun in the 1970s as an expansion of UNH-Manchester, and never completed, due to lack of funds.

The Planning Board had received a map that showed the proximity of these areas to critical swampland in the Preserve and Mark Zenkel, deputy state director of TNC, explained how extensive development of those areas would result in drainage directly into the swamps. Pat Mattson, a volunteer representative of the NH Sierra Club, noted that the map received by the Planning Board did not show enough detail to indicate the proximity of the development to the swampland. She furnished the Planning Board members with a more detailed TNC map, derived from the master's thesis of Kym Hall, a Sierra Club member. She reminded the Board that in addition to likely harmful effects on the swampland caused by the development, the land to be occupied by the planned office park contained numerous vernal pools and other wildlife habitats that would be adversely affected. She emphasized that this area, coupled with the TNC Preserve was ideal for environmental education purposes.

The more detailed TNC map provides considerable support for anti-development supporters since it shows the "sensitive development areas", that is, Lots 8 and 9 and reveals their proximity to the swamps and swamp constituents. It also shows that these areas are within the swamp's watershed.

Traffic considerations were also discussed at the February 22 meeting, with Ken Edwards, representing the MHRA, noting that business park tenants would have to contribute to any needed traffic improvements, but the nature of these improvements could not be established until the project was underway.

At the March 22 Planning Board Meeting, the Hackett Hill development plan was approved. It was noted that the plan is strictly a subdivision plan and that should any lots actually be scheduled for development, that traffic issues, wildlife concerns, and possible detrimental effects on the swamps would be considered. It was also noted that portions of two lots will require approval of "dredge and fill" applications by the developer and approval for this work had not yet been received.

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