Planning Board minutes 01-04-1996

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PLANNING BOARD MINUTES MEETING OF JANUARY 4, 1996 The meeting of the Lexington Planning Board held in Room G-3, Town Office Building, was called to order at 7:50 p.m. by Vice Chairman Canale, with members Davies, Grant, Planning Director Bowyer, and Assistant Planner Marino present. Mr. Merrill arrived during Item 1. Mrs. Davison was absent. **************************** COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING **************************** 1. Land Use Element.Site Analyses:The Board continued its evaluation of significant parcels of open land left in Lexington, and based its discussions on site analyses and maps prepared by the staff. a. Winning Farm. off Blueberry Lane at Winchester/Woburn Town lines: The Board agreed that this site presents a number of difficulties with regard to development. 1) Most of the Winning Farm property is in two neighboring towns just nine acres are in Lexington—and what happens there will dominate the future character of the site. Getting the three towns to act in unison in the short time available to keep the site open is unlikely 2) The only access to the site from Lexington is from Blueberry Lane, a small loop residential street off Tyler Road, another loop street off Winchester Drive. A new through street would have to connect to a street in Woburn. The property is now on the market and the Town Manager received a letter from The Trust for Public Land expressing its desire to act as a"catalyst"in efforts to keep the land open. While the Board believes leaving all or most of the land as open space would be preferable, it is unlikely that either of the towns or Woburn has enough money to buy their portion. Lexington's parcel, if left open, could act as a buffer against development in the other two towns. A low-impact use, such as an assisted living facility, might be desirable. b. 202 Cedar Street: The Board agreed that because the site is in an area well endowed with open space, any future use should relate to and enhance that asset. A cluster subdivision with smaller units to relate it to the scale of the surrounding neighborhood of smaller older houses was deemed a good use. Enlarging and improving the area in the existing Freemont Street playground site could constitute the • substantial public benefit called for in the proposed cluster regulations. If the land becomes available,the S Town might be interested in using parts of it to improve the Pine Meadows Golf Course c. Leary Pronerty on Vine Street: This 14.3 acre site on Vine Street also appealed to the Board as a good spot for a cluster subdivision. The back of the site is already protected from development by wetlands. The Board entered into a discussion about the remaining undeveloped land in Lexington,and the criteria it could use to decide if and how the Town should try to acquire it. The members agreed that there is a place for more development but if the Town is to acquire more land, the following questions should be asked about each parcel. a. Is it likely to be developed? b. Does the land have value to the Town in and of itself, e.g., aesthetic or habitat value, apart from just saving it from development? c. Does it connect with other Town owned land,offering potential linkages for biking,walking and cross-country ski trails? d. What is the size of the parcel? Is there other open space in that neighborhood? e. Does it offer a gateway to the town on a major street? f. Does it offer a vista? How many residents does it benefit? (The Winning Farm and Leary properties are visible only to the adjacent neighbors).