HAMPTON -- Smuttynose Brewery is moving to Hampton.

The Planning Board on Wednesday night approved Smuttynose President Peter Egelston's plans to build a bigger and better brewery in Hampton.

Smuttynose is currently located at 225 Heritage Ave. in Portsmouth in a 25,000-square-foot facility. The lot soon to be the new home of the brewery is a 14-acre property owned by Gregory and Jennifer Sancoff at 105 Towle Farm Road in Hampton.

The new brewing facility will be 42,000 square feet. Smuttynose will convert a barn on the property into a restaurant.

Previous respective proposals for a new Smuttynose Brewery in Newmarket and Portsmouth had previously fallen through.

"It's a great feeling," said Egelston after Wednesday night's approval. He said when he first looked at the Towle Farm Road lot last August, he had the feeling that "this is where we were meant to be all along."

The final hurdle for Smuttynose in Hampton was a traffic study requested by the Planning Board at an earlier meeting. The applicant's traffic consultant, Steve Pernaw of Pernaw and Co. Inc., presented the study Wednesday night, concluding Smuttynose Brewery will not create dangerous traffic situations.

Also, the brewery will conduct a traffic signal analysis at the Route 27 and Towle Farm Road intersection six months after the brewery and restaurant open. This will ensure that even after the company is in operation, the traffic situation remains safe, according to Pernaw. A traffic signal could be installed at that point if it is deemed necessary.

Town Planner James Steffen had some final conditions for Smuttynose to complete, including making sure adequate fire suppression is obtained and the Aquarion Water Co. makes a final approval of the water connection, resolving final details with the Department of Public Works and the abutting property owner for sewer service, and making sure all signs and landscaping in the area don't obstruct the line of sight to and from the driveways.

Egelston said he'll meet those requirements, and he's also planning for the new brewery to meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, certification qualification. Some "green" technology Egelston is considering includes use of rainwater in plumbing and a cogeneration power source, which is the use of a heat engine or a power station to simultaneously generate both electricity and heat. A similar system is used at Epping Town Hall, Egelston said.

Egelston started the company in 1994. In 2006, the company produced 15,000 barrels — the most in its history, upgrading the company from the "micro brewery" category to "regional independent brewery" status. In June 2007, Smuttynose Brewing ranked No. 48 on Ratebeer.com's World's Top 100 Breweries list.