Nashua Planning Board Meeting - October 16, 2026

The Nashua Planning Board met on October 16, 2026, acting on one conditional use permit, site plan approvals and an approval extension, plus related waivers and dimensional modifications. Note: the supplied timestamp is 2026-10-16 01:29:53+00:00; the transcript itself identifies the session as the October 15, 2026 meeting. No written agenda or minutes were provided, so this summary is based on the raw transcript. The board had a quorum and heard the cases in modified order.

Consent Calendar

• Approved the October 1, 2026 meeting minutes as written, motion by Benjamin Zoller, second by Alderman Patricia Clee, unanimous.

Communications

• Staff reported late packet changes for 10 North Southwood Drive (revised staff report incorporating engineering comments and the fire apparatus overlay) and 181 East Hollis Street (resolved engineering comment letter and an added condition regarding the engineering traffic contribution request).

Public Comments & Testimony

• No members of the public spoke in opposition or support at any of the public hearings, and no Zoom participants were reported.

Conditional Use Permit A26-0187 – 10 North Southwood Drive

• The board accepted jurisdiction, and applicant representative Paul Chisholm of Keach Nordstrom Associates presented for Wendon LLC/Tully Automotive Group. The project is an adaptive reuse of the former post office building for vehicle storage (permitted by right) and vehicle repair (conditional use) on a 10-acre parcel in the Park Industrial Zone and Water Supply Protection District.
• The applicant estimated about 75 vehicles serviced per month, roughly three to four vehicles per day, with about 25 employees on site. Vehicle repair would occur inside the building, and the Tinker Road entrance would remain gated/emergency-only, with primary access from North Southwood Drive.
• The applicant stated that all nine conditional use permit criteria are satisfied and that no waivers were requested.
• Board discussion focused on the engineering traffic contribution. Dan Hudson questioned directing it to the Amherst Street Traffic Quarter and suggested the Daniel Webster Highway corridor was more appropriate. Alderman Clee supported the corridor shift but did not want to cut the contribution amount. Staff advised leaving the condition as to the satisfaction of the Division of Public Works so staff could determine amount and placement.
• Motion by Adam Barley, second by Benjamin Zoller, to approve the conditional use permit with the two subsequent conditions in the staff report; passed unanimously.

Conditional Use Permit A26-0204 / Site Plan A26-0188 – 4 Beard Street

• The board accepted jurisdiction. Ethan Beals, project manager, represented Area Agency Properties, doing business as Gateways Community Services, a nonprofit serving the developmentally disabled community. The existing group home has reached the end of its useful life; the project would demolish it and construct a new nine-unit multifamily residential building.
• This was a requested second extension of approvals originally granted in September 2024; the applicant stated the project plans have not changed.
• The applicant reported fundraising progress: Invest New Hampshire funds pending a Governor's Council vote, HOME federal funds, approximately $1 million requested from Senator Shaheen's discretionary funding, and $500,000 in Community Project Funding via Representative Goodlander and NRPC.
• The board discussed granting more than one year to avoid recurring application fees. Alderman Clee supported extending the approval but did not want to go beyond 2028.
• Motion by Cameron Green, second by Alderman Clee, to extend the final conditional use permit and site plan approval to October 19, 2028, subject to subsequent conditions A-C; passed unanimously.

Site Plan A26-0198 – Innovative Way / Daniel Webster Highway

• The board accepted jurisdiction. Applicant representatives Dan Borowski of Fieldstone Land Consultants and Kevin Walker of the John Flatley Company presented a 48,000-square-foot flex building on about 21 acres. This was the same site plan previously approved in 2022; state approvals remained valid, but the local approval had elapsed, so a new application was required.
• Board members asked about the relationship to the previously approved loop road to the north; staff and the applicant explained that this roadway segment can be built with either project and is not governed by a phasing plan.
• Staff noted that a previous $2,750 traffic contribution referenced in the October 8, 2026 engineering memo had not yet been received and was incorporated by reference in the subsequent conditions.
• The board granted waivers from the adjacent-parcel existing-conditions requirement and from plan drafting standards, based on the applicant's waiver request letters dated October 23, 2023, and January 12, 2024.
• Motion by Cameron Green, second by Adam Barley, to approve the waivers; passed unanimously. Motion by Cameron Green, second by Alderman Clee, for final site plan approval subject to subsequent conditions A-O; passed unanimously.

