The Hudson Conservation Commission met on Feb. 10 to hear a presentation for a conditional use permit for T-BONES. The restaurant plans to relocate to a more expansive location several miles down Lowell Road.
“They are proposing a 9,500-foot restaurant. The site is located at 256 Lowell Rd., it is zoned business, and it is also subject to the wetland conservation district, hence why we’re here,” explained Sam Foisie, a Professional Engineer with Meridian Land Services. “The ultimate goal of this project is for T-BONES to stay in town. They’re located currently at 77 Lowell Rd. They’ve found that the existing site is small and the parking lot s pretty tight.”
The relocation was originally motivated by flooding caused by a failing culvert pipe under the T-BONES parking lot.
Foisie outlined a design plan aimed at protecting the wetlands while connecting utilities to the new building without seriously disrupting Lowell Road. As was often the case, wetland impact, along with the size of the site plan, was a big concern for the Conservation Commission.
“I’m just wondering what can be done to reduce the overall site plan, I think it’s huge, it’s way too big for the size of the building,” said Commissioner Chris Cameron. “We’ve got to look at the overall impacts to the forest, to the hillside, to completely regrading the whole site.”
Foisie argued that T-BONES intended to use all of the space while recognizing the difficulties that would come with sharing an entrance driveway with Walmart, which will provide access to the T-BONE parking lot.
“Technically, we need two driveways permits. We need to modify Walmart’s driveway permit, it is private, and we are pretty far along in getting an easement from them,” he said.
More than one member of the Conservation Commission noted the entryway seemed to intersect with the surrounding wetland buffer zone.
“The impact of the secondary entry drive is a little concerning,” said Commissioner Ken Dickinson. “You’ve got a wall right up against the wetland or into it.”
He did say the property “does lend itself to a development such as T-BONES.”
Town Engineer Elvis Dhima worried the recent snowstorms would make an effective site walk difficult.
“Can you go out there and mark at least where the wetland is roughly on the trees?” asked Dhima. “It would be good to have the edge of the wetland, and the edge of the buffer as well.”
Foisie responded by saying the wetlands on the site had already been flagged, although he was unsure how clear or extensive the flags were.
“I haven’t been out there since June,” admitted Foisie, who agreed to mark the site more thoroughly before a site walk.
The Town Engineer warned that even with a successful site walk, the new restaurant would need an extensive traffic study before starting construction.
“You will get some feedback from everyone,” said Dhima. “The south end is still kind of recovering from what happened with the Target Logistics Center, the main issue there was traffic, it will be challenging.”
The relocation plan is still early in the permitting process and will require approval by other groups, including the Hudson Planning Board and state regulators.
