| Headlines |
Friday May 26, 2006
Valley News
Ironically enough, the 450-plus year-round residents of Groton, N.H., ultimately may have good cause to thank North American Training Lodge for proposing to build a 150-acre shooting range and military training complex in town.
The widespread alarm with which that proposal was greeted culminated earlier this week in overwhelming approval of an interim growth ordinance that permits the town to regulate commercial development. Given that on several previous occasions voters defeated proposals to regulate land use in Groton, it's fair to draw the conclusion that the size and nature of the NATL proposal were decisive in changing people's minds.
Thursday May 25, 2006
Groton voters
approve commercial zoning ordinance three to one
Record Enterprise
Nearly half of Groton's eligible 378 voters turned out Tuesday to vote in the planning board's proposed interim zoning ordinance as a stopgap measure controlling commercial growth in the town of 456 residents west of Plymouth.
Town Clerk Joyce Tolman said voting was brisk throughout the day and by the time the polls closed at 7 p.m. 183 voters had cast their ballots. Of those, 138 voted for the measure, three-times more than the 45 who voted against it.
The vote immediately enacts a nine-point ordinance designating the town as a "Rural Residential Development District." It permits all residential land uses in the town but controls "commercial uses, industrial uses and primary uses of land which are primarily non-residential in nature." Those uses will require a special exception granted by the five-member board of adjustment. The board of selectmen will appoint members to that board perhaps as soon as next week, along with three alternates.
Groton vote won’t stop gun camp
Union Leader
Groton – The owner of North American Training Lodge said he will continue with plans for a private, military-style training facility here despite a town vote Tuesday supporting an ordinance aimed at preventing it.
Voters at the polls passed an interim growth ordinance, Tuesday, 138-45, in response to William Gifford’s plan to build a military-style training facility on 1,100 acres.
“You can’t put in zoning after the fact, and you can’t pick and chose,” said Gifford. “I am one hundred percent sure if this comes to a courtroom I will prevail.”
He said he is going forward with engineering and site plan work, but he noted he does not yet own the property.
Voters okay zoning to check gun range
Concord Monitor
Residents overwhelmingly approved an interim zoning plan aimed at keeping a private military-style training center out of town.
In a special vote Tuesday, residents approved the plan that makes the town a rural district and bans new commercial and industrial development for a year unless a special exemption is granted. The vote was 138-45. Groton has no zoning, and the interim plan gives town officials a year to craft zoning ordinances. The town's voters had decided against zoning plans four times previously.
The vote comes after William Gifford of Rye proposed building a 150-acre firearms training center with indoor and outdoor shooting ranges. The North American Training Lodge complex would have been located on a 1,000-acre property Gifford planned to buy.
Wednesday May 24, 2006
Ordinance blocks Groton training camp
Citizen Online
GROTON — Residents approved an ordinance limiting growth for a year while town officials craft permanent zoning laws, a move that will block development of a specialized training facility for police and military officers.
According to the supervisor of the checklist, Shirley Leone, there was a good turnout of voters for the session.
Selectman Michael Brogna said that he was just happy to see people interested in the issue.
Tiny Town Opts to Slow Development
Valley News
Groton, N.H. -- Looking down the barrel of a plan to build a large shooting range, Groton residents yesterday voted by more than a 3-1 margin to adopt an interim growth ordinance empowering the town to regulate commercial development.
Tuesday May 23, 2006
Groton to vote today on interim growth plan
Citizen Online
GROTON — Voters will be coming out today to decide whether they want an interim growth ordinance put in place for the coming year.
The voting will take place at the Groton Town Hall from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Anyone who is not registered to vote may do so today.
The ordinance was proposed by Concerned Citizens for Regional Impact, a non-profit group comprising members of the Groton community and surrounding towns who are attempting to stop North American Training Lodge from building a firing range and training facility in the town.
Groton voters consider paramilitary school
Union Leader
GROTON – In response to a plan to build a private military-style training campus on 1,100 acres, voters will head to the polls today to decide on an interim growth ordinance.
The polls will be open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. today in the Town House, 754 N. Groton Road. Voters can register at the polls.
The single article on the ballot reads, "Are you in favor of the adoption of a zoning ordinance as proposed by the planning board to adopt an interim growth management ordinance establishing the town as a rural residential development district and allowing non-residential uses by special exception?"
