Water Service Proposal

The water service connection is not a standalone project — it's enabling infrastructure for the Fire Training Facility, advancing without full environmental review.

What Is Proposed

The City of Nashua Department of Public Works (DPW) has applied to connect water service to the proposed Fire Training Facility within the Four Hills Landfill property. This involves:

  • Water main extension along Teak Drive
  • Connection to the facility site
  • Impacts to wetland buffers near Teak Drive

Why This Matters

It’s Not Just a Water Pipe

The water service connection is being presented as a standalone infrastructure project, but it is an enabling component of the larger Fire Training Facility. Without water service, the facility cannot operate. By advancing the water connection separately, the city can:

  • Avoid triggering comprehensive environmental review of the full project
  • Present each component as having minimal individual impact
  • Establish infrastructure that makes the facility’s construction a fait accompli

This piecemeal approach to permitting is a key concern raised by community advocates.

Parcels Affected

  • 25 Teak Drive — Map C-1320 and D-54, Lot 109 (Zone R-30, Ward 5)
  • 840 West Hollis Street — Map C-1320 and D-54, Lot 109 (Zone R-30, Ward 5)

The Pipe Size Issue

A critical detail that reveals bad planning from the start:

Original specification (Oct 2025): The city specified a 12-inch pipe and a flow requirement of 3,500+ GPM (gallons per minute) at the ZBA hearing — presented as firm requirements.

Already specified 8-inch (Nov 10, 2025): Just weeks later, George Stergion confirmed: “They’re laying 8” at Teak.” The city had already specified 8-inch pipe for the Teak Drive project — while having just told the ZBA they needed 12-inch.

Pennichuck revised to 10-inch: At the February 3, 2026 Conservation Commission meeting, Attorney Prolman admitted: “At first Pennichuck did say they thought they needed a 10” line.” This is a third specification — different from both the 12-inch claimed at ZBA and the 8-inch George confirmed in November.

Final specification — 8-inch (Feb 2026): Prolman presented a Pennichuck letter confirming the 8-inch line provides the necessary pressure. The specs were cut from 12” / 3,500 GPM down to 8” / 2,000 GPM — nearly in half.

The pipe size changed three times: 12” → 10” → 8”. The city told the ZBA one thing, Pennichuck said another, the city quietly specified a third, and then revised the paperwork months later to match what they had already planned.

The Permanent Cleared Corridor

The water line installation requires a 20-foot cleared corridor running approximately 1,200–1,300 feet through a residential neighborhood and wetland buffer. At the February 3, 2026 Conservation Commission meeting, Commissioner McCarthy asked why 20 feet is needed for one pipe. Brendan Quigley (Gove Environmental Services) clarified that the 20 feet is the full work area — the actual trench is “about one bucket wide.” The trench will be backfilled with low-growth shrubbery, with “periodic cutting to prevent tree root interference.”

So 20 feet of trees must be cleared for a trench one bucket wide — and no trees can ever be replanted:

“They’re not letting that regrowth. They said that they cannot let that regrow back because they want to make sure that it’s clear for them to maintain the pipes.” — Resident testimony, ZBA Hearing — Nov 25, 2025 [52:34]

The revised plan reduced wetland impacts to 195 sq ft temporary wetland + 4,727 sq ft buffer (down from 2,545 + 9,533 in the original application) — but 100+ mature trees are still eliminated (no official tree count done — Quigley confirmed at CC Feb 3: “We haven’t done any additional tree counts”). Residents warned the cleared corridor would easily become a road: “It’s just a water line 20 ft. It’s easy just to increase that and put a road.” — John Collins, ZBA Nov 25 [1:13:41]

The Underground Alternative Exists

A Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) alternative was formally submitted to the Conservation Commission in February 2026. The route is 800–850 feet underground (vs. 1,200–1,300 feet on the surface), removes zero trees, has zero wetland impact, and costs the same per linear foot. The contractor — Henniker Directional Drilling — is the same company the city used to drill a pump force main under the Nashua River.

Residents offered a compromise: HDD for just the first 500 feet (past the visible trees — after that, virtually no trees to remove). Same price per foot either way. The Conservation Commission dismissed it. See The Cleared Corridor for the full story.

Where It Appears in the Record

  • Conservation Commission voted 6-0 to approve the conventional plan on February 3, 2026, with conditions (pollinator mix, native shrubs, 12,000 ft easement, limit cut impact)
  • Attorney Prolman claimed the road concern is “inaccurate and somewhat mis-leading” — while the Finance Committee CIP includes “emergency vehicle-only access connection to Teak Drive” in a separate budget line
  • Commissioner Sarno’s vote was contingent on a conservation easement around the vernal pool — Prolman admitted it has not been drafted yet
  • After the vote, the commission discussed re-visiting horizontal drilling

What Needs to Happen

  1. Review the full project, not just the water connection in isolation
  2. Require comprehensive environmental review that considers the water service as part of the Fire Training Facility
  3. Explain the GPM revision publicly — why did requirements change so dramatically?
  4. Evaluate the Ridge Road alternative where infrastructure questions have already been answered
  5. Seriously evaluate the HDD alternative — same cost, zero trees removed, zero wetland impact
  6. Acknowledge the corridor is permanent — stop describing it as a temporary construction impact

Source Documents