Business & Tech

Board of Appeal Requests CVS Pay for Traffic Study

The Winchester Board of Appeal voted Tuesday night to have CVS Pharmacy pay for a peer review traffic study in the area of the retailer's proposed store at the corner of Swanton and Washington Streets.

The Winchester Board of Appeal voted Tuesday night to have CVS Pharmacy pay for a peer review traffic study in the area of the retailer's proposed store at the corner of Swanton and Washington Streets.

CVS, which has a location on Main Street in Winchester, is proposing to develop a 11,995-square-foot store with a 2,405-square-foot mezzanine in the area of 278-292 Washington St., 12 Swanton St. and 16-20 Swanton St. The area is currently zoned as mixed use, which allows for commercial development.

Peer Review Traffic Study

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After hearing updates about the newly revised site plan, the board unanimously approved having CVS pay up to $5,000 for the traffic study. While the parameters of the traffic study were not immediately available, a resident requested "feeder streets" such as Chester, Florence and Irving Streets be included in the study, which the board took under advisement.

The town's engineering department is expected to seek out three bids before selecting a winning firm to conduct the study, according to the board. A representative with the developer stated that they would contact town staff Wednesday to determine the next steps to expedite the process.

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Seeking Counsel on Ownership

The board, which will next meet at 7:45 p.m. June 11 at Town Hall in the Winchester Room, also voted to get town counsel's input as to how it should proceed with regards to ownership issues raised during the public hearing Tuesday. Tuesday's session was a continuance from the board's April 2 hearing, which ended without a site plan review due to developer not having an updated plan readily available.

Daniel Hill, an attorney representing some abutters to the project, claimed one of five parcel owners — Y.D. Realty Trust — did not provide a title of property signature and that there was "misrepresentation" in the developer's Application for Zoning Hearing. Y.D. Realty dissolved roughly 40 years ago, according to Hill.

Fashion Real Estate Trust and Bossi Realty Trust have provided their signatures, but Y.D. Trust has not given their consent, according to Hill. CVS plans to demolish the retail mall at 278-292 Washington St., auto repair shop at 12 Swanton St. as well as a dry cleaner and restaurant located at 16-20 Swanton St. to make way for the new pharmacy.

New Site Plan

During their presentation of the revised site plan, CVS provided an overview of the changes made. In January, the Board of Appeal remanded the developer to the Planning Board to have revisions made to the original proposal. CVS also received input from the town's Design Review Committee.

The store's footprint was reduced by about 1 percent, the delivery loading dock was reversed and is now located at the southeast corner of the property, where there is increased buffering, and the store entrance will be on Swanton Street while the exit is onto Washington Street, according to the proposal. 

Other features proposed for the site include 63 parking spaces, a bike rack and benches along Washington Street, four 18-foot light poles and a subsurface infiltration system, according to Brian Dundon, a civil engineer with Stoneham-based engineering firm R.J. O'Connell & Associates, Inc. representing the developer.

The Fire Department has approved all fire lanes and egress points to the building, according to Dundon. He added that instead of four curb-cuts there are now just two in the plan—one on Washington Street and the other on Swanton Street.

Board Weighs-In

Based on his review of the current proposal, Acting Chairman Richard Sampson said the site plan has been "markedly improved" since January. Sampson said the latest traffic study "seems pretty conservative" and shows a 2 percent increase in impact according to the traffic expert.

Board member Lawrence Beals said the developer presented "an adequate traffic study," but he did raise some concerns about the drainage system at the site that he requested the developer make improvements upon.

The board, as well as some of the several dozen residents in attendance for the session, raised concerns regarding the drainage system, landscape buffering and some design elements including changing the building's brick color scheme which is largely made up of chocolate-colored bricks.

The Design Review Committee may meet as soon as next week to review the current CVS plan and provide additional comments about the proposal.


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