Monday May 22, 2006
Groton Residents to Vote on Zoning
Valley News
With plans for a large shooting range in the works, Groton residents will decide tomorrow whether they want to adopt an interim zoning ordinance that would designate the town a rural area and require permission from the town board of adjustment for commercial development.
Ballot voting will take place between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. at the Town House on North Groton Road.
Thursday May 11, 2006
Letters to the Editor - Thanks To The Groton Planning Board
Record Enterprise
We, the taxpayers-homeowners of Colony Forest Hills, Groton, would like to express our thanks to the Groton Planning Board and Selectmen for the work they have done in developing the Interim Growth Ordinance.
Sunday April 30, 2006
Valley News BackTalk
In response to the commentary last
week by William E. Gifford (“The Guns of Groton: A Shooting Range, Not a
Military Camp,” BackTalk, April 23), I would like to shed some light on his
statement, “Many labels have been applied to NATL -- most of them inaccurate.”
The Dorchester selectboard believes that the North American Training Lodge (NATL)
is a problem to which the citizens of Groton must respond in an appropriate and
assertive manner. Our community has offered to help Groton with land-use
ordinances and zoning and is willing to help in the future if Groton's planning
board and selectmen request such assistance.
Thursday April 27, 2006
Letters to the Editor - To Groton Residents
Record Enterprise
To all those who have been keeping yourselves informed concerning the recent activities of the Groton Planning Board we applaud you and thank you. The members feel this is an opportune time to address the position of the board concerning the proposed Interim Ordinances which are now before the townspeople of Groton.
During the planning board meeting of February 22, it was noted by the planning board that not a single local area attendee expressed dissent, in any form, concerning the adoption of an Interim Growth Management Ordinance. In fact it should be recounted that the proposed ordinance was greeted with unanimous enthusiasm and applause. At this point the planning board was moved to sign the proposed ordinance for the regulation of commercial development.
Sunday April 23, 2006
Valley News BackTalk
I moved to Dorchester 10 years ago, to a place where I could raise my daughters in peace and quiet. The farm I purchased is situated on six acres overlooking the south branch of the Baker River. On most afternoons in spring, summer and fall, I can sit on my porch and enjoy the setting sun and listen to the sound of water falling on the rounded stones in the riverbed. This soothing burble is punctuated by the calls of chickadees, nuthatches and an occasional hawk. The only repetitive noise is the infrequent thump of downy and pileated woodpeckers, looking for food, or announcing their territory. Most nights the only major sound is the call of the barred owl.
Tuesday April 11, 2006
Training
Lodge not a good fit
Citizen Online
I felt compelled to write to you
after attending the private informational meeting presented by William Gifford
and Ed Fasold of the North American Training Lodge Inc. last Thursday at the
Groton Town Hall. I went there to be fair, to listen to the "other side," hoping
to learn details of their plans and designs that would put some of my fears to
rest. I wanted to find out if their claim was true, that the proposed firearms
and explosives training facility, the gentlemen propose to build, would not
negatively impact my farm and other neighbors.
What I learned instead is that they have not done any sound, or engineering
studies at all, and are merely saying that they won't make a lot of noise based
on "government estimated charts for wooded terrain." Previously they have told
the community in print, and at meetings, that they would meet NRA standards.
When a person from the audience asked them if they would follow the NRA's
Standards for Sound Abatement on Shooting Ranges, William Gifford would not
commit to meeting those standards and practices.
Friday April 7, 2006
NATL claims media reports inaccurate
Citizen Online
GROTON — Representatives of a venture which wants to open a firearms training facility here are denying reports that it will create a lot of noise and that trainees will be engaged in red-hot, military-style exercises.
Thursday April 6, 2006
Residents support interim land use regulations
Record Enterprise
Residents were told they were not
gathered to discuss the North American Training Lodge, Inc.'s proposal at a
hearing last week, but were there to discuss a zoning regulation.
"We are not here to discuss that project. We are here to discuss whether Groton
should adopt this zoning regulation," Moderator Miles Sinclair told the large
group of attendees at the Groton Planning Board's public hearing held in Bristol
last week.
