Auburn Conservation Commission Continues Rockland Road Hearing, Seeks Town Engineer Input

AUBURN — February 25, 2026 — Auburn's Conservation Commission continued a two-year-old hearing on a Rockland Road recycling site and disclosed it may own 18 acres of Worcester land assessed at $813,000. The commission voted 4-0 on February 25 to refer unresolved stormwater design questions — including whether permeable pavement is appropriate for the site — to the town engineer before closing the public hearing on the notice of intent for 47 and 49 Rockland Road, pushing deliberations to the March 11 meeting. Chairman Michael Garland warned that snow being pushed into the adjacent brook could trigger an enforcement order regardless of whether an order of conditions has been issued, and administrator Paul DeAquilla confirmed he had already contacted the state Department of Environmental Protection about the issue without yet receiving a response. Late in the meeting, Garland disclosed that a deed search found the commission has owned an 18.04-acre parcel at 225 Webster Street in Worcester since 1984, with a building of unknown origin on the site apparently affiliated with a neighboring business called Pobco — a property Garland said the commission had never actively managed in his 30-plus years on the board.