The Walpolean

Walpole Planning Board Minutes

August 12, 2025

Town Hall

7 pm

Roll Call: Board Present: Chair Jeff Miller, Clerk Jason Perron, Jeff Harrington, Joanna Andros, Trevor MacLachlan, Steve Dalessio, Select Board Representative. Alternate: Bill Carmody. Absent: Board member Dennis Marcom, alternate Travis Adams.

These minutes are unapproved and will be reviewed at the September 9th meeting for corrections.

Call to Order: Mr. Miller called the meeting to order at 7 pm. He asked Mr. Carmody to fill in for the absent Board member. Mr. Carmody agreed.

Minutes: Review of the July 2025 minutes. Ms. Andros made a motion to approve the minutes as presented. The motion was seconded by Mr. Harrington and the motion carried.

Old Business

Public Hearing: Lot Line Adjustment: Robin Sanctuary property on 5 Hooper and 00 Old Keene Road, Tax Map 8, Lots 8 and sub 2 in the rural agricultural district. Annex to Tax Map 8, Lot 8-15-1 owned by Alexander T. Allan and Allison M Hastings-Allan. Total after adjustment is 7.65 acres,

Mr. Miller held up a plat for the public to see. It showed the parcel of land that is being sold and being annexed by an abutter. He said he had a call from an abutter and he told her that the people were purchasing the property because they wanted more land. Ms. Sanctuary repeated that statement. With no questions from the public, Mr. Miller closed the public hearing at 7:05. Mr. Perron made a motion to approve the site plan as presented. Mr. Harrington seconded the motion and the motion carried.

Signage at Blue Seal: Free-standing sign for Blue Seal, 334 Main Street, Tax Map 12, Lot 59-3, Commercial District, near Route 12. Presenter Justin Parker of Classic Signs Inc. LLC in Amherst, NH. 

Mr. Parker proposes a free-standing sign of 31 square feet.

Mr. Parker said this sign is 31 square feet and since the zoning ordinance states the maximum is 32 square feet., the sign is in compliance. Mr. Perron made a motion to approve the sign as presented. Mr. Harrington seconded the motion and the motion carried.

New Business

Signage: Sign for Rancho Viejo, a Mexican restaurant in the Walpole Village Store. Ms. Pschirrer, president of the Board of Directors of The Walpole Foundation, the owners of the property at 10 Westminster Street, said there will be one sign on the east side of the building. 

The dimensions are 20-inches-by-78 inches and it is single sided. Ms. Pschirrer added that the restaurant had had all the proper inspections. The selectmen have approved of the request to sell liquor but they are waiting on the state’s license. As soon as they get the license they plan to open. Opening Monday is hopeful but not certain.  All the tiles are from Mexico and the décor is quite colorful.

According to Tom Murray, the sign on the building, which says Walpole Village Store, is a registered landmark. 

Mr. Perron made a motion to approve the sign as presented. Mr. Harrington seconded the motion and the motion carried.

Site Plan: Andrew Pollock, 40 Main Street, Tax Map 21, Lot 13, Commercial District. Mr. Pollock is increasing the number of apartments from 3 to 4 therefore he needs to get a site plan approval. He was requesting a Public Hearing in September.

Mr. Pollock explained his renovation of the apartment building. He cannot get a building permit until he has site plan approval but Mr. Miller said he was allowed to work on roofing and windows until he gets site plan approval.

Mr. Perron made a motion to hold a Public Hearing for a site plan for Mr. Pollock in September. Mr. Harrington seconded the motion and the motion carried.

Trailers, Mobile Homes, Recreational Vehicles

Also, briefly discussed were the use of these types of vehicles for permanent use. The Board recognized that these types of vehicles are more prominent in the summer and fall as there is need for housing for seasonal workers and that residents are hosting family and friends. 

Adjournment

Mr. Perron made a motion to adjourn at 7:40 pm. Mr. Harrington seconded the motion and the motion carried. 