Wednesday March 30, 2006
Letters To The Editor - Gifford seeks to intimidate
Record Enterprise
It appears the North American Training Lodge is going to great lengths to try and get the residents of Groton to table the Interim Growth Ordinance that will delay the lodge from coming into our town.
First of all, the remarks they made against the Concerned Citizens For Regional Impact appear very inflammatory. This was paper #2. They first stated the CCFRI is not registered in the state of N.H., which it is!
Groton residents rally against training lodge
Citizen Online
A public meeting on a proposed ordinance to prohibit major commercial developments in Groton for one year drew several residents who spoke against a proposed new military-style training facility in town.
Citizen Online
In response to William E. Gifford's editorial "Training Lodge Entitled to Respect" Mr. Gifford stated, "... from our perspective, the selectmen of Groton have proven they are not interested in holding a meeting that will be fair to NATL." To set the record straight, the selectmen scheduled a work session with William Gifford, president and CEO and Ed Fasold, vice president of operations, for North American Training Lodge Inc. We posted it in two locations 48 hours in advance like any other work session. We informed the Police Department and the Planning board chairman of the work session. Planning board members and other residents showed up for that work session.
Monday March 27, 2006
This is a response to Mr.Gifford's article in Sunday's Citizen editorial entitled TRAINING LODGE ENTITLED TO RESPECT. Mr. Gifford's article in Sunday's Citizen is not really as he presented it to the Groton people at the first meeting. I would like an opportunity to address it.
Thursday March 23, 2006
Interim regulations hearing set in Groton Concerned Citizens obtain noise level conclusion
Record Enterprise
Residents and other area citizens
are encouraged to attend a public hearing on the interim land use regulations as
adopted by the planning board in February. The hearing will be held Wednesday,
March 29 at 7 p.m. at Newfound Regional High School.
The planning board will be collecting input and finalizing the ordinance. A
second public hearing will be held if needed. A special town meeting will be
held in May for residents to vote on the regulations.
Dorchester
Angie Ricciardi 535-3148
aricciardi@plymouth.edu
Concerned Citizens for Regional Impact
Betty Ann Trought also passed on information about the ongoing struggle between North American Training Lodge and the citizens of Groton and its surrounding towns. NATL's president, William Gifford, at a private group meeting on March 8, informed invited guests of final negotiations for approximately 1,000 acres in Groton. He claimed that noise would be a minimized and should not be a problem for neighboring property owners. He also stated that he would be meeting with selected registered voters from Groton in private meetings to provide information on his proposed facility. In response to Gifford's claims, Concerned Citizens for Regional Impact consulted Resource Systems Group, Inc., (rsginc.com) located in White River Junction, Vt.: one of the nation's foremost consulting firms with a specialty in acoustic consulting services. They state that the North American Training Lodge presentations are extremely misleading and come to the wrong conclusions. A representative states that "The NATL presentation with regards to noise is erroneous and should not be used to evaluate the impacts of the proposed training facility. Given the magnitude of the potential noise impacts … a study should be prepared by the NATL using a qualified individual or firm, taking into account the proposed site plan, sound emissions from various weapons, the simultaneous firing of weapons, the vegetation, terrain, and meteorological conditions …"
Thursday March 16, 2006
Training lodge holds private meeting for 25 attendees
Record Enterprise
A private meeting held at the Common Man Inn in Plymouth last week by North American Training Lodge, Inc. (NATL) has some people questioning the group's actions and wondering what they have to hide.
Tuesday March 14, 2006
Restlessness over Groton proposal
Citizen Online Opinion
If those behind a proposal to develop a military-style training facility in Groton ultimately decide to move forward with the project, they are going to need all the good will they can get.
Thursday March 9, 2006
Latest Events: Were you invited?
CCFRI
Concerned Citizens was informed from many members and other citizens that William Gifford, President of North American Training Lodge, is holding a PRIVATE Meeting on Wednesday, March 8, 2006, 7PM, at the Common Man in Plymouth, to discuss his company’s proposal for a Military-Like Weapons Training Facility in Groton. Calls to the Common Man do verify that Mr. Gifford does have a room reserved for that evening for a private gathering of 20 to 25 people. We have been told that he has even hired the Plymouth Police.
