by David Dahlbacka in All Ages, Beat Reporter, Development and Zoning, Environment and Open Space, Events, Green Line, Housing, Neighborhoods and Squares, Transportation
Posted on March 12, 2012 at 9:19 pm
Last Modified on March 12, 2012 at 9:20 pm
| March 15, 2012 | ||
| 6:00 pm | to | 9:00 pm |
loading…
Somerville Joint BOA and Planning Board Meeting
Thurs. Mar. 15 6:00 – 9:00 PM
Somerville City Hall
Aldermanic Chamber
93 Highland Ave.
Somerville MA (map)
Public Notice (PDF)
Agenda (PDF)
This is a special meeting of the Somerville Planning Board with the Somerville Board of Aldermen Committees.
Agenda includes evaluating whether the City should adopt the Somerville Comprehensive Plan.
Public notice includes 130 Broadway (establishing a restaurant and farmer’s market).
The Planning Board holds public hearings, provides recommendations to the Zoning Board of Appeals and Aldermanic committees, and grants permits for special districts, such as Planned Unit Developments.
For more information, see:
- Somerville Comprehensive Plan Process
- Somerville Planning Board (Agendas and Minutes | Reports and Decisions)
loading…
Beat Report: 3/15/12 Somerville Joint BOA and Planning Board Meeting
Bottom Line on Top
Somerville Comprehensive Plan presented with general expressions of approval. Some concerns from members of Planning Board that deviations from the job numbers would be interpreted as failure. Planning Board vote not held because BOA committee members did not attend. Plan to be presented to Land Use and Housing and Community Development Committees Thursday, March 29. Planning Board vote deferred to April 5 meeting.
According to Planning Department, Assembly Square Orange Line T-Stop to break ground “soon”. Avalon Bay is to pull Assembly Row residential development building permits “next week”.
Rough Notes
Present: Maroney, Capuano, Favaloro, Kirylo, Prior (PB), Massa, Duchesneau, Proakis (staff)
BOA committee members did not attend.
[COMMENT: Notes presented out of chronological order.]
——————————
Somerville Comprehensive Plan
City presents Comprehensive Plan to Planning Board, request it be adopted by Planning Board.
Final presentation by city. Plan development involved over 60 people and dozens of meetings.
Proakis: MGL requires cities to have comprehensive plans (doesn’t enforce it very much). Submitted to you and to BOA. BOA referred it to Land Use and Housing and Commmunity Development Committees (staff presenting plan to committees Thursday, March 29).
Maroney: Will there be changes at Land Use Committee, etc.?
Proakis: They could. Asking you to hear our presentation. If BOA committees have input, we’ll present it to you.
Every action step was written by subcommittee members.
[Show SomerVision video. On City web site.]
Brad Rossen: 20 minute presentation. BOA engaged throughout. Municipal comprehensive plans are state of the art. Interdisciplinary plan.
Big picture look at future, long-range road map, participatory, legal. Best practice, decision-making framework, foundation for zoning, touchstone for capital planning and launching for area plans.
2008: Staff assembled background material.
2009: Started meetings. (10 community meetings, etc.).
2010: Five public workshops. Logo contains words that came out in public processes. Mission statement (action oriented statements).
2009-2011: Steering committee: 26 public meeting, 4 workshops. Vision and values leading to goals, policies, and actions. Made sure to circle back to general Somerville residents.
2011: Committee began to work on land use. 28 page plan document. Steering committee documents are in 150 pages of appendices.
Proakis: Will highlight some chapters.
Goals: In Ch. 4, there are 5 subareas, 39 goals, 530 policies and actions.
Neighborhoods: (Goal) Preserving and enhancing character of neighborhoods. (Policy) Protect 1, 2, 3 family homes. (Actions) Curb-cut policies.
Corridors: (Goal) Attract diverse mix of businesses. (Policy) Permit streamlining to facilitate opening business. (Action) Electronic tracking system for applications.
Resources: (Goal) Spaces for creative production. (Policies) Retain affordable artist work spaces. (Action) Make zoning conducive to live/work and design/production.
Housing: (Goal) Balanced mix of safe, affordable, environmentally sound units. (Policy) Increase affordable housing. (Action) Menu of options for inclusionary housing requirements based on housing needs assessment.
Transportation: (Goal) Transit network with intermodal connections. (Policy) GLX should have multimodal connections. (Action) At GLX stations, design in pedestrian paths/networks.
Best value of comprehensive plan is to provide a basis for discussion. Look at plan goals to resolve conflicts.
Needed to put concepts on maps. Transportation context, future land context, simplified land context. Exercise with photos of use types that could be in Somerville’s future.
Land use categories: Neighborhood Residential, Urban Residential, Neighborhood Mixed Use, Urban Mixed Use, Transformational Mixed Use, Civic.
Neighborhood map: Conserve areas, enhance areas, transformation areas.
