Belchertown Board of Health orders North Street septic replacement, continues Granby Road appeal

Board of Health · Meeting of July 27, 2026

Belchertown Board of Health orders a five-bedroom septic replacement at 160 North Street and continues a contested Granby Road permit appeal to August. The board voted unanimously at its July 27 meeting to require a minimum five-bedroom replacement system design at 160 North Street within 90 days, after Title V contractor Roger Bacon reported that a 56-year-old failed system had been illegally modified by the current owner using a personal Kubota tractor without the required disposal system permits, and that the property near Montague Brook may contain at least five bedrooms and a potential accessory dwelling unit. In a separate public hearing, attorneys for property owners Nathan and Anna Evancic and town counsel Jeffrey Blake of KP Law sparred over whether 310 CMR 15.002 gives applicants an absolute right to override a presumptive four-bedroom septic count through a deed restriction — with the applicant's attorney citing Stevens v.

Sherborn Board of Health and town counsel countering with Vera v. Town of Lakeville — before the board continued the matter to August 25 to allow the owners to explore leaving the basement unfinished. The board also heard more than an hour of public comment from the DPW director, conservation administrator, recreation staff, and school superintendent on a draft pesticide and herbicide regulation modeled on South Hadley's bylaw, but took no vote on whether to proceed to a public hearing, directing the public health director to produce a revised draft.

In the full story:

• 59 Mill Valley Road Septic Variance
• Public Hearing: Granby Road Evancic Septic Permit Appeal
• 160 North Street Title V Violations
• Proposed Draft Regulation: Pesticide and Herbicide Use on Town Property
• Regular Business
• Who Was There
• The complete report — 3,113 words

Source: the Board of Health meeting of July 27, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.