Effingham Gas Station Case: News Stories

SQ_Plan w:Lines

Judge Hears Effingham Gas Station Case

Zoning Board attorney says the board’s process wasn’t perfect, but was “legally sufficient.”

Read More

images

Effingham Gas Station Appeals Likely to be Heard in July

A Superior Court judge will consolidate two separate appeals if the attorneys agree.

Read More

Diesel Square

Abutters Sue Effingham Over Proposed Gas Station

A Scheduling Conference will be held on May 3 at 10 a.m. at Hillsborough County Superior Court North.

Read More

Constr_Square

Gas Station Case Reveals Environmental Loophole

The soil transfer that took place on Leavitt Bay would not be permitted in neighboring states.

Read More

download

Effingham Removes Fire Chief from Groundwater Protection Role

Planning Board members will now have the final word on Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure Plans.

Read More

Constr_Square

Search Ends for Letter in Effingham Case

Town says it cannot find the letter that Select Board member Chris Seamans referred to at a ZBA appeal hearing last month. 

Read More

download

ZBA Decision Appealed in Effingham Gas Station Case

Appellants say the board’s January 3 hearing was “replete with deficiencies.”

Read More

Source: Town of Effingham

Effingham Board Approves Controversial Ordinance Changes

Critics say the rewrites are regressive and will create an environmental loophole.

Read More

Hazardous

Zoning Change Would Nix Conservation Commission Reviews

The Fire Chief is not the only one that Effingham’s Planning Board wants to eliminate from required reviews of plans to handle and store hazardous materials.

Read More

download

Effingham Sets Hearing on Limiting Fire Chief’s Role

The Planning Board wants the Chief removed from zoning’s chain of oversight in regulating potentially hazardous substances.

Read More

Gas Pumps

Document Sought in Effingham Gas Station Case

A letter is said to explain why the town withdrew a zoning enforcement action against Meena’s convenience store last year.

Read More

Seamans SQ

Effingham ZBA Denies Appeal in Gas Station Case

The attorney for the abutters says the next step would be to file for reconsideration at the ZBA.

Read More

Water

The Year in Review 2023

A major environmental case grinds on.

Read More

EDITORIAL

The Curious Case of Item 12

Effingham is having a “Rashomon” moment.

Read More

Effingham's Planning Board at work.

ZBA Pushes Gas Station Appeal to January

Error in notifying neighboring towns is cited.

Read More

EPB SQ

Effingham Planners Say Gas Station Conditions Have Been Met

Members of the public say the discussion isn’t finished.

Read More

Campground Square

Gas Station Soil Went to Lake Campground

Transfer appears to have been permissible under state law.

Read More

Meena_Construction_Square

Convenience Store Part of Effingham ZBA Appeal

Abutters say the former Boyle’s Market store lost its grandfathered status after Meena kept it closed for more than two years.

Read More

download

Effingham Board’s “Findings of Fact” Questioned

An independent review of the document used to approve the Meena LLC gas station raises questions.

Read More

Bob SQ_jpg

New Conservation Group Sponsoring Newton Presentation

“OWL” is advancing the water protection debate and advocating for the homeowners behind the legal appeals in the Effingham gas station case.

Read More

2023-10-27_09-15-07

Effingham Gas Station Hearing Continued

December 6 is the new date, allowing time to notify Lakes Region Planning Commission and the nine additional towns affected by the development.

Read More

SQ_Plan w:Lines

Effingham ZBA to Hear Gas Station Appeal

October 25 hearing will focus on claims the Planning Board violated the zoning ordinance when it granted conditional approval in July.

Read More

SQ_Plan w:Lines

New Appeal Filed in Gas Station Case

Abutters say Effingham’s Planning Board violated the zoning ordinance when it conditionally approved the controversial development.

Read More

images

Abutters Appeal Effingham Gas Station Decision

“The Planning Board appears to have erroneously believed that because Meena received a variance for a gas station…approving the site plan application was inevitable, regardless of environmental concerns.”

Read More

Diesel

Former Chair Says Select Board Authorized Gas Station Construction

Michael Cahalane tells Effingham’s Planning Board there was a “consensus” to allow the work to proceed without an approved site plan.