Respectfully submitted,

Marilou Blaine, 

Recording Secretary

Walpole Planning Board Minutes

 July 8, 2025

Town Hall

7 pm

Roll Call: Board Members: Present; Chair Jeff Miller, Vice-Chair Dennis Marcom, Clerk Jason Perron, Jeff Harrington, Joanna Andros, Trevor MacLachlan, Select Board Representative Steve Dalessio. Alternates: Travis Adams and Bill Carmody.

Call to Order: Mr. Miller called the meeting to order at 7 pm.

Minutes: Review of June 2025 minutes. Ms. Andros made a typo correction on page 1, second to last paragraph. Mr. Marcom moved to accept minutes as corrected. Mr. Perron seconded the motion and the motion passed.

New Business:

Bevin Mitchell, signage at 32 Wentworth Road, Residential A district.

Bevin Mitchel made a request for signage for her B&B on Wentworth Road. Mrs. Mitchell said Matt Saxton was making the sign but it was not yet finished. She presented a picture of the shape of the sign. It is a 3-foot-by-2 foot free-standing sign and will be double-sided. It will be placed 10 feet from the road in the first of three driveways. She choose a shape similar to one that might have been used in the 1700s because that is the time period of when the section of her home she is using for the B&B was built. It will be on a post about 4 or 5 feet high.

Since the sign and placement conform to the Residential District Zoning Ordinance, there were no questions. Mr. Perron made a motion to approve the sign. Mr. Harrington seconded the motion and the motion carried.

Lot Line Adjustment: Robin Sanctuary. Property on 5 Hooper and 00 Old Keene Road, Town Map 8, Lot 8-2 in the rural/agricultural district. 

Ms. Sanctuary requested a public hearing on this matter. She wants to annex 1 acre from Lot No. 2 and 2 acres from Lot No. 3  to the lot abutting her property to the south, 27 Hooper Road. Mr. Perron made a motion to hold a public hearing for the lot line adjustment in August. The motion was seconded by Mr. Harrington and the motion carried.

DADUs: Mr. Tom Aldrich was at the meeting to discuss DADUs or Detached Accessory Dwelling Units.

DADUs are defined as “a residential living unit that is with the same single-family lot and provides independent living facilities for one or more persons, including provisions to sleeping, eating, cooking and sanitation on the same parcel of land as the principal unit it accompanies.” 

Adjournment

Mr. Perron made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Marcom seconded the motion and the motion carried. The time was 7:45 pm.

These minutes are unapproved and will be reviewed at the August meeting for corrections. 

Respectfully submitted,

Marilou Blaine

Walpole Planning Board Minutes

June 10, 2025

Town Hall 

7 pm

Roll Call: Board present: Chair Jeff Miller, Dennis Marcom, Jason Perron, Jeff Harrington, Joanna Andros, Trevor MacLachlan, Select Board Representative Steve Dalessio. Alternate: Travis Adams. Absent: alternate Bill Carmody.

Call to Order: Mr. Miller called the meeting to order at 7 pm. A full board was present so there was no need to appoint an alternate to fill in.

Minutes: Review minutes of May 2025. Mr. Marcom made a motion to approve the minutes as presented. Mr. Harrington seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.

New Business: 

Signage at Blue Seal:

Free-standing sign near Route 12, with an Electronic Messaging Board. Internally Lit Wall Sign on building. Couple of smaller signs: on the containing propane silo and one near driveway entrance to the store. Presenter Justin Parker of Classic Signs Inc. LLC in Amherst, NH. The property is at 334 Main Street, Tax Map 12, Lot 59 in the commercial district. Blue Seal was formerly owned by Achilles Agway.

Mr. Parker said he was at the meeting to get approval for four signs: a wall sign on the building, a free-standing sign near Route 12, a sign near the entrance driveway to the store and a sign on a propane tank, which is 118 feet to the north of the doors to the building. The sign on the propane tank is 3.89 square foot, single sided vinyl. The entrance sign is 3 feet 1 3/4-inches. The size of these signs comply with Walpole’s Zoning Ordinances on signage.

