After more than an hour of discussion, the Con Comm put forward a motion to deny the proposed plan for Lot 1 (which is the area to the left of the existing house as you face the site). They cited several bases for this decision, including: a) the developer's lack of exploration of reasonable alternatives to the proposed house's level of intrusion into the buffer zone; and b) a desire to save the 17-inch (trunk size) wide sycamore tree that sits perhaps 70’ from the shore and would have to be cut down if Seaver's proposed house on this site was built. All commissioners were in support of this denial.

The Con Comm also put forward a motion to approve the proposal for Lot 2 (i.e., to build a house, more or less, on the site of the existing house and impervious area, with a variety of mitigations to manage water runoff, etc.). This proposed house will extend back in the lot to about a 90’ distance from the pond, which means it extends into the 100' buffer zone by about 10 feet. Again, all commissioners were in support of this motion.

The Con Comm will create some draft text on the above and formalize the decision at their next meeting.

Town attorney Doug Heim was present for the proceedings.

There is good reason to believe that, without the high level of public protest and involvement in this matter over the last many weeks, Seaver's 2-house proposal could well have been approved. The settlement had been signed off by all CC members and by fighting this we gave the Conservation Commission strong reasons to back off of the settlement and reject the most problematic parts. We should be proud of the impact of our advocacy and for the future of Spy Pond, Mystic Lake and our other wetlands. Developers are watching this case, and this outcome will help set a precedent for protecting Spy Pond from future over-development.

Thank you again to everyone for your time, your interest and participation in this matter.

Finally, we are still in need of funds for the legal costs. If you are able to contribute in this way, please do so at https://www.gofundme.com/protect-spy-pond Thank you again.