Douglas Conservation Commission continues 48 Shady Lane hearing over flood-zone setback questions

DOUGLAS — February 2, 2026 — Douglas Conservation Commission continues 48 Shady Lane wetlands case over unresolved flood-zone setback dispute. At the February 2 meeting, the commission's environmental consultant told the four-member board — Brennan Doyle, Kate Rowland, Mike Greco, and Jim Foran — that revised plans submitted by engineer Mark Allen on behalf of applicants Douglas and Linda Ward had not addressed whether the proposed home's location complies with the town's wetlands bylaw, which requires setbacks to be measured from the Flood Zone A boundary rather than from the pond bank, potentially placing the structure within the 50-foot no-build zone. The commission directed Allen to add Zone A buffer zones to a new site plan and submit revised drawings at least one week before the March 2 continuation. Abutter Dan Haney, 44 Shady Lane, told the commission the lot would still lose roughly 90 percent of its tree cover, including 18- to 24-inch oaks. In a formal statement, applicant Douglas Ward requested that the commission apply the same standard used for prior filings at 278 and 284 Northwest Main Street and consult town counsel on any legal questions. The commission also voted 4-0 to issue a certificate of compliance on a 2008 Douglas Highway Department emergency clearing project at 15 West Street, the last active item in that decades-old file.