Planning Board
Board approved a hanging sign for Looks by Lopez at 14 Market Square, recommended acceptance of the 6 Center St. preservation restriction (Bill 2024-058), granted a 2-year extension for the 39-41 Hillside Ave decision, endorsed the Stantec contract through 2026, and authorized a working group to refine the IAMesbury 2030 Master Plan.
The Planning Board met remotely and handled several administrative and substantive planning items. The Board approved a hanging sign application for Looks by Lopez at 14 Market Square and recommended that the City Council accept the preservation restriction for 6 Center St. (a referral of Bill 2024-058). The Board also approved a two-year extension for the decision on the mixed-use redevelopment at 39-41 Hillside Ave and endorsed an umbrella contract with Stantec for inspectional and construction monitoring services through the end of 2026.
A significant portion of the meeting was devoted to discussion of the draft IAMesbury 2030 Master Plan. Members agreed the draft meets many requirements but lacks an explicit land use element, an implementation plan, and a bibliography; they noted formatting and typo issues and requested more specificity on timeframes and costs. The Board authorized staff to develop the land use element and to work with the Task Force and Mayor’s Office on an implementation plan and bibliography, and it authorized a three-member working group (Rettig, Jewell, Chalifour) to compile comments and return recommendations. Continuances for several public hearing applications were carried to the June 10, 2024 meeting.