 However, the wall sign on the building and the free-standing sign are larger than the 32 square-foot maximum spelled out in the zoning ordinance. So he is asking for a variance. He said he believes these signs should not be smaller because cars going by at 55 mph wouldn’t even notice the Blue Seal sign and reducing the size of the sign takes away from their intrinsic design. Actually the cars passing Blue Seal should be going 35 mph. Variances are decided by the Zoning Board of Adjustment. The secretary will put him on the agenda for June 18.

The wall sign on the building has the Blue Seal logo and below it says FARM – HOME. Its size is 49.58 square feet, single-sided and internally lit. The free-standing pylon sign has the Blue Seal Logo and the words Farm – Home. Between the words FARM and Home is a tiny rooster on both signs. There is an additional space for a “reader” board of 2 lines of 6-inch copy on the Route 12 sign. This sign is double faced and the electronic reader board would change every couple of minutes to say something else. The choice of what goes on the message board is up to the owners.

 Mr. Harrington worried the message board might distract drivers. He read from sign provision No. 3 “oscillating, rotating flashing, neon, or other tubular gas signs are not permitted except when used for public safety purposed by a governmental entity?” Mr. Marcom also mentioned provision 3 but other Board members didn’t stater concerns about the message board.. 

Mr. Parker also submitted back-up renditions of the signage on the building and near Route 12 that comply with Walpole’s sign ordinance in case his request for a variance is turned down.

Mr. Harrington made a motion to approve the sign on the propane tank and sign at the entrance driveway. Mr. Perron seconded the motion and the Board voted unanimously in favor of the motion.

Phase 3 at Abenaki Springs

Mr. Miller said the Select Board recently had a discussion of Phase 3 at Abenaki Springs. He said given that there have been so many changes in that area over the last few years he thought Phase 3 would need go through a Site Plan Review. Mr. Dalessio said Avanru Development used the words “substantially complete” to indicate they might be ready. However, Mr. MacLachlan, who works in construction, said Avanru may have some of the infrastructure in place such as electrical, water and sewer but that doesn’t cover “substantially complete” in the construction industry. There isn’t even a draft of the building, he said. The Board will revisit this topic next month.

Adjournment

Mr. Perron made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Marcom seconded the motion and the motion carried. The time was 7:35 pm.

These minutes are unapproved and will be reviewed on July 8 for any corrections.

Walpole Planning Board Minutes

May 13, 2025

Town Hall

7 pm 

Roll Call: Board members Chair Jeff Miller, Vice-Chair Dennis Marcom, Clerk Jason Perron, Jeff Harrington, Joanna Andros. Absent Board members Trevor MacLachlan and Select Board Representative Steve Dalessio. Alternates: Travis Adams, Bill Carmody.

Call to Order: Mr. Miller called the meeting to order at 7 pm.

Minutes: Review minutes of April 2025. On page 2, section on adjournment Ms. Andros corrected the word “passes” to “passed.”  Mr. Harrington made a motion to approve the minutes as amended. Mr. Perron seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.

Old Business:

Site Plan: Public Hearing: 1,400 square-foot Domino’s Restaurant, 504 Main Street, & Red Barn Lane, Tax Map 12, Lot 13-3 Unit 2 A, Commercial District. Agent Chad Branon Fieldstone Land Consultants, Applicant and owner is Acorn to Sky Investments LLC in Meriden, NH.

John Noonan, project manager for Fieldstone Land Consultants, presented the proposal and announced the answer to two previous questions the board had. There will be no seating in the building. The business is for take-out only. Customers may go in the building for pick up. And yes there will be delivery.