Private' meeting on training facility irks Groton residents
Foster's Online
PLYMOUTH — Residents of Groton arriving at a Plymouth restaurant Wednesday night to hear the North American Training Lodge, Inc., make a presentation on its proposed military-style training facility were not pleased when they were turned away and told that the event was by invitation only.
Citizen Online Opinion
North American Training Lodge Inc.
is proposing to build a "for-profit" paramilitary training compound in Groton.
As a resident of Groton for 30 years I am adamantly opposed to this.
It would negatively impact the rural scenic nature of our small residential town
(and surrounding towns)...
Tuesday March 7, 2006
Training camp developer to hold private meeting
Citizen Online
GROTON — A private function being
held by the North American Training Lodge in town on Wednesday is causing some
grumbling among some opponents to the proposed military-style training facility.
"It's a private function, that's all you need to know," Gifford said.
Citizen Online Opinion
Also in last week's Record Enterprise are several letters concerning The North American Training Lodge's wish to settle in Groton — part of Grafton County. As residents of Groton, we have been actively involved in the meetings concerning this issue. Most of the area residents have a lot of good reasons why we do not want this group in our town.
Monday March 6, 2006
Groton Planning Board takes aim at development
Citizen Online
The Groton Planning Board approved a
resolution on Feb. 22 that would effectively ban any development that would have
an impact on the area for one year. These are the highlights from the
resolution.
The ordinance begins by recognizing the existence of RSA 674:23, which states
that a planning board can propose interim regulations on development. The
planning board found that, since Groton has no zoning in place, improved access
and communication can encourage future growth wanted in the town, and
large-scale developments can affect the services of the town. Furthermore no
studies have been done on the impact that large growth would have on the town,
but the town has an interest in ensuring the public safety and health of the
town's residents.
Proposed Groton training facility dealt a blow
Citizen Online
The North American Training Lodge, Inc. was dealt a blow by the Groton Planning Board last Wednesday night in building its military-style training facility when the board passed a resolution to ban all commercial development for a year except by special exception.
Board takes step to keep
training facility out of Groton
Record Enterprise
A group proposing a military training facility may have a harder time coming into Groton than originally hoped with the planning board's adoption of interim land use regulations last week.
Groton board sends growth ordinance to lawyer
Citizen Online
GROTON — After giving preliminary approval to an ordinance designed to limit growth in the town for one year, the Planning Board decided to bring the matter before the town's counsel before trying to make any changes to it.
Friday March 3, 2006
Record Enterprise
William Gifford, President of the North American Training Lodge is quoted in the Record Enterprise as stating “there is a local minority who has gone on a campaign of lies about who we are and what we are… if we have to educate people of what the process is , then so be it.” And again “We have a standing offer to have a working group session with the Selectman”. Bonnie Lane in her letter states that she and her husband “were one of the few people who got to hear the Training Lodge present at the first work session”
Thursday March 2, 2006
Groton News
Record Enterprise
It is not news that Groton has national attention due to the fact just about every newspaper in the state, and the Washington Post, the Associated Press, the New Hampshire Public Radio and Channel 9 has carried or is carrying stories about as one reporter put it, a David and Goliath scenario, Groton being David and the North American Training Lodge being Goliath. What may be news is Groton has friends in the surrounding Towns, people who live in this state and people who live outside the state but have vacation homes in Groton are also concerned, like Groton's year round residents, about how a military-type training facility could change the character of the Town.
Zoning
protects property rights
Record Enterprise
In no
other state in the nation do residents take their state slogan as seriously as
we do. More than a slogan, "Live Free or Die" is a way of operating that
translates into a fierce independence whose ramifications are at the same time
both positive and negative.
One of the negatives for some towns
has proven to be the aversion to enacting zoning ordinances. In our area,
residents of
Alexandria, Groton and Rumney
have long opposed zoning as oppressive government intrusion into the rights of
landowners. Actually, the argument is more often expressed as, "No G—d—planning
board is going to tell me what I can and can't do with my property."
Sunday February 26, 2006
Rye business in fight over weapons training school
Portsmouth Herald
Groton - With rumors swirling and worries mounting over noise, stray bullets, plummeting property values and the local economy, attendance at meetings mushroomed from a handful to a hundred and more from Groton and surrounding towns. A community group, Concerned Citizens for Regional Impact, quickly formed to fight the plan.