SomerVision numbers: 30,000 new jobs, 125 new acres, 6000 new housing, 1200 affordable, 50% new trips non-car, 85% of new development in transformative areas.
85% of area to conserve and enhance. 15% of city transformed. 292 acres buildable. 25500 jobs in transformational areas. Need to have day and night activity. Put in new housing (5100 units in transformational areas). The 2500 units in Assembly Square is mostly Assembly Row build out.
1200 affordable units are feasible. We aren’t going to increase inclusionary percentages. Some of these are like Mystic Valley Waterworks and St. Polycarp (purpose built).
237 acres to enhance.
In the end, 76% of city in preserve area,
Avalon Bay getting its building permits this week.
Lost 600 jobs in last 10 years. (More like 2000.)
Not a sit-on-the-shelf plan. Regrouped by Planning Department into 6 categories:
Station area plans, quality of life, housing, sustainability, infrastructure, zoning code overhaul.
Proakis is in court testifying about the Job Lots project.
Implementation metrics: progress toward numbers. Review plan in 5 years increments. Values don’t change, but priorities may.
Favaloro: Clearly comprehensive. What’s our role? Don’t see me amending this plan.
Maroney: Like fact we have specific numbers in specific places. Job numbers, car trips. One thing I wanted to mention was jobs numbers. Telling statistic that we lost 600 jobs. Expect to have 30000 jobs. One concern is, that’s a lot of jobs for our small number of square miles. Don’t want fact that we don’t create 500 jobs in next 5 years to be seen as a failure. Could you comment on that? Can we justify these numbers based on something?
Proakis: We don’t control regional and state economy. We see job growth in areas where Cambridge is pursuing housing growth. Best to position ourselves for our desired outcome. We’re better positioned than practically anywhere else, given Assembly Square. More excitement about possibilities as things become more real. The Orange Line T-stop groundbreaking coming soon. Will have business feeling we will make growth real because the Orange Line is happening. Our access will be better than Station Landing.
Maroney: Picked a number based on what? Where there are transit stations you get how many jobs?
Brad: Staff was hesitant to go this way. We were pushed by committee.
[COMMENT: Committee (including I) said that plan would be useless unless it had actual numerical targets.]
Study after study shows that biotech has huge demand. We haven’t added any commercial capacity in last 10 years. Residential market huge nowadays. For every 2 housing units, city should have policies that create 3 jobs.
Prior: Realistic goals. 2007 discussed with Monica L. She said there was no plan, no central business districts. We’ve created many of those districts by rezoning by consensus meetings. I was jaded by Assembly Square. Shovels going in the ground in Assembly Square this week. People with vision got to the table. Want to move forward with plan. Let’s use 30000 as a goal.
Want to close meeting, take it up after BOA meets. Will wait until April 5 meeting to vote.
——————————
Specific Cases
230 Somerville Ave.
DeGirolamo, Adam Dash. Met with building dept. Problem with egress is no tenants here. Owner OK with 2 egresses. Depends on tenants in space and load capacity. ISD met. No easy answer if loading dock area could be a legal egress. Owner OK with 2 side entrances. Loading dock is not the primary entrance.
Adam Dash, representing a tenant. Want to use Marian St. on back. 2 entrances to back, loading dock is loading dock. Add condition that rear space uses those two egresses. Want to lock it in. Supportive of high-tech client in back.
DeGirolamo: Don’t want condition saying two are main exits, one is emergency exit. Side entrances to be used. Won’t close off loading dock.
Dash: Not trying to pin down. They’ll use loading dock if there are deliveries.
Prior: Amend to include that entity in back use two side entrances as well as loading dock.
Maroney: Glad to see attorneys work this out.
[Voted to approve staff recommendation with new condition]
130 Broadway
New restaurant with drinking in CCD55 zone, also farmer’s market.
Presentation by owner: 3700 s.f. restaurant with outdoor seating, drinking, intend to alter facade and signage. Owners want to be part of revitalization of East Somerville. Extensive community outreach, got strong support. Approved for new alcoholic beverage license. Two world-class chefs (> 30 years’ experience). French cooking.
Concept: Homemade food, cozy vibe. Wood burning stoves and ovens, organic ingredients and CSA market. Locally known as Malatone building, center of revitalization of East Somerville.
Maroney: Sustainable cooking?
Owner: Own farm with 10 acres of produce, collect eggs, etc. Sustainable agriculture. Want to bring to urban neighborhood. Best area to do this, good sensibility here.
[No public remarks pro or con]
Massa: Alderman Roche e-mail in favor. City engineer report received with new street numbers.
Proakis: Attended 2 licensing meetings. East Somerville came and spoke in favor of application. Very excited about it at those meetings.
Favaloro: Lifelong East Somerville resident, look forward to what renovation of building brought. Thanks for coming to East Somerville.
[Move to accept staff recommendation, voted to accept.]
loading...