by David Dahlbacka in All Ages, Beat Reporter, Development and Zoning, Environment and Open Space, Events, Housing, Neighborhoods and Squares, Pedestrians, Public Health & Safety, Traffic & Parking
Posted on May 16, 2010 at 7:40 pm
Last Modified on July 5, 2010 at 9:39 pm
| May 20, 2010 | ||
| 6:00 pm |
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Thurs. May 20, 6:00 PM
Aldermanic Chamber
Somerville City Hall
93 Highland Ave.
Somerville MA (map)
Agenda not available (5/16/10)
This is the regular meeting of the Somerville Planning Board. The Planning Board holds public hearings and grants permits for special districts, such as Planned Unit Developments. This meeting includes a continuation of the 1 Benton Road case, which has proved controversial.
This meeting is important because it deals with ongoing Somerville developments.
For background on the 1 Benton Road case, see:
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Thanks so much, DD!
More information on 1 Benton Road, from the City of Somerville Planning & Zoning Reports and decisions can be found at:
http://tiny.cc/y5isn.
Scroll down to Benton Rd 1 (Case # PB2009-17) and you can read 3 Staff reports, as well as subdivision plan, drainage report, and traffic impact assessment.
Along the way, you might find lots of other stuff interesting, too- from Albion Place to Woods Ave!
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Agenda available 5/18/10 at http://www.somervillema.gov/CoS_Content/documents/agenda/5-20-10.pdf.
Discussion will continue about 1 Benton Road issue. Also the Planning Board will discuss the new program of payment in lieu of parking.
I can’t make this meeting, so I’d be appreciative if someone would fill in and report what happened, especially on the Benton Road and parking payment issues.
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Jed Schwartz reports that the 1 Benton Road case was apparently continued again.
We need to keep following this, even if in relays. Fatigue is a factor, as is attention span.
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Is there a reason why people are against the place becoming condos? As a property owner myself, I own the property and not you. You have no right to say what I can or cannot do with my property (to some extent).
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Janine, you’re just realizing that the progressives don’t believe anyone owns anything? It’s all “community property” and the they (and Obummer) should decide what people do with their property, what people should/can smoke, eat and whether people should have any entertainment choices. They know best as they’re smarter than everyone else.
It’s all in their annual 5 year plan.
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The issues behind the opposition to the 1 Benton Road development seem to be these:
1. The original development involved a house that the neighborhood considered historic situated on a large lot. The neighbors considered the size and historic character of the original house as contributing to the value of their own property as well as to the character of the neighborhood.
2. The first new development involved remodeling the original house and making it into 3 condos. Two curb cuts were requested, one on Benton Road and the other on Summer Street.
3. The second new development, adding 3 new condos, could have been executed on the same large lot. However, the developers did not do this, preferring instead to subdivide the lot and create a second 3-condo development on the other half of the lot. It may be relevant that developing a 6-condo property would require that one of the six be priced as “affordable”.
4. There are safety concerns. One Benton Street is at a busy intersection, down the street from one school and across the street from another. Over 250 children, some in grade school, will be in the area during the morning rush hour, and the eastbound turn in the morning toward the school is into the sun.
5. There are tax base concerns. Somerville has far too much residential development and far too little commercial development, which has a higher property tax rate per square foot. Because subdividing residential development packs in people, it adds more to city expenses than is offset by the additional tax revenue.
For more details, see:
5/6/10 Planning Board Meeting – Beat Report
4/15/10 Planning Board – Beat Report
Proposed Developments: Reports and Decisions
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#1 has nothing to do with other owners besides the actual owner of the lot. I drive by this lot on a daily basis and it is not very busy (as Somerville Ave and Highland Ave are). I live across a street where this same issue is taking place and it is 7 years already. The guy owns the oldest house in Somerville with the biggest amount of space. Neighbors all over the area filed a lawsuit and it has dragged on way too long. I have never lived in a town where people care more about what others do with their property than their own. People should mind their own business sometimes.
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