Valley News
So unexpected is the proposal for a private military training camp in Groton, N.H., that it might as well have been dropped out of the blue by one those helicopters that might soon be dotting the skies over the woods of central New Hampshire. Who even knew that there were operations such as the North American Training Lodge, which hopes to develop a 150-acre facility for the annual training of about 2,500 people in various military and security skills?
Quiet town gets noisy over weapons plan
Union Leader
Groton - That’s the way the town’s 460 year-round residents like it — quiet, private and free. So when word spread two weeks ago about plans for an 1,100-acre weapons training center, the community quickly shook itself awake.
Saturday February 25, 2006
Faced with weapons training center, Groton fights back
Boston Globe
Groton - There is no fire department
here, no school, not even a gas station.
"It's just like being in the woods," said Michelle Dunn, 39, who moved from
Rhode Island 18 years ago to escape city noise. "You know when you can hear the
leaves on the trees blowing? That's how quiet it is here."
Thursday February 23, 2006
Training
facility under fire from angry Groton residents
Record Enterprise
GROTON — Without zoning regulations to fall back on,
residents in Groton are looking at other ways to stop a proposed military
training facility from being built in their town.
Rumors have been circulating about the proposal from William Gifford of North
American Training Lodge to construct a training facility to include outdoor and
indoor shooting ranges, a skeet range and possible explosives. An initial
meeting with the board of selectmen was poorly attended, angering many residents
who said they were unaware it took place.
Groton
OKs Interim Zoning To Stop Camp
Valley News
Urged by 100 residents to halt a
proposal to build a private weapons training facility in the town of Groton, the
planning board last night unanimously adopted interim zoning regulations that
will go before voters at a special town meeting.
“The horse is not out of the barn if you adopt these regulations,” said Barry
Schuster, an attorney from Lebanon who represented Concerned Citizens for
Regional Impact.
Groton prohibits military training camp
Citizen Online
The Groton Planning Board has
approved a measure aimed at keeping a military training camp out of the
community of 500 people.
Since a company presented the selectmen with a plan to build a training camp for
military specialists, including firing ranges, some residents have been trying
to put a stop to the proposal.
Wednesday night the five-member planning board unanimously passed a temporary
resolution banning new commercial and industrial development in town unless a
special exemption is granted. Existing businesses are exempt.
Groton acts to keep military training camp out of town
Boston Globe
The town planning board has approved a measure aimed at keeping a military training camp out of the community of 500 people.
Since a company presented the selectboard with a plan to build a training camp for military specialists, including firing ranges, some residents have been trying to put a stop to the proposal.
Groton NH
votes in temporary land use rules...
uvScene
On Wednesday February 22, 2006, the Groton Planning Board unanimously passed Interim Land Use Regulations. These essentially protect all current land use activities, but require any newly proposed major commercial enterprises or developments to seek the Town of Groton's official approval through a public hearing process.
Groton acts to keep military training camp out of town
WBZ News Radio, Boston
The town planning board has approved a measure aimed at keeping a military training camp out of the community of 500 people.
Since a company presented the selectboard with a plan to build a training camp for military specialists, including firing ranges, some residents have been trying to put a stop to the proposal.
Wednesday night the five-member planning board unanimously passed a temporary resolution banning new commercial and industrial development in town unless a special exemption is granted. Existing businesses are exempt.
Wednesday February 22, 2006
Groton military training
proposal highlights zoning debate
Connecticut Spectator
The frenzy over a proposed military operations training facility in zoning-free Groton, N.H., highlights a debate in nearby towns over whether to institute zoning to prevent helplessness in the face of similar proposals.
Camp Opponents Turn to Planners
Valley News
Opponents of a plan for a private military training complex in Groton will ask the town planning board tonight to stall the 150-acre development by invoking a state law that allows towns with few or no land-use rules to impose interim regulations.
Said Groton resident Michelle Dunn, “We shouldn't just give up.”
During last night's meeting of the Groton Selectboard, Bob Green, a resident of the neighboring town of Dorchester and a member of Concerned Citizens for Regional Impact (CCRI), told the board and an audience of more than 90 at the Groton Town House that the group's lawyer will outline the steps that Groton can take under New Hampshire's planning and zoning laws.
