Conversations around Warner’s divisive workforce housing project continued before the town planning board this week — this time around conservation.
The 34-unit building, planned in the commercial area near Interstate-89’s Exit 9, will be located close to the Warner River, and advocates brought up concerns of runoff and contamination during construction.
Daniel Morrissey, a Hopkinton representative of the Warner Local River Advisory Committee, said any groundwater that flows off the site will go into the river. He also said it could have an effect on the Warner Village Water District wells, as they are shallow and close to the river.
“We’re concerned that activity, any activity, on the site that could cause contamination, could ultimately have an effect on the quality of water in the river and in the wells that are adjacent to the ground,” Morrissey said.
Representatives for the project developer, the nonprofit Concord Area Trust for Community Housing, told the planning board it would respond to the committee’s letter of concerns by Aug. 3, according to board Chair Karen Coyne.
Board member Micah Thompson drills wells for his work as a builder and said the depth and distance of a well from a water source doesn’t necessarily mean it will be affected. Morrissey said it’s not guaranteed, but since the ground material between the two is permeable, the development could influence the well water.
A Citgo gas station and Subway sandwich shop sit on the adjacent piece of land
During the public comment period, resident Sara McNeil said the project will be a “stepping stone” for many people who are looking for affordable housing in the state.
“I think it’s important that we look at the people that this building is going to help,” McNeil said.
Mary Mead said she worries about the inorganic growth the town will experience if the project goes through. Per state law, once a town reaches 3,000 people, New Hampshire State Police have limited jurisdiction. Warner’s population was at 2,902 last year, according to census data.
“I’m just very concerned about this, as I call it, an artificial increase in population brought into our community that has said this isn’t how we want to go,” Mead said during the meeting.
CATCH brings this proposal a year after another version was rejected 3-2 by the zoning board. The organization’s president and CEO Tom Furtado appealed the decision to the Merrimack County Superior Court, arguing the board “acted unlawfully and unreasonably.”
The Planning Board will further discuss the housing project during its Aug. 3 meeting at 7 p.m., which will follow a site tour with Warner’s conservation commission at 6 p.m.
