HomeMy WebLinkAbout1961-04-17PLAYNTI?G BOAPD MEETING
April 173 1861
A regular meeting of the Lexington Planning
Board was held on Monday, April 17, 1961 at ?:30
p.m. in the Tlanning Board office, Town Office
BuildinF-, nresent were Chairman Soule, members
Bryson, Grindle, Mabee and Meyer, and Planning
Director Snow.
The Board approved the minutes of its
April 10, 1961 meeting.
Approved for payment were the following
bills which had been presented: Andrew T. John-
son, multillthing--6,x`,8.20; Graphic Renroductions,
Inc., white prints --$2.04; Minute -man Publica-
tions, Inc., advertisi.ng--0.67: Charles' Store,
office supp1ies--"1.70.
The attention of the Board was called to a
letter from the Massachusetts Federation of Plan-
ning Boards, dated April 12, calling attention to
the annual meeting; to be held May 12 and 13, 1961
' and to the Nominating Committee renort to be acted
upon at said meeting.
MINUTES
BITLLS
M.F.P.B.
Town Counsel Stevens met with the Board and
discussed with it the following Form A applica- FORMS A
tions which had been submitted for determination
of ?lanni.ng Board jurisdiction:
-461-14, submitted April 17, 1961 by Law-
rence N. Bramhall; plan entitled "Plan of
Land in Lexington, Mass.", Scale: 1" = 201,
dated April 3, 1961, Miller & Nylander,
C.E,'s & Surveyors.
x#61 -1K, submitted April 17, 1961 by Jesse
Souza; plan entitled "A Compiled Plan of
Land in LexinrTtor, Mass.", Scale: l" = 201,
dated April 13, 1(61, Miller &- Nylander,
C.E.'s F Surveyors.
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was
unanimously
VOTED: that the Lexin..r-ton Planning Board deter-
mines that the plans accompanying Form A
annlications #61-11} and ##61-15 do not re-
quire approval under the Subdivision Con-
trol Law, and that said plans be so en-
dorsed.
4-17-61
Mr. May stated that since the last time he met
with the Board (see minutes of November 7, 1960 Plan-
ning Board meeting) to discuss the proposed rezoning
of the Roberts Bres.and adjacent nronertzr (see also
minutes of January 23, 1961 Plann_ng Board meeting),
negotiations had been entered into wherein the
Roberts Brothers were to purchase the Gallagher, Lynch,
Morley and Snodgrass properties on Spring Street. Mr.
May said that he would furnish the Board with photo-
static copies of the contracts which provided that if
the land were not rezoned within a ,year the sellers
would have a right to withdraw from said contracts.
Mr. May stated that Mr. Green of 750 Cambridge -Concord
Highway had not entered into any contract but would be '
one of the petitioners of the rezoning proposal. It
was understood that Mr. Green had an interest In the
remaining portion of the Lamantea land not taken by
the Route 2-128 interchange. Mr. May also stated that
he thought Mr. Cowles was willing to have his land
on Spring Street rezoned. Mr. May said, however, that
Mr. Fox did not wish to enter into any such contract
and was not in favor of the rezoning proposal.
Mr. Soule indicated the possible courses of
action which the Planning Board could take in regard
to the proposal with specific reference to the ways
the zoning by-law might be amended. Mr. May said that
If the Planning Board were opposed to the -proposal he
would recommend that his clients drop the matter.
Mr. Cole left the meeting.
Mr. May and Mr. Russian next presented a sec -
A 1 DISTRICT and proposal, namely, that of rezoning for A 1 use a
REZONING portion of the former Home Guardian land situated on
PROPOSAL Bedford Street for the purpose of erecting a motel to
be known as"Powderhorn Inn." Mr. May stated that he
MALONFY ANL` understood that Mr. Prestejohn of Arlinrrton had an
PRESTEJOHN agreement to nurchase said land from its present '
owner, Mr. `,.rilliam G. Maloney of Lexington. Having
just entered the case Mr. May said that he was not
From 8:15 to 8:35 p.m. Mr. Charles IT, Cole,
REZONING
'
architect, and attorneys Norman T. May and Stephen
PROPOSAL
T. Russian met with the Board to present a plan
-
drawn by Mr. Cole, dated Anril 17, 1961, numbered
COUNTRYWIDE
X 1 and entitled "Land Use Study." The plan showed
OFFICES,
a loop road connected to Spring Street and massing
INC.
through the present Gallagher lot numbered 150 Spring
Street, lot 3 unc'erstood to be under option to
Countrywide Offices, Inc. of New York C tr, between
lots 4, 5, and 6, and extending along the Lexington -
Waltham boundary line.
Mr. May stated that since the last time he met
with the Board (see minutes of November 7, 1960 Plan-
ning Board meeting) to discuss the proposed rezoning
of the Roberts Bres.and adjacent nronertzr (see also
minutes of January 23, 1961 Plann_ng Board meeting),
negotiations had been entered into wherein the
Roberts Brothers were to purchase the Gallagher, Lynch,
Morley and Snodgrass properties on Spring Street. Mr.
May said that he would furnish the Board with photo-
static copies of the contracts which provided that if
the land were not rezoned within a ,year the sellers
would have a right to withdraw from said contracts.
Mr. May stated that Mr. Green of 750 Cambridge -Concord
Highway had not entered into any contract but would be '
one of the petitioners of the rezoning proposal. It
was understood that Mr. Green had an interest In the
remaining portion of the Lamantea land not taken by
the Route 2-128 interchange. Mr. May also stated that
he thought Mr. Cowles was willing to have his land
on Spring Street rezoned. Mr. May said, however, that
Mr. Fox did not wish to enter into any such contract
and was not in favor of the rezoning proposal.
