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Wednesday, November 4, 2026 Essex County, Massachusetts · Change town
Government · Conservation

Conservation Board Approves Fire Station Wetlands Order

The North Andover Conservation Commission voted unanimously to approve a final order of conditions for the Berry Street/Turnpike Street fire station project, while leaving ball field parking access unresolved.

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Conservation · Meeting of October 28, 2026

NORTH ANDOVER — The North Andover Conservation Commission voted unanimously to approve a final order of conditions for the Berry Street/Turnpike Street fire station project, while leaving ball field parking access unresolved. Conservation Administrator Amy Maxner said a third and final peer review from Horsley Witten resolved stormwater concerns by rotating a discharge pipe away from an abutting property. Abutter Carl Arsenal of 362 Berry Street challenged the drainage design's elevations and warned "Berry Street is less than 20 feet wide.

Wintertime, you barely get two cars." Assistant Town Manager Lori Barzloff asked the board to drop a bond requirement since the town would be bonding its own project; members declined to waive it without documentation. Separately, the commission heard an hour of non-binding discussion on three routes to reach a ball field once the fire station eliminates existing parking, all crossing wetland or Blanding's turtle habitat; one member called a DPW-opposed route "the superior solution" from a conservation standpoint. The board also approved a 25-foot buffer zone waiver for a Great Pond Road boat launch gravel path by 4-1 votes and lifted two enforcement orders, at 85 Colonial Avenue and 197 Hickory Hill Road.

In the full story:

  • Approval of Minutes
  • Certificate of Compliance, 242-1886, Stevens Street Culvert
  • Modification Request, 242-1900, Great Pond Road Boat Launch
  • Small Project 383, 625 Boxford Street
  • Small Project 384, 286 Raleigh Tavern Lane
  • Request for Determination of Applicability, 197 Hickory Hill Road
  • Request for Determination of Applicability, 89 Bear Hill Road
  • Notice of Intent, 242-1930, Berry Street/Turnpike Street Fire Station
  • Enforcement Order, 449 Summer Street
  • Enforcement Orders, 85 Colonial Avenue and 197 Hickory Hill Road
  • Berry Street Alternative Field Analysis
  • Who Was There
  • Organizations And Documents Referenced
  • The complete report: 3,328 words

Source: the Conservation meeting of October 28, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.

Members read the rest of this story and every Essex County meeting we cover, in full.

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