VOL. III · NO. 18 · MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2026
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Home / Meetings /June 8, 2026
Planning Board · June 8, 2026

Planning Board

The board approved sign applications for 2 Merrimac St. and 77 Elm St., sent a positive recommendation with edits to the City Council on the Housing Production Plan (2026-086), and authorized Stantec peer reviews for 28 Haverhill Road and the as-built for 2 Merrimac St.

occurred Agenda PDF Minutes Video recording AI Summary
Key decisions
Approved the sign application for 2 Merrimac St. (Marker) as revised on 6/8/26.
Approved unanimously
Approved the sign application for iMarc at 77 Elm St. as revised.
Approved unanimously
Sent a positive recommendation to City Council on the Housing Production Plan (with amendments to the Amesbury Priority Housing Target Areas table on page 38 and any additional edits).
Approved unanimously
Accepted Stantec's peer review proposal for civil engineering, traffic, and environmental review and requested the applicant fund the contract for 28 Haverhill Road.
Approved unanimously
Authorized Stantec to review the as-built for 2 Merrimac Street.
Approved unanimously
AI SUMMARY · DRAWN FROM THE MINUTES

The Planning Board meeting addressed a mix of project-level approvals, peer-review selections, and policy recommendations. The Board approved revised sign applications for properties at 2 Merrimac Street and 77 Elm Street after Design Review Committee input. The Board also voted unanimously to send a positive recommendation to City Council on the Housing Production Plan (Resolution 2026-086), with amendments to the Amesbury Priority Housing Target Areas table and direction for staff to coordinate edits with MVPC.

On development reviews, the Board accepted Stantec's proposal for a peer review of civil, traffic, and environmental matters for the 28 Haverhill Road application and required the applicant to fund that contract. The Board also authorized Stantec to review the as-built for 2 Merrimac Street as part of project closeout and bond/easement considerations. Several hearings (including 8 Noel St., 84 Congress St., 29 Water St., 9 and 9RR Oakland St., Rocky Hill Development, and 29 Lake Attitash Rd.) were discussed with outstanding technical and design issues identified; several were continued for further information. Public comments included concerns from an abutter at 86 Congress St. about screening and stair placement for the 84 Congress St. project, and project representatives provided updates on remediation, Conservation Commission approvals, construction controls, and parking/payment-in-lieu discussions for other projects.

Generated by an LLM. Verify against the official record before quoting.

Points of interest

Planning board review and recommendation on the housing production plan
Planning board review and recommendation on the housing production plan
DEBATE
0:06:22–0:22:07 ▶ Watch
Discussion of the draft housing production plan prepared with regional planning staff, including questions about a projected population decrease, how the plan guides local policy, and statutory percentage targets for affordable housing; board members requested corrections to project lists on page 38 and voted to send a positive recommendation with those updates to the City Council.
ANR proposal to separate tidelands for river remediation and frontage verification
ANR proposal to separate tidelands for river remediation and frontage verification
PRESENTATION
0:22:13–0:36:48 ▶ Watch
Presentation by the applicant (utility company) proposing an ANR to split waterfront tidelands from the developed parcel for river remediation; staff and board questioned whether the mapped frontage reflected existing paved roadway versus historic/paper streets and continued the matter pending clarification and engineer/DPW review.
Technical review and public comment on accessory dwelling/site plan at Congress Street
Technical review and public comment on accessory dwelling/site plan at Congress Street
DEBATE
0:41:04–1:03:56 ▶ Watch
Detailed board review of a proposed accessory dwelling unit/site changes on a two-family property: members examined stairway setbacks, scale and elevations, parking layout and circulation, and landscape screening details; a nearby resident spoke about privacy concerns and the item was continued for revised site plans showing setbacks, screening details, and stair/elevation info.
Site plan and historic/floodplain review for six-unit waterfront renovation
Site plan and historic/floodplain review for six-unit waterfront renovation
PRESENTATION
1:08:30–1:47:19 ▶ Watch
Presentation of a waterfront renovation to create six residential units, with updates on conservation approval, design-review and historic-commission input, proposed flood-vent and louver changes, parking waiver/parking program use, construction staging on adjacent municipal land, and a request to coordinate an affordable-housing payment‑in‑lieu; the board asked staff to draft decision language and continued the hearings for final engineering/floodplain information.

Motions & votes

AI-generated summaries of each motion's substance — not the official record. Verify against the meeting minutes or video before quoting.

@ 0:02:58 · APPROVE
Approved unanimously
Approve the sign application for 2 Merrimac St. (Marker) as revised on 6/8/26.
MOVED · DAVID FRICK · SECONDED · KEITH RATNER
@ 0:05:30 · APPROVE
Approved unanimously
Approve the sign application for iMarc at 77 Elm St. as revised.
MOVED · KEITH RATNER · SECONDED · TOM SALEMI
@ 0:21:22 · APPROVE
Approved unanimously
Send a positive recommendation to City Council on the Housing Production Plan (Resolution to adopt Housing Production Plan 2024-2029) with amendments to the Amesbury Priority Housing Target Areas table on page 38 and any additional edits.
MOVED · TRACEY CHALIFOUR · SECONDED · DAVID FRICK
@ 0:38:57 · APPROVE
Approved unanimously
Accept Stantec's peer review proposal for civil engineering, traffic, and environmental review for 28 Haverhill Road and require the applicant to fund the contract.
MOVED · DAVID FRICK · SECONDED · KEITH RATNER
@ 1:58:29 · APPROVE
Approved unanimously
Authorize Stantec to review the as-built for 2 Merrimac Street.
MOVED · DAVID FRICK · SECONDED · JOEL NICE