Hadley Conservation Commission Defers Parking and Solar Cases to April 14

HADLEY -- March 10, 2026, Hadley Conservation Commission defers two contested projects to April amid wetland buffer disputes. The commission continued both Notice of Intent 170-312, a proposal to add 14 parking spaces at the F45 fitness complex at 207 Russell Street, and Notice of Intent 170-313, a nearly 500-kilowatt agrivoltaic solar array on Gordon Cook's farm at South Maple Street, to its April 14 meeting pending site visits. Chris Baker of Berkshire Design Group acknowledged the Russell Street retaining wall sits roughly two inches from the 35-foot wetland buffer, and commissioners raised unresolved questions about snow storage and prior order-of-conditions requirements. The Cook Farm solar discussion turned on whether Hadley's solar bylaw compels the Planning Board to require planted arborvitae screening within the no-disturb zone, a position the commission rejected, with one member warning that allowing work inside the 35-foot buffer "opens the gate" for future projects to follow suit. A site visit at Cook Farm is set for March 18 at 1 p.m. The commission also accepted the 2025 annual report and reviewed a proposed combined Land Use budget of $73,249.