Mr. Noonan continued that this is a hearing for a Domino Pizza on land that is a condo lot. It is Tax Map 12, Lot 13-3, 2A and shares an access entrance road with Dollar General off of Red Barn Lane and abuts Tractor Supply to the north. This plat supersedes a recorded plat that the Planning Board did not approve. That plat was filed with the Cheshire County Registry of Deeds in Keene in April 2024.

The plan presented included revised elevations. The color of the siding of the building is castle stone or beige with white trim and a black asphalt roof. It is a design that will fit well in the community, Mr. Noonan said. It has a gable roof in the center. The entrance to the building is at the end of shared driveway with Dollar General and then goes around to the back of the building to the take-out window and comes around in the front of the building to exit. The remaining land is convertible land, which means that it may have another business on it, wetlands and a pond. Operation hours will be 11 am to 8 pm.

Mr. Noonan pointed out a couple of sites where there is drainage, one in the top right-hand corner of the lot and one near Red Barn Lane. Lighting is mounted on two poles and there is lighting on the building. Landscaping will consist of trees and shrubs. He mentioned a few red maples, Ms. Kim lilacs, hydrangeas and he pointed out the location of the enclosed dumpster, which also will be surrounded by shrubs. The electrical box will also have shrubs surrounding it. The entire project will connect with town water and sewer on Red Barn Lane. It was suggested that Mr. Noonan contact Walpole Fire Chief Mark Houghton to get approval on fire safety. 

Mr. Miller asked if there were any other questions. Being none he closed the public hearing at 7:15 pm. The Board had no more questions. Mr. Harrington made a motion to approve the site plan as presented and Mr. Perron seconded the motion. Mr. Miller thanked the owner, Bobby Oakes, for working with the Board to sort out the “condo” problem.

There were a few Walpole residents at the meeting and Chris Burchstead raised her hand and asked when they were going to have their input at the meeting. The time for them to speak up was when Mr. Miller asked if there were any other questions. The gist of their concern was another drive-up business and more traffic. Mr. Miller point out that this is in the commercial district and the Board cannot determine which businesses can or cannot locate in it. As long as a business follows the site plan the Board cannot legally oppose the project. Mr. Perron reminded them that a couple of years ago that there was an article on the warrant to ban formula businesses of which Domino’s Pizza is one. That article was turned down by residents. Holly Gowdy, who has land that abuts land on which the Domino Pizza will be built, was there to complain about the traffic on that section of Route 12. She said trailer trucks go 60 miles per hour down that stretch of road. It is dangerous and she fears there will be a fatal accident. She thinks there should be more of a police presence on that portion of Route 12.  Select Board member Carolyn Vose advised anyone who has a complaint should call the police department, not 911, but the regular police department number. 

Lot Line Adjustment: Public Hearing, Nathan Bisson and Allegra Pickering, 310 Main Street: Tax Map 24, Lot 13-14, 14-1 and 15. Residential A and Commercial District. Swap land between Doug Palmer and Bisson/Pickering.  0.13 acres from Palmer to Bisson/Pickering for front lawn. 0.14 acres on Main Street from Bisson/Pickering to Palmer of Old Hewitt Barn Properties. Purchase from BNB Realty to Bisson/Pickering 0.04 acres. Total acreage of Bisson/Pickering now 8.66 acres, formerly 8.4 acres.

This lot line adjustment is a swapping of small parcels of land mainly to straighten out boundary lines. There was a small adjustment to the plat that Surveyor Joe DiBernardo presented. It regards fencing that BNB put up on the western boundary for its preschool. That was readjusted to 38 square feet being annexed to BNB property. With the lot line adjustment Bisson/Pickering get a new front lawn. The final tally is .52 acres after adjustment for BNB; 1.5 acres for Hewitt Barn; and a final 8.66 acres for Bisson/Pickering.

Mr. Marcom made a motion to approve the lot line adjustment as presented. Mr. Harrington seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.

