Littleton Planning Board Approves Northern Bank Site Plan After Lengthy Peer Review Dispute

LITTLETON — February 2, 2023 — Littleton Planning Board unanimously approved the Northern Bank mixed-use site plan after resolving a dispute over peer review documentation and adopted a package of conditions including a pre-demolition construction management plan. Board member Anna raised concerns that the comment-response sheet used to close out the review bore Town Planner Maren Tuhil's initials rather than those of outside consultants Green International and UTIL, calling the format "highly irregular" in her five years on the board; the chair and members Bartlett and Delisa said they trusted Tuhil's assurances that all consultant comments were resolved. Attorney Mark Vaughn, representing Northern Bank, agreed to remove advisory language on construction vehicle parking in favor of a condition requiring a full construction management plan before any demolition permit is issued, and committed to working with Littleton Electric Light and Water on EV charging station installation. The board also heard compliance modeling from RKG Associates showing that no single station-area district reaches the state's 750-unit MBTA Communities minimum, and that including King Street Common — which models at roughly 20 dwelling units per acre — is essential to blending up to the required 15-unit-per-acre gross density threshold while keeping station-area parcels at a lower-density missing middle scale.