Read More

download

Effingham Board to Discuss Gas Station Legal Expenses

A public hearing will take place on Monday, August 7, to address issues raised in the wake of the board’s conditional approval of the development.

Read More

Constr_Square

Planning Board Document Revives Gas Station Construction Issue

Effingham’s Select Board says there is “nothing to substantiate” one of the items in the Planning Board’s “Findings of Fact” that was used as the basis of its July 11 gas station decision.

Read More

Diesel Square

Effingham Releases List of Gas Station Conditions

Addressing the location of the diesel pump and making changes in the design of the bioretention basin are among tasks that must be completed before a final sign-off.

Read More

EPB SQ

Controversial Effingham Gas Station Approved

Conditions that will be attached to the approval have not been made public.

Read More

SQ Aquifer at Boyles

Additional Views on Gas Station Now On View

Newly released to the public, letters asking Effingham to deny the Meena gas station application come from an array of people and organizations.

Read More

ALS/LIDAR technology graphically illuminates the extent to which the proposed gas stationsite was mined for gravel, making it hyper-vulnerable to contamination. Photo: Robert Newton

Former Effingham ZBA Member Opposes Gas Station

Calls Meena LLC “arrogant” in its attitude toward scientific concerns.

Read More

Garg+Johnson

Meena Poised for Decision on Gas Station In July

Planning Board members seem to agree that conditions would need to be met before they would sign off on the plan.

Read More

Milling

Abutters Lobby Against Gas Station

“This affects you, it affects me, and this affects the future the water in this town,” said teenager Stella Lunt, who lives nearby.

Read More

EDITORIAL

Editorial: The Value of Public Input

Effingham’s June 13 hearing revealed what the Planning Board has been missing for the past two years.

Read More

100_0070_full

Meena Gas Station Hearing Continued to June 13

“We can’t just arbitrarily decide that we think this is a bad idea and refuse it,” said Effingham Planning Board Chair George Bull.

Read More

Constr_Square

All Eyes on Effingham Board

The board has a legal responsibility to protect the public by making a reasonable and lawful decision based on facts—all of the facts.

Read More

Gas Station Drainage

Meena Gas Station Plan Is Not Approvable, Newton Says

After his credibility is questioned, the geoscientist identifies four critical ways in which the plan fails to protect the public’s health, safety and welfare.

Read More

Bob+Biron Square

Meena Presents its Gas Station Plan

The developer calls it the “best” plan. Critics promise a rebuttal.

Read More

EPG Square_Low Turnout

Questions Raised About New Planning Board Members

Nate Williams and Michael Cahalane, whose votes on the ZBA helped Meena LLC obtain a zoning variance for a gas station, will now deliberate the company’s Site Plan Application on the Planning Board.

Read More

Town Halll Storage

Neighboring Towns in the Dark About Gas Station Proposal

Days away from a hearing, there is still no unified Site Plan Application for Meena’s Development of Regional Impact.

Read More

EPB SQ

Special Meena Hearing Set as Application Confusion Continues

Impact of zoning officer’s ruling remains one of a number of unknowns.

Read More

SQ Aquifer at Boyles

Effingham Board Faces Array of Meena Gas Station Issues

Planning Board Chair George Bull calls for a retraction of a ruling by the zoning officer, while a board source says Meena may have submitted materials directly to the independent advisor.

Read More

download

Former Boyle’s Market Loses Protected Status Under Meena Ownership

The Conway developer’s decision to close the convenience store after buying it more than two years ago has voided its legal status as a protected non-conforming use.

Read More

Constr_Square

Focus on State Permits Hobbled Meena’s Gas Station Goal

Newly released public documents show the company’s failure to consider zoning regulations led to a series of missteps that stalled their plan.

Read More

download

Effingham Planning Board Member Declines to be Seated

Newly elected Victoria Garceau has bowed-out, according to the Conway Daily Sun.

Read More

Leona _ SQ

She Wanted Officials to Know Her Story

Ossipee resident Leona Simon’s opposition to the Effingham gas station proposal was based on personal experience.

Read More

StellaCropped

A Teen’s Environmental Education

High school student Stella Lunt of Ossipee is learning a lot from the Meena gas station case.

