Conservation Commission Approves ADA Playground Upgrade at Deerfield Elementary, 3-1

DEERFIELD -- November 20, 2025, Deerfield Conservation Commission approved three wetlands permits in a single session, including a contested 3-1 vote backing an ADA playground upgrade at Deerfield Elementary School. The commission chose Option One of a two-option drainage plan presented by Carlos Nieto of Berkshire Design Group, a fully virgin EPDM rubber surface with an underdrain elevated three inches above the gravel base to allow infiltration of up to a two-year storm, over a recycled-tire alternative that would have routed overflow to Pleasant Street catch basins and back to Bloody Brook. Commissioner Kate Devlin voted no, citing the breakdown of polyurethane binder under playground heat and the absence of a full soil and seasonal-high-water study the commission had repeatedly requested. Conservation agent Tim Eccles reported the state DEP told him the commission could approve or deny for lack of information. The commission also voted 4-0 to approve a revised NOI for a new Deerfield Academy dormitory at Zero Little Meadow Road, accepting native tublings plantings and redesigned outfalls, and ratified an emergency stream-clearing certification for Hillside Road covering two segments through North Main Street.