Zoning Ordinances: The changes to Walpole Zoning Ordinances that were approved in March have been reorganized into a new booklet that will soon be available. Southwest Regional Planning Commission was in charge of the work. The booklet will soon be copied and distributed.

Adjournment: Mr. Perron made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Harrington seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously. The time was 7:45 pm.

These minutes are unapproved and will be reviewed at the June 10, 2025 Planning Board meeting.

Respectfully submitted,

Marilou Blaine

WPB Secretary

Walpole Planning Board Minutes

Tuesday, April 8, 2025

Town Hall

7 pm

Roll Call: Present: Board members Chair Jeff Miller, Clerk Jason Perron, Jeff Harrington, Joanna Andros, Trevor MacLachlan, Select Board Representative Steve Dalessio, Alternates Travis Adams, Bill Carmody. Absent Board member Vice-Chair Dennis Marcom.

Call to Order: Mr. Miller called the meeting to order at 6:59 pm. He asked Mr. Adams to sit in for the absent board member. Mr. Adams agreed.

Minutes: Review minutes of March 2025 meeting. Mr. Perron made a motion to approve the March minutes as presented. Mr. Harrington seconded the motion and the motion carried.

New Business:

Election of Officers

Mr. Harrington made a motion to keep the slate of officers the same as those who are currently serving. Mr. Perron seconded the motion and the motion carried.

Old Business:

Agent Chad Branon, Fieldstone Land Consultants presented. Applicant is Acorn to Sky Investments LLC in Meriden, NH. Discussion of the condo land and application for a site plan. Tax Map 12, Lot 13-3 Unit 2, commercial district. Proposed use is a 1,400 square-foot Domino’s Pizza restaurant.

Mr. Branon stated thee has been confusion over this property. He acknowledged that a plat was registered at the Cheshire County Deeds without approval of the Planning Board. Mr. Branon provided a new plat. This plat consolidates the unapproved lots into one lot that conforms to the Walpole subdivision regulations. This plat supersedes the plan that was registered before at CCRD, which was Plan No 22117. The property is designated as Unit 2A.

Mr. Dalessio reminded Mr. Branon that regarding development of the entire parcel, 30 percent must be green space. After a quick look at the what the building would look like, Mr. Miller asked if there were any other models. Ms. Andros asked about vegetation and Mr. Branon  said there would probably be trees and shrubs in the front of the building. Mr. Dalessio didn’t approve of the flat roof. Is this a restaurant with seating inside? Mr. Branon thought it was mainly a drive-thru. More discussion on the building will take place next month.

Caitlyn Baucom asked. “Why would we want this? There is zero reason why people need a Domino’s.” Ms. Baucom thought someone local should be investing in commercial property in Walpole. It needs local owners and local workers. Walpole already has plenty of drive-thru eateries already, she said.

Mr. Miller explained that this is property in the commercially zoned district and the Planning  Board cannot determine who owns a particular lot or piece of property nor what he/she does with the property. These businesses add to the town’s taxes. Also, the people working at all these establishments are local. He reminded her that a couple of years ago there was a proposal to ban any more franchise businesses and it was voted down.

Mr. Branon asked for a public hearing next month, May, for a site plan for Domino’s. Mr. Perron made a motion to hold a public hearing next month. Mr. Harrington seconded the motion and the motion carried.

Lot Line Adjustment: Nathan Bisson and Allegra Pickering, Town Tax Map 24, Lot 15; Old Hewitt Barn Properties LLC Tax Map 24, Lot 13; and BNB Realty, LLC Tax Map 24, Lot 14-1 11 Maplewood Drive. Mr Bisson and Ms. Pickering want to swap some land with the owners of Hewitt Barn Properties. 0.13 acres will be annexed to the Bisson and Pickering couple in exchange for 0.14 acres in the north and west corner to the Old Hewitt Barn property. Mr. Bisson and Ms. Pickering are also purchasing 0.04 acres from BNB Realty, LLC, After the adjustment, Mr. Bisson and Ms. Pickering will have 8.67 acres and Old Hewitt Barn property will be 1.50 acres.