Read More

Aug22_Deadline

Months After Deadline, Meena Submits New Gas Station Documents

Whether Effingham’s Planning Board will accept the material is unclear, given its September cut-off date and a court-ordered stay of the proceedings.

Read More

download

Key Official in Gas Station Case Stepping Down

Effingham’s Planning Board will have new leadership when it resumes consideration of the controversial gas station plan.

Read More

Meena Pic

Court Dismisses Appeal of Planning Board Decision

The ruling comes as officials in neighboring towns say they want the additional environmental assurances a Special Use Permit would require.

Read More

CarLeak

Spotlight Returns to Effingham Board Next Week

The ZBA on February 1 will continue deliberating whether a Planning Board decision in the Meena case violated the Zoning Ordinance.

Read More

EDITORIAL

A Matter of Fairness

An Effingham Planning Board decision inequitably favors a Conway developer and deprives the board and the community of required environmental information.

Read More

Gas Pumps

ZBA Defers Decision on Gas Station Permit

Discussion will continue on February 1.

Read More

An 12/21/21 Site Plan Application illustration designed by Jacob and Mark McConkey shows the location of the Public Water Supply Well without specifying the distance between it and the USTs. A recent revision by another designer omits the well.

Effingham Gas Station Proposal Remains on Hold

Appeals of the Planning Board’s decision regarding the need for a Special Use Permit are pending with the ZBA and Superior Court.

Read More

Gas Pumps

Another Appeal Filed in Gas Station Case

Meena LLC’s need for a Special Use Permit is once again the focus.

Read More

Effingham GPO

Effingham Has a Groundwater Protection Ordinance for Moments Like This

Gas station technology has improved, but that doesn’t change anything about the original basis for the ordinance.

Read More

landscape-2

Water Seeps Into November’s Election

Concerns about protecting drinking water are rising, and local candidates have taken notice.

Read More

Empty Seats

Focus Switches to Court in Gas Station Case

Hearing is continued as Effingham’s Planning Board is told to file a certified record of the case’s proceedings in response to a lawsuit.

Read More

SQ Aquifer at Boyles

Court Halts Planners’ Gas Station Review

Effingham Planning Board is told to provide the court with a certified record of the proceedings.

Read More

Picture1

Low Marks for Latest Gas Station Plan as Judge Pauses Review

An August decision about a Special Use Permit is now in court.

Read More

BOB2

Geologist Critiques Proposed Effingham Gas Station

“It (spilled gas) is going to end up here,” said Newton, pointing to Ossipee Lake at Thursday night’s public presentation.

Read More

Bob

The Story Meena Doesn’t Want You to Hear

It’s not clear whether Dr. Robert Newton will be allowed to present his research on the proposed gas station site at next week’s Effingham Planning Board hearing, but he will be at Runnells Hall, and on Zoom, this Thursday night to speak and answer questions.

Read More

GasHose

Effingham Select Board Defers Action on Meena Issues

Ossipee and Effingham petitioners want to know if their water is safe to drink.

Read More

SQ Aquifer at Boyles

State Says No to Key Part of Gas Station Plan

Meena LLC cannot use DOT’s abutting property to meet its regulatory requirements for gas station runoff.

Read More

Hearing

Frustration and Confusion at Effingham Gas Station Hearing

More than 100 people who were prepared to have a discussion see red after public comment is barred and the proceeding is postponed until October.

Read More

EDITORIAL

It’s Time To Say No

Effingham’s Planning Board should deny Meena LLC’s Development of Regional Impact application when it meets on Monday night.

Read More

Snippet

Meena Digs In Ahead of Monday’s Gas Station Hearing

In a late Friday letter to the Planning Board, the company’s attorney said Ossipee Aquifer expert Dr. Bob Newton should not be allowed to speak, and a petition calling for a more complete independent technical review of the plan “has no bearing on the application.”

Read More

Required buffer for the DOT wetlands is shown in orange. Source: Dr. Robert Newton

Meena’s Use of State Land Questioned

In advance of a special August 22 hearing in Effingham, two State Representatives last week asked the Department of Transportation to deny the use of State property for gas station runoff.

Read More

Screen grab from a video produced in June by the Alliance and Green Mountain Conservation Group shows the proposed gas station location relative to the lake.

