Hanson Conservation Commission Votes to Hire Wetland Scientist Over Disputed Tavern Way Fill

HANSON — May 18, 2026 — Hanson Conservation Commission votes to hire independent wetland scientist to investigate disputed Tavern Way fill. The commission voted unanimously Monday to authorize Conservation Agent Frank Skellinger to contract with a third-party wetland scientist to re-delineate wetlands adjacent to a private access driveway at 72 Tavern Way, after at least three neighbors told the board that property owner Kevin Perkins had filled a historically marshy corridor with truckloads of soil before obtaining a building permit. Two competing delineations — a January 2023 plan by wetland scientist Brooke Monroe, commissioned by Perkins, showing no wetlands along the driveway; and an April 2023 plan by John Zimmer of South River Environmental, done for the neighboring Pritchard property, showing wetland flags to the property line — left commission members saying they had "two incompatible sets of data." Chair Thomas F. Rowe said enforcement decisions must not be shaped by speculation about how a property owner might respond: "How Mr. Perkins or any other property owner responds to our efforts should not dictate how vigorously we enforce the Wetlands Protection Act." The commission also voted 4-0 to ratify an enforcement order against a Milton property owner dumping debris at 159 Lakeside Road, and voted unanimously to send a letter opposing provisions of the state environmental bond bill that would exempt certain housing projects from local wetland bylaws.