Training Center Opponents Ask Town To Force Delay
WMURC News
Opponents of plans for a private
military training complex in Groton want the town to help delay the project.
They plan to ask the town planning board Wednesday night to stall the 150-acre
development by invoking a state law that allows towns with few or no land-use
rules to impose interim regulations.
Private Military Training Complex in Groton NH?
uvScene
A private company called the North American Training Lodge wants to build a 150 acre private military training complex in Groton, New Hampshire, and local residents are up in arms. The citizens of Groton have formed the Concerned Citizens For Regional Impact.
Groton residents unhappy
over proposed military training camp
Citizen Online
Since a company presented the
selectboard with a plan to build a training camp for military specialists,
including firing ranges, some residents have been trying to put a stop to the
proposal.
The problem is that Groton has no zoning rules. So residents have been pleading
with selectmen to explore other options for blocking the training camp, from
inundating state lawmakers and other officials with letters, to signing
petitions and joining forces with neighboring towns.
"I find it hard to believe there's nothing we can do to stop this, dead center,"
Groton resident Bruce Jones said. "Bring it to a head and stop it."
Developer for military facility cancels briefing
Portsmouth Herald
The developer proposing a private military training center has canceled its offer to brief town officials and residents about its plans.
Groton: No Briefing On Camp In Groton
NH Insider
Jessica T. Lee of The Valley News reports, "The corporation proposing to build a private military training facility with firing ranges and housing for 2,500 trainees a year has decided not to brief town officials and residents about its plans."
Tuesday February 21, 2006
Baker Valley Area Citizens and Towns Organize Opposition to "Militia" Training Center
Heart of New Hampshire
The Concerned Citizens For Regional Impact is an association that is concerned about a recent proposal presented on January 19th by the North American Training Lodge, a private organization. They proposed to construct a private military-like training facility, a large shooting range and defense training facility in the Town of Groton, NH. The proposed private training facility would include C4 and explosive training, tree level helicopter assists, four handgun firing ranges, 300-yard and 800-yard rifle ranges and would offer night time training.
Businessman Aims to Put Firearms Facility Up in Groton
NH Public Radio
A Rye businessman wants to build a firearms training facility in Groton, just west of Plymouth. Groton doesn't have any zoning. That makes it nearly impossible for the town to block the project...if it wants to. No zoning means no public hearing. No public hearing means rumors are flying around about just what a firearms training facility is. At the same time, some residents have organized opposition...and hired a lawyer.
The corporation proposing to build a private military training facility with firing ranges and housing for 2,500 trainees a year has decided not to brief town officials and residents about its plans.
North American Training Lodge, which incorporated in New Hampshire last April, proposes to build a 150-acre complex, costing between $2.3 and $3 million, to train such military specialists as Navy SEALs and private security contractors.
The company canceled its offer to publicly discuss its plans after the Groton Selectboard tried to schedule the meeting in the Bridgewater-Hebron Elementary School or another building large enough to accommodate a sizable crowd, including non-residents of Groton.
Training center opponents ask town to force delay
WCAX-TV
Opponents of plans for a private military training complex in Groton (New Hampshire) want the town to help delay the project.
Monday February 20, 2006
Notice posting from the Town Of Groton, New Hampshire, web site as of 02/20/06
The board of selectmen were adamant about hosting a second meeting with North American Training in a facility large enough to comfortably fit all interested parties. Unfortunately, North American Training felt that the presentation should be for Groton residents only and proposed hosting an informational meeting with two sessions to be held in the Town of Groton. As we all know the town does not have a facility large enough to accommodate everyone and the selectmen stood by their beliefs that anyone and everyone who showed interest in the presentation should be allowed to attend. Since an agreement could not be made there will not be another informational meeting with North American Training Lodge.
Tiny town spies change on
horizon Proposed weapons center stirs up worries
Concord Monitor
When Barbara
Tavares retired to New Hampshire 13 years ago, she chose the tiny town of Groton
for one reason: silence.
"It's quiet. Very, very quiet," said Tavares, who lives with her husband Tony.
"There's very, very, very little that goes on in Groton, and everyone likes it
that way."