Gas Station Opposition Grows as Hearing is Set

“The Ossipee Aquifer can’t move. A gas station can be sited in a different place,” says the head of national non-profit American Groundwater Trust.

Read More

placeholder

Gas Station Hearing Continued to August 22

An expected outcome at a sparsely attended meeting.

Read More

An 12/21/21 Site Plan Application illustration designed by Jacob and Mark McConkey shows the location of the Public Water Supply Well without specifying the distance between it and the USTs. A recent revision by another designer omits the well.

North Point Report Spotlights Public Well Issue

Gas station opponents say Meena LLC cannot meet the requirements of an important environmental regulation.

Read More

North Point's report said it is "not evident" how Meena's proposed stormwater plan will meet  industry standard "primary treatment" standards. Illustration: Horizons Engineering

Technical Review Finds More Flaws in Gas Station Plan

As some previous issues are addressed, further complications arise.

Read More

EPB Square

New Information Scuttles Effingham Gas Station Hearing

Conservation groups scrambled to spread the word after the Planning Board Chair said members needed time to review an independent professional evaluation of Meena’s newly submitted materials.

Read More

Meena_Construction_Square

Key Questions As Meena Review Continues

An unresolved waiver request, the need for a Special Use Permit, and a nine-town petition are likely to be on the agenda when the Effingham gas station hearings reconvene on Thursday, July 7.

Read More

Petition Signatures Picture

Petition Seeks More Detailed Gas Station Review

More than 500 people from nine towns say they want Effingham’s planners to obtain a full, not partial, independent review of the Meena LLC gas station Site Plan Application.

Read More

landscape-2

Video Puts Drinking Water at Center of Lake’s Future

It may not be as visible as our gorgeous surroundings, but clean drinking water is critical to our way of life and our tourism economy. A new video explains.

Read More

Gas Pumps

Meena Abutters Want Wells Tested

Demands that the company be held accountable are rooted in fear that last year’s illegal excavation might have caused naphthalene and other petroleum contaminants to migrate to the groundwater.

Read More

Boyles_Bob's Map_Square

Judge Upholds Effingham Gas Station Variance

The town’s Planning Board will now determine whether the controversial “Development of Regional Impact” is a threat to the public’s health, safety and welfare.

Read More

GasHose

Meena Attorney Disputes Key Recommendation of Independent Panel

Meena LLC has a variance to build a gas station but needs a Special Use Permit to operate it, according to Concord-based Northpoint Engineering. Meena’s attorney says that’s “legally incorrect.”

Read More

Ossipee Seal

Ossipee’s Puzzling Position

Ossipee’s endorsement of an Effingham gas station struck some as an outlier decision, but it’s part of a years-long pattern.

Read More

ALS/LIDAR technology graphically illuminates the extent to which the proposed gas stationsite was mined for gravel, making it hyper-vulnerable to contamination. Photo: Robert Newton

Meena To Address Site Plan Issues, Fight Special Use Permit

Effingham’s Planning Board has continued the gas station hearing to July 7 as attorneys for the applicant and abutters debate Northpoint Engineering’s conclusion that a Special Use Permit is required.

Read More

Northpoint Logo

Independent Evaluation Underscores Issues With Gas Station’s Site Plan

Concord-based Northpoint Engineering’s findings are consistent with local assessments that the Meena LLC site plan is insufficient, and that an Environmental Impact Analysis is needed.

Read More

Boyles_Bob's Map_Square

Ossipee Endorses Effingham Gas Station

The surprise decision to support a commercial business in a neighboring town has abutters angry and others wondering why.

Read More

EPB Mtg_040722_Square

Gas Station Plan Will Receive Third-Party Review

Acting on a recommendation by Lakes Region Planning Commission, Effingham’s Planning Board will have the Meena LLC site plan application vetted by a professional engineering firm before hearings continue.

Read More

placeholder

Freedom Joins Effingham Gas Station Debate

Citing concerns about water quality, town officials plan to argue the Meena LLC site plan application should not be approved.

Read More

Meena_Construction_Square

Different Gas Stations, Different Risks

New and improved equipment and DES tank permits are only half of the story. It’s the other half that Effingham officials need to address.