Mr. Soule indicated the possible courses of
action which the Planning Board could take in regard
to the proposal with specific reference to the ways
the zoning by-law might be amended. Mr. May said that
If the Planning Board were opposed to the -proposal he
would recommend that his clients drop the matter.
Mr. Cole left the meeting.
Mr. May and Mr. Russian next presented a sec -
A 1 DISTRICT and proposal, namely, that of rezoning for A 1 use a
REZONING portion of the former Home Guardian land situated on
PROPOSAL Bedford Street for the purpose of erecting a motel to
be known as"Powderhorn Inn." Mr. May stated that he
MALONFY ANL` understood that Mr. Prestejohn of Arlinrrton had an
PRESTEJOHN agreement to nurchase said land from its present '
owner, Mr. `,.rilliam G. Maloney of Lexington. Having
just entered the case Mr. May said that he was not
' acquainted with the details of t?�is agreement but
would obtain them for the Board. He also said
that he had not examined the title to the land but
that he would do so. Mr. May stated,h owever, that
he understood that there were some lots in the
former Home Guardian subdivision which comprised
the land of Mr. Maloney which the latter did not
own but was In the process of acquiring.
There was filed with the Board a nreliminary
set of plans for the pronosed inn, the set consist-
ing of five sheets, dated Dec. 12, 19601 and pre-
nared by the firm of Bernard F. Healey Associates,
Thc., architectural designers, of ?:reymouth Heights,
Mass, Also filed were sheets 1 of 3 and 3 of 3 of
a set of prints of the nroposed residence of Mr.
Prestejohn to be located within the nronosed A 1
district. Accompanying the plans was a 51t x 7"
Kodacolor enlargement, dated January 1961, of an
aerial perspective of the nroposed development and
the existing environs,
Mr.. Russian pointed out that the estimated
cost of the first two buildings of the proposed de-
velonment as shown on Sheet 5 of the plans for the
' inn would be about t900,000. He said that with the
establishment of the Minute Man National Historic
Park he believed Lexin7ton needed additional facil-
!ties such as were included in the plans for the
Inn. He pointed out that even without the park
Lexington needed such large dining facilities as the
inn would provide.
The Board took the plans under advisement
pending the submission of further information by
Messrs. May and '?ussian.
Distributed to the Board were conies of a
letter, dated March lLp 1961, from Mr.Daniel G.
Wheeler, Vice President of Cabot, Cabot & Forbes,
said letter setting forth a statement which Mr.
14heeler had made at the March 01, 1061 planning
Board meeting, (See addendum.) Tt was decided
that the Board would have enlarged conies made of
the M 1 district print which was distributed at
the Annual Town Meeting in connection with the
nresentati_o.n of the Planning Board's proposal
under Art. 50. Each member was asked to study the
print and present to the Board individual propo-
sals for overall development of the M 1 district
' and adjacent area.
Discussed next was Mrs. Morev's letter of
-3-
CABOT, CABOT
& FORBES
PROPOSAL
L-17-61 -4-
April 12 to the Planning Board in reply to Mr. Snow's ,
communication of April 10 concerning a Landscape Ex-
change Problem based on the Great Meadows (see adden-
dum; see also minutes of April 10, 1961 Planning Board
meeting). Mr. Mabee gave a report of his recent con-
versation with Mr. Horace H. Homer, Vice Chairman of
the Town of Arlington Board of Selectmen, with refer-
ence to Lexington acquiring the Meadows. On the basis
of information which Mr. Mabee had obtained it was de-
cided not to send at this time a copy of said Land -
.cape Fxchange Problem to Mr. Richardson, Chairman of
the Arli-n�7,ton Committee appointed to stud7, the Meadows.
At 9:50 p.m. the Board adjourned Its meeting
to meet with the Board of Selectmen. (See minutes of
the Board of Selectmen's meeting for a record of the
matters discussed.)
�, st
Robert F. Meyer,
Clerk
ADDFND17M
Anri l 111, 1961
Town of Lexington
Planning Board
Town Hall
Lexin�,ton, Massachusetts
Gentlemen:
In confirmation of discussions at the Planning Board
meeting March 9, we assure ,you that we and our sub-
sidiary, which owns various parcels in the area be-
tween Bedford Street and the Airnort entrance northwest
of Route 12A::
1. Will be available to work with your Board and other
owners in the area to develop an appropriate master
plan and zoning changes for this area for submission
to the Town at a special Town meeting to be held in
May or June of this gear.
1
2. During the period until such meeting, and until -any
zoning changes then adopted become effective, will
not apply for any permits for uses not permitted in '
a C 3 zone or for lots of less than five acres, or
permit within fifty feet of any street any parking or
use other than landscaping, walks and driveways.
4-17-61
-5-
3. Expect to impose our own private restrictions requir-
ing brick or equivalent construction.
4. will work with the appropriate Town officials to
develop access from Hartwell Avenue to the areas be-
tween the Avenue and Route 128 being considered for
sanitary fill operations.
Yours truly,
CtiBOT, CABOT 9 VORBE'S CO.
/s/ Daniel G. wheeler
cc: Lexington Selectmen Vice President
DGw:sc
April 12, 1861
Mr. Richard u. Soule, Chairman
Lexington 'Tanning Board
Town Office Building
Lexington 73, Massachusetts
Re: Landscape Exchange Problems
' Dear Mr. Soule:
Since this program was introduced by Mr. Snow, because of
his former professional connections with recreational
planning, the Board feels that a communication to the
Arlington Selectmen should be written by Mr. Snow.
In this communication he could emolain how the project was
started and say that he was writing -at the request of the
Board of Selectmen and. the Planning Board. He could also
point out that both Towns would stand to benefit from this
wide study.
RM : m
1
Very truli, yours,
Isl Ruth Morey
Chairman