Site Plan A26-0155 – 181 East Hollis Street

• The board accepted jurisdiction. Pete Madsen of Keach Nordstrom Associates presented for Bullduck Enterprises LLC a proposed 48-unit apartment building on an irregular lot zoned General Industrial but within the TOD Overlay District, where multifamily development is permitted by right. The existing auto-body shop and paved parking lot would be redeveloped.
• The building would include studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom units. The project includes subsurface stormwater detention with downstream water quality units, full-cutoff lighting, landscaping, and coordination with Pennichuck water service.
• The applicant stated that a variance had already been received in September related to the 15-foot maximum setback required in the TOD overlay district along East Hollis Street. Relief being requested from the board included a floor area ratio of 2.1 where 2.0 is required in the General Industrial zone, a cumulative driveway width of 70 feet across three curb cuts where 36 feet and two curb cuts is the standard maximum, and a waiver of the adjacent-parcel existing-conditions exhibit requirement.
• Traffic discussion: Dan Hudson stated the applicant's study estimates 19 additional vehicles during the development peak hour. He noted that no East Hollis Street traffic quarter account exists, that Main Street is the nearest available account, and that a prior $4,750 Main Street traffic-quarter contribution from engineer Joe Mandola's memo was not referenced in the latest staff report. The applicant confirmed it was amenable to that contribution.
• Flooding discussion: the site is not within the FEMA flood zone and is within the 250-foot shoreland protection buffer; the ground-floor parking garage was noted as a resiliency feature consistent with other nearby development.
• On affordability, the applicant said affordable units had not been considered at this time. Staff planner Sam Durfee explained that inclusionary zoning is incentive-driven, noted that LIHTC-funded projects typically serve roughly 30% to 60% area median income while market-rate projects are often at 120% to 150% AMI, and identified the workforce-housing gap around 80% to 100% AMI as an area the city's new code aims to address.
• Motion by Cameron Green, second by Adam Barley, to approve the waiver; passed unanimously. Motion by Cameron Green, second by Alderman Clee, to approve the dimensional modifications; passed unanimously. Motion by Cameron Green, second by Alderman Clee, for final site plan approval subject to subsequent conditions A-M; passed unanimously.

Other Business and Board Discussion

• The board reviewed the tentative agenda for the November 5, 2026 meeting. Benjamin Zoller moved that there were no agenda items of regional impact, second by Adam Barley; the motion passed.
• A broader discussion followed about affordable housing data, inclusionary zoning, state legislative changes, and whether the Planning Board should advocate for particular housing types. Joseph McIntyre asked whether the city is meeting housing targets and whether there is data on what types of housing are actually being produced. Alderman Clee cautioned against making the Planning Board an advocacy body and supported the mixed-income approach the city is pursuing. Staff offered to prepare a tutorial or update for the board on housing process and legislative changes.
• The chair mentioned volunteer liaison openings, including the Historic Commission liaison and a Nashua Regional Planning Commission commissioner seat, and asked staff to circulate the openings to board members and alternates.

Key Outcomes

• Approved the October 1, 2026 minutes unanimously.
• Approved the conditional use permit at 10 North Southwood Drive (A26-0187) unanimously.
• Extended the approvals at 4 Beard Street (A26-0204 / A26-0188) to October 19, 2028, unanimously.
• Re-approved the Innovative Way / Daniel Webster Highway flex-building site plan (A26-0198) unanimously, including waivers.
• Approved the 48-unit apartment site plan at 181 East Hollis Street (A26-0155) unanimously, including a waiver and dimensional modifications.
• Found no regional-impact items on the November 5, 2026 tentative agenda.
• Directed staff to circulate liaison volunteer openings and to prepare a housing-process update for board education.
• Adjourned at 8:55 p.m. transcript time; the supplied UTC timestamp is 2026-10-16 01:29:53+00:00.