Planning Board

The Planning Board meeting focused on a mix of development review and zoning amendments. The Board approved the Site Plan Review for a proposed 2,300 sq ft Starbucks with a drive-through at 37 Clarks Rd, conditioned on satisfying outstanding Technical Review Committee and Design Review Committee comments and submitting revised plans and a memo summarizing responses. The Starbucks proposal included stormwater improvements, parking reconfiguration, a detention basin, dark-sky lighting, and traffic mitigation measures (including signal retiming and possible lane adjustments); staff, TRC/DRC and public commenters emphasized pedestrian and bicycle accommodations, landscaping enhancements, and coordination with adjacent hotel improvements.

The Board also voted to send positive recommendations to City Council on three zoning bills: Bill 2024-085 (amendments to allow limited, tightly constrained development in portions of the Water Resource Protection District with permanent protection requirements), Bill 2024-086 (expansion of the Historic Preservation Special Permit into additional zoning districts to encourage adaptive reuse while preserving character and requiring affordable units), and Bill 2024-087 (expansion of the Retail Marijuana Overlay District and addition of storefront design standards). Public comments included support for economic development and preservation measures, specific written concerns about traffic study timing and potential misuse of historic-preservation flexibility, and support from business and historic-commission representatives. The Board also approved a $11,500 inter-account peer-review transfer to fund Conservation Commission review for the Munter’s project at 14 S Hunt Rd.