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Planning Board Mulls Legacy Farms Procedure Downtown likely to lose more parking spaces
Legacy Farms
December 4, 2007 — The Planning Board discussed the approach to take in dealing with the approval of a Master Plan or development agreement for Boulder Capital's Legacy Farms, a 700+ acre development with 940 residential units and 500 acres of open space. Most Board members agreed that an appeals process was part of the package. Member Claire Wright said, "This town has been going nowhere because of incessant appeals." "I think we should go with a Special Permit with a Master Plan," said Member Ken Weismantel. "The downside is our legal system that allows appeals. Unfortunately, that's our system," he said. "I'm not afraid of appeals. We haven't lost one yet," said member John Coolidge. Legacy abutter Jane Moran (Photo) lobbied for mitigation.
"In other towns the Planning Board forces a 6% mitigation. This would
help with a lot of the traffic problems coming into the town," she said.
Rockwood Estates, a project slated for development in Upton, recently
promised the Planning Board $25,000 toward a new traffic signal at the
intersection of West Main and School Streets is projected to cost up to
a half million dollars at an intersection that has already been
Planner Elaine Lazarus explained that any mitigation would have to be tied to an effect on traffic caused by a new development. "It cannot be a tax," she said. Member Carol DeVeuve said, "We were wishy-washy with Rockwood. Other towns must have a method." One member stated at a previous meeting that a development in Westwood was giving about $15 million to the town for mitigation. Abutter Chris Barry said, "The community has to buy into the whole program. I don't see any push-back to Boulder Capital," suggesting that Boulder Capital was getting its way. Toward the end of the meeting, Chairman Mark Abate argued against that point of view. "Roy [MacDowell, Boulder President] has started this process in the driver's seat, but we have yanked him out of it," he said. READ MORE...
Parking, Plus...
Public Works Director JT Gaucher (Photo), who appeared before the Planning Board last night for some financial housekeeping, suggested the taking of a home at 2 West Main Street to widen the intersection for a proper truck-turning radius. Mr. Gaucher estimated the cost of the home, if it goes on the market, of at least $400,000, and the design costs alone at $175,000. The state would pick up the tab for the actual road work. Mr. Gaucher, along with Chief of Police Thomas Irvin, cosigned a letter responding to a request for information that originated with the Downtown Revitalization Committee dealing with pedestrian safety downtown.
The letter conceded that an engineering analysis is needed in the area,
but that the town should wait
The letter recommended losing a parking space in front of Bill's Pizza and another one in front of the Korean Church in order to increase visibility and improve crosswalk safety. The letter ended by recommending "Crosswalk Ahead" warning signs. This would add to the number of spaces expected to be taken due to development in the Downtown. On November 21, 2007, abutter John Forster, owner of 43-45 Main Street, and partner David Phillips, owner of the Hopkinton Gourmet filed an appeal of the Planning Board's site plan review approval of Hopkinton Village Center, a mixed use, 42,000 square foot building. Developer Ron Roux said that one parking space would be removed from in front of the Gourmet to facilitate turning into the driveway adjacent to it. Mr. Roux's engineer said that there were no legal spaces in front of the Gourmet, causing fear that both would be removed for the development's needs. Another space, according to the engineer, will be lost at the exit from the property, between the buildings at 25 and 17 Main Street, to improve line of sight. Four spaces were removed from Main Street next to the Drug Store about two years ago, and two were removed from in front of the bank and Bill's about four years ago. That would bring the recent and projected loss of municipal parking on Main Street, to about 11 spaces, and that doesn't count the loss that could be expected from re-striping of the spaces from 14' to 18' per space. Nor does it count any spaces that could be lost if a greater access to fire hydrants is called for under the code. There are two spaces in front of 25 Main Street that are marked within about two feet of the hydrant. |
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labeled
as "failed," long before the developer has turned a spade on the earth.
until completion of other analyses for
presumably private projects are completed to use that information and
save money. It stated that the group, that including Mr. Gaucher, Chief
Irvin Lt. Richard Flannery, and Highway Supervisor Mike Mansir, reviewed
the standards in the