Read More

Gas Pumps

Tamworth Board Opposes Effingham Gas Station

Exercising their recently-granted abutter status, Tamworth joins a growing number of towns expressing concerns about the proposed development’s environmental impact.

Read More

ALS/LIDAR technology graphically illuminates the extent to which the proposed gas station site was mined for gravel, making it hyper-vulnerable to contamination. Photo: Robert Newton

Effingham Gas Station on Freedom Select Board’s Monday Agenda

Anticipating a crowd, the 7 p.m. meeting will be held at Town Hall.

Read More

DRI_Square

Gas Station Impact Spans Ten Towns

Freedom, Ossipee, Tamworth and Madison are among the communities receiving notice that the Effingham gas station proposal is a “Development of Regional Impact.”

Read More

Meena_Construction_Square

Board: Gas Station Could Have Regional Impact

The Conway Daily Sun’s reporting on last week’s Effingham Planning Board hearing.

Read More

Gas Pumps

Effingham Gas Station Has Potential Regional Impact

Planning Board votes 5-2 to invite neighboring communities and the Lakes Region Planning Commission to help deliberate the controversial development.

Read More

RSAs

Gas Station Hearing Continues on Thursday

Regional impact and a recusal request are likely to be on the agenda.

Read More

Sun Cover 021522

Gas Station Pumps Up Concerns

Attorneys faced-off Friday in an initial court hearing on the proposed gas station on the Effingham-Ossipee border.

Read More

Shows Leavitt Bay

Effingham Gas Station Proposal Prompts Regional Concern

The reaction to Professor Bob Newton’s video shows the public understands towns must look beyond their borders to ensure the protection of their community’s drinking water.

Read More

Meena_Construction_Square

Gas Station Site Plan Will Move to Hearing Stage

A vote by the Effingham Planning Board to accept the application as complete means public debate will start on February 24.

Read More

ALS/LIDAR technology graphically illuminates the extent to which the proposed gas station site was mined for gravel, making it hyper-vulnerable to contamination. Photo: Robert Newton

“Worst Possible Location” for a Gas Station

Noted geoscientist says pumping gas at the site of a former gravel pit in Effingham could threaten the wells of dozens of Ossipee property owners.

Read More

Boyles_Bob's Map_Square

New Date Set for Gas Station Review

After three postponements, the Effingham Planning Board is scheduled to review Meena LLC’s site plan application on February 3.

Read More

BB Scene_Dec 2021

A Resolution Made

Some New Year’s resolutions are made to be broken. Here’s one we plan to keep.

Read More

Meena_Construction_Square

What’s the Big Deal About the Effingham Gas Station?

It’s a question we hear every day. This is what we think, and why we believe you should be concerned.

Read More

Boyles_Bob's Map_Square

Effingham Board to Review Gas Station Site Plan

Meanwhile, opponents have filed an appeal with State Superior Court.

Read More

Location of proposed gas, center, is on the Ossipee-Effingham border, and adjacent to Phillips Brook (in blue), which empties into Leavitt Bay.

Two Meetings, Two Competing Agendas in Gas Station Application

Two days before Effingham’s Planning Board is scheduled to conduct a site plan review of the proposal to convert Boyle’s Market into a gas station, the ZBA will consider an appeal to reverse its approval of the project and re-hear the application.

Read More

Boyles_Bob's Map_Square

Group Asks Select Board to Intervene in Gas Station Case

Local residents want Effingham’s Select Board to determine whether the ZBA erred when it approved a variance to pump gas at Boyle’s Market.

Read More

ZBA

Effingham Board Grants Variance for Gas Station

On a 4-1 vote, the ZBA last week granted relief to a Conway businessman for his proposal to pump gas at Boyle’s Market, which is in the Groundwater Protection District.

Read More

Boyle's Square

Is Protecting Our Drinking Water Still Important?

As Effingham’s ZBA prepares to address that question, we offer our opinion.

Read More

ZBA

Effingham Gas Station Deliberations Continued to Next Week

Tuesday’s ZBA meeting didn’t produce a decision on the controversial project, but it did answer a number of outstanding questions.

Read More

Boyle's Square

Effingham Board Hears Objections to Proposed Gas Station

Boyle’s Market on Route 25 closed its gas station six years ago. A new owner wants to start pumping again and has already installed the tanks.

Read More