FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Focus: Tamworth spokesperson:

Charles Greenhalgh

603 356-5439 x516

Cell: 603 321-6615

Home: 603 323-3908

If unavailable:
Kate Vachon, press coordinator
603 323 8224
focus@focustamworth.org

Focus: Tamworth urges attendance at Tamworth Wetlands Ordinance hearing July 21

Board must evaluate local and regional impact of the project

(TAMWORTH, NH, July 13, 2004)  Focus: Tamworth called today for a large attendance at the next Tamworth Planning Board meeting on Wednesday, July 21. The meeting, to be held at 7 PM at the K.A. Brett School on Route 113, will be a hearing on the application submitted by Club Motorsports Inc (CMI) for a Special Use Permit under Tamworth’s Wetlands Ordinance.

Focus: Tamworth has found a number of problems with the application, and will outline those to the Planning Board at the hearing. The Tamworth Wetlands Ordinance clearly outlines the permissible uses for which an applicant might be granted a permit to impact wetlands in Tamworth. “Neither a racetrack nor a ‘private driving instruction and recreation facility’ is listed as a permissible use,” said Charles Greenhalgh, Focus: Tamworth spokesperson.

The hearing should be of interest to residents of surrounding towns as well as those who live in Tamworth. Under New Hampshire RSA 36:56, the Planning Board is instructed to evaluate whether or not a development has “the potential for regional impact,” based on specific criteria, including “proximity to the borders of a neighboring community; anticipated emissions such as light, noise…; and proximity to aquifers or surface waters which transcend municipal boundaries.”

“It’s obvious that this project has the potential for regional impact,” Greenhalgh said. “This hearing is an opportunity for all affected communities to bring their concerns to the Planning Board.”

The July 21^st hearing may be the last opportunity for public input on the project, since it is not certain that two other possible hearings will take place.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) has not yet announced a hearing on the project. ACOE “noticed” the project as of July 13, 2004. The agency will accept comments from the public through August 13 on a variety of topics that include conservation, economics, aesthetics, cultural values, fish and wildlife values, water quality and general environmental concerns. ACOE must perform both a “public interest review” and an analysis of whether or not the project conforms to specific Federal guidelines designed to avoid unnecessary filling of waters and wetlands.

ACOE has received numerous letters from local residents requesting that it hold its own hearing, including one petition signed by 559 residents of Tamworth, Albany, Conway, Effingham, Freedom, Intervale, Jackson, Madison, Moultonborough, Sandwich, Wakefield and Wolfeboro. The petition was also signed by the presidents of the Silver Lake and Chocorua Lake Associations, who represent 231 and 215 dues-paying members respectively.

ACOE will not make a final decision about its hearing until after the public comment period ends August 13.

Tamworth’s Racetrack Ordinance, which was signed by the Selectboard on October 1, 2004 and affirmed at Town Meeting by an 84% majority, also requires a hearing before a racetrack can operate in the town. But Senate Bill 458 apparently exempted the Club Motorsports project from that ordinance by defining it as a “private driving instruction and recreation facility.” No RTO hearing will be held unless SB 458 is repealed during the next legislative session.

Focus: Tamworth is a coalition of local residents who support careful and fair regulations that protect Tamworth’s economic and natural resources. More information on Focus: Tamworth is available at www.focustamworth.org.

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Note to editors: the ACOE filing is available at http://www.nae.usace.army.mil/reg/MotorsportsLLC.pdf, or here.