Mr. Jed West presented the Lot Line Adjustment for vacationing surveyor Joe DiBernardo and asked for a public hearing for next month. Mr. Perron made a motion to hold a hearing for the lot line adjustment next month. Mr. Adams seconded the motion and the motion carried.

Mr. Miller announced that Mr. Todd Horner, executive director of Southwest Region Planning Commission, will have the Master Plan in 25 binders. Each Planning Board member will receive a copy.

Adjournment: Mr. Perron made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Harrington seconded the motion and the motion passes unanimously.

These minutes are unapproved and will reviewed at the May 13, 2025 for corrections.

Respectfully submitted,

Marilou Blaine, Secretary

cc: WPB, ZBA, Town Offices, The Walpolean. Posted: Inside Town Offices, outside Post Office, www.walpolenh.us

Walpole Planning Board

March 11, 2025

Town Hall

Second Floor

7 pm

Role Call: Present: Board members Chair Jeff Miller, Vice- Chair Dennis Marcom, Clerk Jason Perron, Joanna Andros, Trevor MacLachlan, Select Board Representative Steve Dalessio. Alternate Travis Adams. Absent board member Jeff Harrington and alternate Bill Carmody.

Call to Order: Mr. Miller called the meeting to order at 6:59 pm. He asked Mr. Adams to fill in for the absent board member. Mr. Adams agreed.

Minutes: Mr. Marcom made a motion to approve the minutes as presented. Mr Perron seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.

Old Business: Public Hearing Site Plan: Bevin Mitchell, 33 Wentworth Road, Walpole. Town Tax Map 19, Lot 72, Residential A District. Ms. Mitchell proposes a four-bedroom, four-bath Bed & Breakfast on the 6-acre lot. Zoning Ordinance Article IV, General Provisions L.

Ms. Mitchell brought in an aerial photo of her 6 acres of property. There are three entrances to the property, two of which form a half circle on the property and all are entered from Wentworth Road. There are many places on the property to park four cars, which is a requirement of the ordinance – one for each bedroom. Ms. Mitchell said she had been touch with Fire Chief Mark Houghton and he is going to come out and look at the space. There being no questions from the public or board, Mr. Miller closed the public hearing. Mr. Marcom made a motion to approve the site plan on the condition the Board receive a letter of approval regarding the fire safety and a sprinkler system from Chief Houghton. The motion passed unanimously.

New Business:

Owner: Acorn to Sky Investments LLC, 135 Main Street, Meriden, NH 03770.

Agent’s Name: Fieldstone Land Consultants PLLC, 208 Elm Street, Milford, NH 03055.

Presenter: John Noonan, Project Manager for Fieldstone Land Consultants.

Property: 505 Main Street & Red Barn Lane, Town Tax 12, Lot 13-3-Unit 2, Commercial District, 3.320 acres, 234,8 feet road frontage on Main Street (Route 12). Proposed Use is Domino’s Pizza restaurant.

Mr. Noonan submitted an application for a subdivision and a site plan. There was confusion on the layout of the property. Mr. Noonan said the property had been registered as one lot of record.

First of all, the three condo lots were registered without the town’s knowledge and it violates the town’s subdivision regulations. So until this matter is straightened out, the Planning Board cannot move forward. Mr. Miller said currently the lot is not one lot, but two lots. Therefore, there is no way this application as it is written can be subdivided unless it is one lot of record. One avenue for that to happen is if Mr. Noonan would apply for a voluntary merger and when that is approved and registered he could proceed with his plan. Mr. Noonan agreed with that pathway. 

Adjournment

Mr. Perron made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Marcom seconded the motion and the motion passed unanimously. The time was 7:25 pm.

These minutes are unapproved and will be reviewed at the April meeting for corrections.

Respectfully submitted,

Marilou Blaine

Secretary