Effingham—October 29, 2025—The NH Department of Transportation (DOT) says Conway developer Meena LLC encroached on State land during the construction of a gas station at the former Boyle’s Market in Effingham. The work also appears to violate Effingham’s wetlands ordinance.

Dana Lacasse, Assistant District Engineer of NHDOT District 3, confirmed the encroachment onto State land. Lacasse sent a survey crew to the site in response to pictures submitted by members of the public.

The pictures showed mounds of construction debris pushed onto the DOT property, piercing the town’s 25 ft. protective wetlands buffer. The mounds were subsequently leveled, and the State property was re-contoured by the developer.

Pictures of the site also show the property was recently clear-cut, including the wetlands.

The triangular-shaped property, technically a “Controlled Access Right-of-Way,” is between Meena’s property and Route 25. It contains wetlands and is a “ditchline” for highway runoff. The property drains into Phillips Brook, which empties into Ossipee Lake.

Section 1604 of the town ordinance requires a 25 ft. protective buffer for wetlands, and a 150 ft. protective buffer for “Exemplary Wetlands.” Both types are found on the DOT property.

Section 1607 of the ordinance requires a Special Use Permit for “activities that alter or remove soils or vegetation including, but not necessarily limited to, land clearing…” The developer did not obtain a permit.

Lacasse said the developer will be “required to restore the right of way,” but declined to say what the restoration will entail.

“The disturbance in the right of way is now a matter between the State and the abutting property owner,” Lacasse said.

“DOT remains neutral to developments on private property so long as they do not impact traffic or the state infrastructure in an adverse way,” Lacasse added.

The DOT property became a contentious part the gas station debate after the developer proposed funneling untreated runoff onto the property. Critics said the runoff would likely enter the groundwater through a natural basin at the foot of the property.

That plan was scrapped and replaced by one in which runoff would have been treated with equipment located on DOT’s property. The developer did not have DOT’s approval, and letters of opposition from a State Senator and two State Representatives helped scuttle the idea.

Effingham’s Planning Board ultimately approved a plan for a lined bioretention basin to treat the runoff. The Planning Board made installation of the lined basin a condition of its site plan approval.

The encroachment onto State property was first reported to Effingham’s Select Board on September 30. A member of the public pointed to the construction and asked how the board was monitoring it for compliance with conditions the Planning Board attached to its site plan approval as extra measures of environmental protection.

The conditions, which are incremental to DES regulations, include, among other things, maintaining diesel fuel pump setbacks and installing the lined bioretention basin.

Responsibility for enforcing Planning Board conditions defaults to the Select Board in towns like Effingham where there is no Building Inspector or Code Enforcement Officer. The Select Board can appoint an individual or a specific entity for the task.

Earlier this month the Select Board considered, but ruled out, hiring North Point Engineering to review the developer’s compliance. The board said it could not bill the developer for the cost, so it “would not be spending any more town money” on the issue.

Town officials declined several recent additional requests to comment on the town’s compliance plans. Meena LLC agent Jim Doucette did not respond to an emailed request to comment for this story.