GREENFIELD CONSERVATION COMMISSION MEETING
Tuesday, June 28, 2022 at 6:30 PM
Greenfield Department of Planning and Development
Remote Access Online: HERE or by Phone at [1-408-418-9388]
Meeting ID: [2633 825 6709] Password: [cpJki27FnC6]
(Contact the Conservation Agent for Assistance)
AGENDA – Revised June 22, 2022
Pursuant to Bill S.2475 Extending Certain COVID-19 Measures Adopted During the State of Emergency, this meeting of the Greenfield Conservation Commission will be conducted via remote participation to the greatest extent possible. Specific information and the general guidelines for remote participation by members of the public and/or parties with a right and/or requirement to attend this meeting can be found below. Every effort will be made to ensure that the public can adequately access the proceedings in real time, via technological means. In the event that we are unable to do so, despite best efforts, we will post on the City of Greenfield website an audio or video recording, transcript, or other comprehensive record of proceedings as soon as possible after the meeting.
Should any technical interruption to the meeting occur and the meeting is suddenly ended, it will not be resumed and all items will be automatically continued to the next scheduled meeting date. Contact the Conservation Agent for more information.
Administrative Matters
Meeting Access: Remote Access Online https://greenfieldma.my.webex.com/greenfieldma.my/j.php?MTID=m7ce2ba2cf9a9ab8a7752f363cff0da89 or by Phone at [1-408-418-9388] Meeting ID: [2633 825 6709] Password: [cpJki27FnC6]
Schedule of Public Meetings & Hearings
The Baystate Health Foundation is proposing to use Wedgewood Gardens as an event space for the 15th annual Wheeling for Healing Ride, Walk, Run to raise funds for cancer care and services at Baystate Franklin Medical Center. No permanent alterations to the site are being proposed. The applicant intends to use a portion of the site as a parking area and will erect small tents for the event. Participants will complete their routes off site using this location only as a beginning and end point.
As part of the project, Eversource is proposing to abandon and decommission the 28W Substation located off of Power Court in Greenfield. As part of the decommissioning, portions of the existing distribution lines will need to be upgraded and/or relocated and new underground conduit and ancillary equipment will need to be installed in order to provide continued system reliability and increased load capacity to the area. Portions of the work would be located within Bordering Vegetated Wetlands, the 100-foot Buffer Zone to BVW, and areas mapped by the Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program (NHESP) as Priority and Estimated habitat for a state listed species. To support the decommissioning of the Substation, the existing B5/B6 lines between the substation and the Patriot Corridor Railroad Tracks will need to be rebuilt. This will allow the distribution lines to be disconnected from the substation and connected to the existing distribution lines along Power Court to the east and Coombs Avenue to the north. The rebuild will involve the installation of six new wood distribution poles as well as the removal, replacement, and overhead maintenance of several existing poles to separate the existing 28W line into two separate B5 and B6 lines. In its new alignment, the B6 line will run from the existing overhead distribution line along Coombs Avenue, over the railroad line, south into the utility ROW and then east to a new pole. Then, new underground conduit will be installed to connect the new pole to the existing manhole within Power Court. The underground conduit within Power Court will then connect to two switchgears to be constructed within a perimeter fence line south within a lot along the east side of Power Court. The overhead maintenance, removal, and replacement of existing poles are not subject to the Wetlands Protect Act, while the installation of new poles, associated tree removal, the installation of matting for new poles, the installation of new switch gears, and the installation of new underground conduit are subject to the Act.
The proposed work is to install a septic tank, septic d-box, and leach field, as well as properly abondon the failed components. There are flags indicating the BVW shown on the design plan, which were put in by Ward Smith on May 4, 2022. Prior to any site work, siltation/erosion controls shall be installed (also shown on design plan). The actual tank, d-box, and leach field will be 50' from the Bordering Vegetated Wetland. The siltation/erosion controls are a minimum of 30' from the BVW insuring a 25-foot No Disturb Zone. The 50' from the BVW meets the criteria of Title 5 310 CMR 15.211 (1) and the Wetlands Protection Act 310 CMR 10.03 (3).
Other Business & Enforcement Updates
Project Monitoring, Correspondence, & Site Visit Scheduling
Set Next Meeting Date: Tuesday, July 12th, 2022 at 6:30 PM
Posted to: Conservation Comm.