But Groton's silence could be up for grabs. The 469-person town is facing the
first major development proposal in its history: A private company wants to
build a weapons facility that would train 2,500 people a year for military
special operations and law enforcement.
Thursday February 16, 2006
Military training facility hearing postponed
Citizen's Newspaper
A
full house and then some forced the board of selectmen to postpone an
informational meeting to discuss a planned $2.5 million military-style training
facility in the area.
Residents from Groton and other surrounding towns showed up to hear the
presentation by William Gifford, who is the president and CEO of North American
Training Lodge, Inc. Before Gifford could get his presentation ready, Police
Chief Bill White approached Gifford and vice-president Edward
Fasold to let them know that there were people
outside who wouldn't be able to see the presentation, and that it would be a
good idea to move the meeting to another night and another location.
Huge Turnout Postpones Groton Weapons Training Center Hearing
Union Leader
GROTON – A meeting with the developers of a proposed weapons training facility on 1,100 acres brought out so many people last night that the event had to be canceled and rescheduled. It will be held at a place that can hold more people, likely next week, town officials said.
Groton Is Pressed To Delay Meeting On Military Training Camp
Valley News
Groton -- In the damp quiet outside Groton's Town House last night, area residents had to speak with one another about tree-level helicopters and plastic explosives because they could not get into the hall to speak with the business people who propose to build a private military training facility nearby.
Meeting Over Proposed Training Center Draws Huge Crowd
WLBZ2 News
A meeting about a proposed weapons training center in Groton attracted so many people Wednesday night that it had to be canceled. Officials of North American Training Lodge asked for the meeting to give information on its plans for a large shooting range for security, law enforcement and perhaps military clients. More than 150 people showed up, but less than half could fit in the Groton Town House. Company officials asked that the meeting be rescheduled.
Meeting over proposed training center draws huge crowd
WCAX-TV
A meeting about a proposed weapons training center in Groton (New Hampshire) attracted so many people last night that it had to be canceled.
Wednesday February 15, 2006
Groton Airs Plan Tonight For Military Training Site
Union Leader
GROTON – A proposal to build a private facility for military weapons training on 1,100 acres at the end of Edgar Albert Road will be discussed at Town Hall at 6 tonight. William Gifford of Rye, president and chief operating officer for North American Training Lodge, said he wants to put the concept in front of the town for input before finalizing plans for purchase of the wooded tract.
Military Training Site Eyed For Area
Foster’s
GROTON — North American Training Lodge, Inc. will make a presentation to the town tonight on its plan to build a $2.5 million training facility in town, complete with wide firing ranges and areas for trainees to learn how to use plastic explosives.
Friday December 2, 2005
Farmington ZBA Won't Reconsider Military Training Facility
Foster’s
FARMINGTON — The Zoning Board of Adjustment decided not to reconsider the North American Training Lodge's request for a special exception which would allow the company to build a $2.3 million military training facility along Ridge Road.
Tuesday November 8, 2005
Military training facility proposal once again before Farmington ZBA
Foster’s
FARMINGTON — The Zoning Board of
Adjustment will decide whether to reconsider its denial of special exception
that would have allowed the North American Training Lodge to build a $2.3
million military training facility along Ridge Road.
On Oct. 6, the ZBA unanimously denied the company's application following a
hearing in which about 170 residents voiced their opinions on the matter, the
majority in opposition to the facility.
Friday October 7, 2005
Farmington ZBA Nixes Military Lodge
Foster’s
FARMINGTON — "Don't turn our agricultural zone into a war zone," Matt Scruton told the Farmington Zoning Board of Adjustment on Thursday evening. The panel was considering an application from North American Training Lodge to be granted the special exception needed to construct a military training facility on 175 acres off Ridge Road.
Wednesday August 3, 2005
Shooting Range, Training Facility Proposed For Farmington
Foster’s
FARMINGTON — A large shooting range and defense training facility encompassing nearly 175 acres has been proposed for a site off Aiken Road.
Tuesday August 2, 2005
Farmington Planning Board Meeting Minutes
Preliminary Conceptual Site Plan Review By: NATL "North American Training Lodge" (Tax Map R58, Lot 11 and Tax Map R65, Lot 2): Property known as Aiken Road; to develop and operate a Homeland Defense Training and Shooting Facility.