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Date: 8/30/2022
WILLIAMSBURG – Christopher Duval, owner of Beaver Brook Golf Course, appeared before the Zoning Board of Appeals last week, along with over 70 residents opposed to Duval’s proposal for a campground on 200 acres of his property.
Duval submitted a proposal for a campground with up to 50 sites for tents, pop-up tents and recreational vehicles. Concerned abutters and residents, town officials, Northampton officials, and a national authority on campgrounds attended the informational hearing. Duval, however, sought to allay concerns by altering the plans for the project.
Mistakenly referring to Solar Circle as Dewey Circle, Duval said, “I have to apologize … This area over by Dewey Circle is definitely not any place we would put campsites. After walking the property, I created another map … It takes all that area that everyone is so worried about and takes it right out of play.”
According to a letter sent to Reminder Publishing by Alexandra Pinschmidt, an abutter at 7 Solar Cir., any campground on the 200 acres featured in Duval’s original proposal was unacceptable. Pinschmidt, a filmmaker and educator, observed that Duval’s previous business was cited for violations of zoning and wetlands ordinances.
“From this we have little confidence that our community’s many concerns would be addressed or managed appropriately,” Pinschmidt wrote. “He feuded with neighbors over gunfire on his property, has put up inflammatory imagery and flags, and has intensely contended with neighbors.”
Duval acknowledged that all wetlands and environmental issues would be dealt with appropriately. Marcianna Caplis, chair of the Conservation Commission, confirmed that a site visit would be necessary. She also commented on the lack of detail in Duval’s proposal.
“The site of this proposed campsite is crossed by Beaver Brook,” Caplis said. “It’s in or near protected areas, floodplains and … What is not shown is the roads for accessing these properties, bathroom facilities,” and other infrastructure.
Peter Pellens, a national authority on campgrounds and related issues, also commented on the lack of detail of Duval’s proposal. Pellens also offered the opinion that Duval’s plan was not well thought out. He informed the board that no other campgrounds under development in the United States have less than 150 to 200 campsites.
“My concern is that the initial plan, there is no detail at all,” Pellens said. A consultant to over 400 clients in the campground industry, Pellens commented that Duval’s plan would be far below current industry standards.
“There are no campgrounds being built by mom and pop outfits,” Pellens said. “There are none with 50 campsites.”
Duval replied with another change. He said, “Maybe you should consider this a preliminary application.”
Zoning Board of Appeals Chair Paul Kennedy, several times described the process the board would follow, which did not include changing the status of a proposal before the board. The current meeting was not to argue the merits of the proposal, Kennedy said, but to solicit information and the input of abutters and other community members. Kennedy also informed the crowded meeting room that the pavilion where musical acts play has been approved by the town and was not an issue for discussion.
Several community members spoke up in support of Duval. Eric Ceretta, an abutter living on Main Street and a member of the Finance Committee, stood in support of the board’s process as well as Duval’s entertainment.
“I feel like he’s doing a good job there,” Cerreta said. “I live five houses up the street and I never hear the music.”
Amy Pilger of 9 Cider Mill Rd. voiced many of the questions of abutters and residents. She asked after the noise of generators often used by campers, as well as general noise and the noise of musical acts performing in the pavilion.
“We can hear the noise over in our area,” Pilger said. “If we do have campers there, how are incidents going to be managed by our Police Department?”
Several other residents voiced support for Duval and the control of noise from musical acts. Other residents voiced concerns, which prompted Duval to reconsider his application. The call for greater detail prompted the owner of Beaver Brook Golf Course to withdraw his application “without prejudice,” without incurring administrative penalty.
“I only ask one thing of this board,” Duval said during his initial comments, “and that is condemn the hate speech against me and my wife and our business and our family. There’s been a lot of it on Facebook.”