Bellingham Conservation Commission Denies Two Waivers in 29-Unit Townhouse Review

BELLINGHAM -- July 23, 2025, Bellingham Conservation Commission denied two developer waiver requests and approved a third in the lengthy review of a proposed 29-unit townhouse development on Lake Street and Prospect Street. The commission voted 5-1 to deny a waiver that would have exempted Wall Street Development Corporation from identifying and mapping trees 10 inches in diameter or greater within the commission's jurisdiction, and voted unanimously to deny a second waiver covering cut-and-fill volume calculations, requiring the applicant's engineer to supply approximate figures before construction. The commission did approve a waiver allowing the fill of approximately 18,000 square feet of marginal isolated wetland, well above the bylaw's 5,000-square-foot threshold, conditioned on replication at a 2-to-1 ratio totaling roughly 37,000 square feet and a separate three-year restoration bond held by the commission. The commission also swore in Nicole, a certified arborist and environmental scientist, filling the seat of longtime vice chair Neil Stanley, who retired after approximately 25 years of service, and she agreed to conduct a same-day-after site visit on a separate residential tree-removal case at 79 White Hall Way, which received a unanimous negative determination allowing work to proceed. Members also agreed to draft a comment letter, due July 29, opposing a state environmental bill they said would allow priority housing projects to bypass local conservation commission review entirely.