The Open Space Preservation Commission at its meeting Thursday night heard information regarding a potential donation of open space on Frankland Road to the town, but it voted unanimously to continue the discussion to its March meeting.

Matt Accardi, a project developer at Agilitas Energy, said the company recently has completed construction of a solar photovoltaic array at 69 Frankland Road. In order to obtain a special permit, Agilitas agreed to set aside a portion of the property for use as open space by a nonprofit town entity.

He asked the OSPC to consider approving the donation of a 39.51-acre parcel as a “fee title to the town.” A fee title means that the ownership of the property would be transferred without limitations or restrictions such as liens, charges or security interests. It also would include any easements connected with the property.

This parcel was created in September 2024 when Agilitas filed an Approval Not Required (ANR) plan to subdivide its property. A gas line easement bisects the Agilitas site.

Accardi said Agilitas has been working with the Hopkinton Area Land Trust (HALT) to provide a parking area and access to the Deer Run Trail. There is a secondary access point to the trail along Cross Street. A fence separates this easement from the solar company site.

Agilitas purchased the land on June 9, 2022, from Seaboard Solar and began construction work that fall, Accardi noted. The solar development project, located on 29 acres of land, has 5.8 megawatts of solar capacity and a 3.5 megawatt energy storage system.

“As of right now, construction is complete pending final commissioning of the energy storage component,” Accardi explained. “We are anticipating final inspections for the project in the next coming weeks.”

Condition 29 of the special permit agreement states that the land be conveyed to HALT or another nonprofit entity dedicated to preserving open space “through the donation of the land or through the placement of a conservation restriction on the land enforceable by the town.”

Accardi said Agilitas hoped to put a conservation restriction on the land that would be enforceable by the town, and that HALT would be the beneficiary.

HALT president Morrie Gasser questioned this, noting that the town usually takes ownership of a parcel and then seeks a conservation restriction (CR) on it.

“If you grant the CR to HALT first, when the town takes ownership of the land, the CR still applies because the CR runs with the land,” he explained. Donating the land to the town and having it seek the CR would be “much quicker,” he added. Otherwise “the town would have to negotiate with HALT for the CR.”

Member Steve Levandosky asked if the gas easement allowing trail access applied to the abutting lot. Accardi said that while there has been traditional access through that lot, Agilitas does not own it.

Levandosky pointed out that another easement off the gas line easement appears to run through a pond. Accardi explained that the property formerly was owned by a car insurance company. It created the pond and performed crash tests using water that accumulated in this area.

Chair Ed Harrow confirmed that activity. He also noted that because the pond was constructed, there is a dam there. Accardi confirmed that the dam is on the open space property. Member Nancy Peters asked for an assessment of the dam’s condition.

Member Jane Moran pointed out that the dam’s maintenance would be under the jurisdiction of the Department of Public Works. She advised that the commission draft a letter to DPW Director Kerry Reed explaining the situation and asking for her input.

Gasser asked why there appeared to be a buffer of more than 40 feet between the open space parcel and the outer fence of the Agilitas site. Accardi said he would “chase down the history on that,” adding that screening plantings there would be maintained by Agilitas.

Gasser also asked if the perimeter of the open space land had been pinned, which Accardi said he would confirm.

Said Harrow: “I’m hearing a number of questions for which we don’t have an answer.”

Accardi said he would update the commission at its March meeting.

Moran said that because the OSPC voted on Feb. 3 for a placeholder article for the Annual Town Meeting regarding this proposed donation, there was no time crunch.

In an email to the OSPC on Friday morning, Accardi stated that he had provided incorrect information on trail access on the gas line easement.

“In the meantime, I wanted to correct myself on the status of the easement running through the site,” he wrote. “Based on notes in our project file, I wrongly thought that the existing easement splitting the site provided public trail access. I do not see any actual documents providing such, and I am very sorry that I misrepresented this fact. The easement is for gas transmission only.”

Historical signs proposed for Hughes Farm, Colella trails

Brian Colella, a member of the Historical Commission, appeared before the OSPC with an update on his previous proposal to place to signs on the Hughes Farm and Colella trails. Funded by the Historical Commission, they would include images, highlight points of interest and show “text about the history of the Hayden Rowe area.”

Colella’s proposed text was approved by the Historical Commission and a Hopkinton Historical Society member. He requested that OSPC members add their feedback and hoped that the signs could be installed in May.