Negotiations Still On-Going on Griffin Road Land Purchase

Although a decision was hoped to be reached in the case of purchasing property on Griffin Road during a public hearing at the Town Council meeting on Monday night, there was still no final decision made and councilors were tight lipped on what they could discuss to the public without speaking to their lawyer first.

The Conversation Committee chair Marge Badois was hoping to get clarification on the information that she was unaware of. The council, however, was not at liberty to discuss this information with her while negotiations between the town and the landowner’s lawyers were still taking place.

Residents of Lantern Lane also hoped to get clarification on what information has not been released to the Conservation Committee or the public.

A resident of Lantern Lane came forward to ask if there had been a purchase of one of the two lots of land for $212,000 shortly after the first initial meeting of the possible purchase, but the council declined to comment on whether or not this was true.

“I would suggest that we are in an active negotiation and that we should let that run its course,” was the response given by Vice-Chairman John Farrell.   

It was also asked whether there had been an issue with the appraisal of the land and if that was the reason behind the delay.

The town council, again gave no direct answers to the questions presented, but they hope to get the information cleared up by their next meeting which is scheduled for next Monday on Feb. 12.

Whether or not the council received the information they were looking for prior to tonight’s meeting was not discussed and rather was moved to have another public hearing at their next meeting.

The hope by the Conservation Commission and a number of abutters is that the town of Londonderry purchases the property to prevent its development by the current owner.

If the deal ultimately goes through, and the town does choose to purchase it, then it will most likely be handed to the Conservation Committee to manage the area and possibly use it for tree farming in the future.