A meeting of the Tamworth Planning Board on Wednesday, July 21st at the Kenneth A. Brett School on Route 113 will consider an application by Club Motorsports, Inc. (CMI) for a Special Use Permit under the town’s Wetlands Ordinance pertaining to the proposed high-speed track for cars and motorcycles on historic Mount Whittier. The ordinance governs projects that will affect the town’s wetlands.

In addition to considering the impact on the town, the Board expects to hear concerns about the potential impact on neighboring towns, including Ossipee and Freedom. New Hampshire state law RSA 36:56 guides the Board’s consideration of such impact based on criteria that include light, noise, aquifers, and surface waters.

According to Charles Greenhalgh, a spokesman of Focus: Tamworth, “It’s obvious that this project has the potential for regional impact. This hearing is an opportunity for all affected communities to bring their concerns to the Planning Board.”

The July 21st hearing is the last scheduled public meeting at which input on the project will be considered. In a separate assessment of the track, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is performing a “public interest review” in which written comments from the public will be accepted through August 13th on conservation, economics, aesthetics, fish and wildlife and water quality, among other criteria. The Corps will also conduct an analysis of whether the project conforms to Federal guidelines designed to avoid unnecessary filling of waters and wetlands.

A petition asking the Corps to conduct a public hearing on the matter has been signed by 559 residents of Tamworth and towns from Conway to Wolfeboro, according to Greenhalgh. Among the signatories are the presidents of the Silver Lake Association and Chocorua Lake Association. The Corps says it will not make a final decision about a hearing until after the public comment period ends on August 13th.

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