Developers defend massive warehouse planned in Amherst
May 25—A developer proposing a massive warehouse at a former sandpit in Amherst says the location 5 miles away from the Everett Turnpike is perfect for delivering goods across New England.
But Kansas-based Flint Development continues to face a groundswell of opposition, with some neighbors already vowing to appeal if variances are approved by the town's zoning board.
The plan calls for two warehouses to be built off Northern Boulevard and Bon Terrain Drive — one of 1 million square feet and the other of 224,640 square feet, with 700 tractor-trailer parking spaces, according to the plans. The larger of the two buildings has been reduced from 1.2 million square feet on the mostly industrial parcel.
The company has at least another month to make its case for a use variance to allow an approximate 180,000-square-foot portion of the larger building on 15 acres in the residential/rural zone. Variances also are needed for floor area ratio and height up to 55 feet, where 40 feet is allowed.
Neighbors opposed say they're preparing to return to the June 21 continued hearing after poring through hundreds of pages of documents made available just before a hearing last week. The meeting in the Souhegan High School auditorium drew about 140 residents and lasted almost 3 1/2 hours.
The zoning board in April determined that the project would have regional impacts on Merrimack, Milford, Hollis, Manchester, Nashua and Bedford.
Beacon Lane resident Paul Philp said many neighbors felt they did not have adequate time to look through materials submitted just before the start of the hearing — including a report on the impact to property values.
Under state law the board must consider the "health, safety and welfare of the community," he said.
"Not once during the meeting did they ever ask a question about the health, safety and welfare of the community," Philp said.
The nearby 55-plus Summerfield condominium development where he lives is located across Peacock Brook from the industrial land.
Several speakers talked about the benefits, including the jobs and tax revenue the facility would bring to town.
Flint Development, which has built logistics centers around the country, has $1.35 billion and 18 million square feet of development in its "project pipeline," according to its website.
The proposed development is an ideal location because it provides access to many key locations, including Boston and Concord, according to Michael Miller, director development for Flint Development.
"It's a very highly populated area, so for logistics companies and things like that, it's a highly sought after population for us to be working in," he said.
The facility can serve the "greater New England area" in under eight hours, said Eric Watts, vice president development for Flint Development.
"Distributors out of this warehouse can easily travel 300-400 miles from this location, so five miles to a highway or major thoroughfare is a very reasonable and fairly standard distance to travel," Watts said.
The trucks will use Route 101A to get to and from the facility, and the company said the infrastructure can handle the traffic.
The company held a neighborhood meeting for all those worried about the impacts of the project.
Property values
The latest plan has the development 1,180 feet away from Summerfield Way and 860 feet to the closest unit at Peacock Brook development, according to the company. The plans originally had the building much closer.
J. Chet Rogers, a commercial real estate appraiser, says because all homes are more than 500 feet away, the granting of the variance with required setbacks "will have no measurable effect on the value of residential properties nearby."
Philp said the data was developed near similar projects in Hudson, Merrimack and Raymond. He said they are not comparable to the Amherst project.
He also pointed to a failed 2015 warrant article seeking to rezone the land, which was defeated 1,963 to 556.
The parcel zoned rural residential is landlocked and not ideal for homes, according to the company.
Watts mentioned the "large capital investment" and tax increase that will come to the property as benefits to the town. He said most of the property is already zoned for such a use.
Aquifer
The company has committed to placing an "impermeable membrane" under the foundation of any structure to address concerns about potential aquifer impact.
A letter from SLR International Corp., an environmental firm, says the project "does not present any significant peril to the aquifer," in part because the warehouse will be nonhazardous.
A Pennichuck Water Works well on the project site is no longer in use.
The project will abide by all local, state and federal ordinances to control any sort of substance that would be discharged into the sewer system and will manage the storm water on site, Watts said.
Philp said there have been instances across Southern New Hampshire with drinking water wells being contaminated.
"There are many people who are taking water out of the aquifers through their wells," he said.
Neighbors also raised concerns about traffic, noise and other environmental and health issues.
Many of those issues will need to be addressed before the planning board, the company said.
Philp said the project could end up in court down the road.
"I think this is a long fight, and I think the preponderance of evidence today is such that this is not something that small-town America needs," he said. "I hope we will be successful in our fight."
