Conservation Commission Approves Rural Lands Driveway Overhaul on Cold Spring Road

WILLIAMSTOWN -- May 28, 2026, Williamstown Conservation Commission clears Rural Lands Foundation to relocate Cold Spring Road driveway in 5-0 vote. The commission first found a 2023 order of conditions invalid because no work had ever been started on a previously approved parking expansion at the 671 Cold Spring Road campus, then opened and closed a public hearing on the new notice of intent in the same session. Williamstown Rural Lands Foundation President Barbara Carr said the project would move the driveway roughly 250 feet south and restore the existing pavement corridor to lawn, separating vehicle traffic from families and children using the campus. Andreanna Chenile of Guntlow and Associates said approximately 14,000 square feet of invasive honeysuckle removal at Rural Lands' Buxton Brook Preserve on Petersburg Road will serve as required riverfront mitigation. The Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program determined earlier in the week that the project would have "no adverse effect on the priority habitat."