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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1982-11-02-CRC-min.pdf CENTER REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE MEETING November 2, 1982 The meeting was convened by Chairman Battin at Noon. Attending members of the C R.0 Marge Battin, Joe Trani, Karsten Sorensen, Laura Nichols, Bob Sacco, Jack Powell Attending members of the Land Use Subcommittee. Judith Newman, Henry Patterson Attending in the audience Cliff Prentiss, Angela Frick, Wally Tonaszuck, Robert A Bowyer Minutes of the previous meeting were approved with minor changes (1) Notice was given of the change in date (to November 22, 1982, 8 15 P M ) for the formal presentation of the Survey by Warren Cormier of Decision Research Corporation Both the actural results and DR's interpretation of the results will be presented The meeting will be moved to Estabrook Hall if the level of atten- dance so requires Formal invitees Town Meeting Members, Chamber Board Members, Planning Board Members, Selectmen. (2)a Staff presentation re Meriam Street lot Mr Tonaszuck and Mr Prentiss presented two plans for improvement and devel- opment of the east end of the Meriam Street lot Limited Plan. This plan provides for the retention of the wooded area cur- rently existing on Town land between the Meriam Street lot and abutting residential parcels At an estimated cost of $47,000, the improvement of fifty existing spaces and the creation of fifteen (15) new spaces would be accomplished Full Scale Plan This plan provides for the maximum utilization of existing Town owned property i e it includes the elimination of scrub vegetation, decidu- ous trees, etc which comprise the wooded area mentioned above, filling and level- ing this area, and converting it to parking use This plan includes the installa- tion of a four foot retaining wall, topped by a stockade fence and masked by an evergreen barrier, probably 5' hemlocks (see attached sketch) At an estimated cost of $62,000, the improvement of fifty existing spaces and the creation of twenty eight (28) new spaces would be accomplished Discussion ensued, during which the following points were brought out - Both plans provide for the paving improvement of fifty existing spaces, and the installation of islands of plantings at unusable spots in the parking lot - Both plans must be evaluated as extremely "good buys" of additional park- ing spaces when contrasted with the usual development cost of approximately $2,000/space Under these plans, additional spaces would appear to be achievable for approximately $1,100/space - There are five houses on abutting properties and their owners and occupants are anticipated to be interested in any changes proposed for this area Mr Tonaszuck, Mr Prentiss and Mr Bowyer made various points in relation to possible abutter concerns - The first step forward with either plan would be to meet with the abutters and incorporate into the site any reasonable suggestions to alleviate their concerns "Before and after" photos would be taken from the back porches of I - 2 - the houses to insure that the visual barrier is maintained or improved as a result of the project The replacement of random deciduous trees with a planned conniferous planting would probably improve the visual barrier - The retaining wall in the full scale plan would be placed approximately seven (7) feet from the property line and plantings would be offered at cost so that abutters could make additional improvements to the barrier - The installation of lighting is expected to have the usual impact of the placement of street lights - Privately owned sheds presently standing on Town land would have to be moved - A popular foot path and an old bike route would probably be affected, perhaps to the pleasure of the immediate abutters and the displeasure of the neighborhood Thepath at "Old Grant Street" would not be impacted - The history of this general area is complex, with disputes regarding what is Town land and what is privately owned However, it is clear that only Town owned land would be involved in both plans presented here - Implementation could be phased over two years if necessary The C.R C voted unanimously to advise the Selectmen to take the full scale plan to the Town Meeting The question of funding this project was deferred until a specific account- ing could be provided However, it was the sense of the committee that the seek- ing of appropriation outside of parking funds should be avoided if at all possible A subcommittee of the C R C , consisting of Chairman Battin, Mr Trani and Mr Sacco was formed to join the Staff in meeting with the abutters It was agreed also that business abutters should be apprised of the plan (2)b Policy Six Discussion of the attached Policy 6 did not result in a vote Chairman Battin was of the very strong opinion that something based on Policy 6 would be politically necessary for Town Meeting approval of the Meriam Street lot improve- ment She suggested that it be presented as a complete package in which the lot improvement could be sought first and, if its approval was not gained, then the proposal of a policy based on Policy 6 would be withdrawn. It was generally agreed that the Policy in its present form is inadequate, and that tightening of its language is imperative Some particular areas of con- cern - Provision must be made for the intentional replacement of existing square foot- age not being penalized - Definition of "revenue-producing floor area" is needed - Specification of a mechanism for adjusting the amountof the dollar contribution is needed Mr Sacco pointed out that without a sense of how much additional center area development is physically possible and economically practical, it is impos- sible to evaluate the need for, and impact ofy this policy The allowance for a dollar contribution as an alternative to on-site pro- vision of parking space was seen as both a strength and a weakness of the Policy It was pointed out by Mr Patterson that there are many towns in the area which have trapped themselves into positions of stifling needed development with impos- sible requirements to provide on-site parking On the other hand, noted Mr Soren- sen, the dollar contribution alternative can create the illusion that the parking problem is being addressed when in fact, it is not -3- Mr Patterson also pointed out that at the dollar level included in the present form of Policy 6, development cost would be increased by approximately $17/sq ft or a good 25% This could prove unrealistic for developers It would surely have significant impact on rental levels Mr Bowyer pointed out that the cost of providing parking is a normal development cost in areas outside the CBD Ms Nichols noted that the Town cannot simply expand the CBD without pro- viding for the impact on the residential surround Chairman Battin requested the formation of a subcommittee to tackle the language of the Policy and appointed Mr Sacco, Mr Trani and Mr Patterson to work with Mr Bowyer on this problem. She also restated her judgment that some stepping forward of the business community, such as Policy 6 in an improved form, is a political necessity in seeking Town Meeting approval for the Meriam Street lot improvement (2)c Annual leases of private lots and minor improvements Mr. Bowyer presented the attached The next meeting is scheduled for December 7, 1982 at 12 00 Noon Respectfully submitted, Henry Patterson