Accountability posts
Drafts ready to share. Click to copy, then post. Planning Board · Amherst, NH · August 6, 2025.
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Off-agenda transparency failure: Supreme Court mandate and grandfathered ordinance status discussed without prior public notice
At Amherst's 8/6 Planning Board meeting, the NH Supreme Court's role in the Jacobson Trust 35-unit subdivision was discussed at length — but that legal context wasn't flagged on the public agenda. Residents couldn't show up prepared for that conversation.
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Community awareness: court-mandated reversal of prior denial, limited board discretion, grandfathered ordinance bypassing current standards
Amherst Planning Board (8/6): The chair said the board's hands are 'very, very limited' on the Jacobson Trust subdivision — because the NH Supreme Court overturned their earlier denial. A 35-unit development under a grandfathered ordinance is back on track. Next hearing: Sept 3.
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Unresolved tension between pedestrian safety goals and environmental protection
Conflict at Amherst's 8/6 Planning Board: a member called the applicant's 5-foot pedestrian path 'unacceptable' and demanded 8–10 feet. But the Conservation Commission opposes a wider path due to wetland impacts. No resolution yet — revised plans due Sept 3.
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Agenda accuracy: address discrepancy between posted agenda and actual decision
Amherst Planning Board (8/6): Agenda listed a CUP extension for 82 Baboosic Lake Road. The approved extension was for 84 Baboosic Lake Road — a different address. Small detail, but public notice should match what's actually decided.
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🧵 Amherst Planning Board met 8/6/25. The biggest issue — a court-ordered reversal on a contested 35-unit subdivision — was discussed in detail, but the legal context that shapes everything was NOT clearly flagged on the public agenda. Here's what residents need to know:
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The Jacobson Trust subdivision (35 units, Christian Hill Rd) was previously DENIED by this same board. The NH Supreme Court overturned that denial and ordered reconsideration. The chair said the board's hands are now 'very, very limited.' That's a significant legal development — and it wasn't spelled out on the agenda before the meeting.
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It gets more complicated: the project moves forward under a grandfathered Innovative Housing Ordinance — meaning current development standards don't fully apply. Residents near Christian Hill Road who opposed this project before may have little recourse. Next hearing is Sept 3.
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Meanwhile, a real conflict emerged over pedestrian safety. The applicant proposed a 5-foot gravel path along Christian Hill Rd. A board member called it 'unacceptable' — said 8–10 feet is needed as a critical village connection. But the Conservation Commission opposes a wider path due to wetland impacts. No resolution. Revised plans due Sept 3.
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Also: the agenda listed a conditional use permit extension for 82 Baboosic Lake Road. The board approved it for 84 Baboosic Lake Road — a different address. The new owners say the prior sellers failed to disclose the expiring permit. The board approved the extension unanimously.
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Bottom line: Amherst residents near Christian Hill Rd and the broader community should be at the Sept 3 Planning Board meeting. A 35-unit subdivision under a legacy ordinance, with constrained board authority and unresolved infrastructure questions, is moving forward whether or not anyone shows up.
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Longer-form draft.
📋 AMHERST PLANNING BOARD — August 6, 2025 If you live near Christian Hill Road or care about development decisions in Amherst, this meeting matters — and one of the most consequential pieces of information was not clearly laid out on the public agenda before people arrived. The Jacobson Trust subdivision — a proposed 35-unit residential development — was on the agenda as a continued public hearing. What was not spelled out in advance: that the Amherst Planning Board had previously DENIED this application, the NH Supreme Court overturned that denial, and the board is now legally required to reconsider it. The chair acknowledged on the record that the board's hands are 'very, very limited' as a result of the court ruling. The project also proceeds under a grandfathered Innovative Housing Ordinance, meaning current development standards don't fully apply. Residents who might have attended specifically to understand the legal landscape had no clear advance notice that this framing would be central to the discussion. That's a transparency gap on a high-stakes topic. The meeting also exposed a genuine conflict between pedestrian safety and environmental protection. The applicant proposed a 5-foot gravel path along Christian Hill Road to address pedestrian safety concerns. A board member flatly rejected that as 'unacceptable,' calling for a minimum 8-to-10-foot path given its role as a critical connection between Christian Hill and the village. But the Conservation Commission has opposed a wider path due to wetland impacts. The board directed the applicant to revise to a minimum 8-foot width anyway — leaving that conflict unresolved. Revised plans are due before the next hearing. Two other notes: A subdivision at 24 Panima Road was deemed complete and fully approved in the same meeting — moving faster through the process than the agenda's 'completeness review' framing suggested. And a conditional use permit extension was approved for 84 Baboosic Lake Road, though the agenda listed the address as 82 Baboosic Lake Road. The next Jacobson Trust hearing is scheduled for September 3rd. If this development affects your neighborhood, that's the meeting to attend.