Hampden Planning Board Endorses Revised Land Trust Parcel for Mount Vision Parking

HAMPDEN -- January 28, 2026, Hampden Planning Board unanimously endorses revised land trust lot tied to Mount Vision parking access. The board voted to approve an Approval Not Required plan for Minchaud Land Trust, plans dated October 14, 2025, clearing the way for the town to acquire a substandard-frontage parcel on North Road; a prior parcel was dropped after engineering work found vegetated wetlands blocking the planned driveway, a process that consumed roughly two years. The board also held a pre-application conversation with Roxanne, owner of Eagle Gardens child care, who said she wants to open a school-age before-and-after program for up to 20 children at the former Mercury Swim Institute property on Allen Street, with Hampden and East Longmeadow schools as proposed bus stop partners. Board members said the use would require a special permit and site plan approval and urged her to consult the building department first. One member raised the possibility of reviewing zoning bylaws to propose warrant articles preserving local authority, though no action was taken.