Business & Tech

Board of Appeal Approves CVS Site Plan

The Winchester Board of Appeal recently approved the CVS site plan proposed at the corner of Swanton and Washington Streets.

After several meetings about the CVS site plan proposed to be built at the corner of Swanton and Washington Streets, the Winchester Board of Appeal recently approved the project.

CVS, which already has a location on Main Street in Winchester, is planning to construct 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.

The plan, which was undergone changes since the Board of Appeals sent the proposal back to the Planning Board to be improved upon in January, has been revised in recent months thanks to input from the Planning Board and the Design Review Committee.

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Overview of Approved Site Plan

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

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

Issues Raised by Abutters

The board had to weigh a variety of variables for the proposal, including stormwater management, parking, lighting and groundwater management, to name a few. 

The project has drawn criticism from abutters and organizers of the No Mega CVS website have raised a number of issues about the proposal.

"While there are many aspects of the project that remain of great concern, including, but not limited to; pedestrian safety, increased traffic, and light, noise and air pollution, the over-arching 'elephant in the room' which appears to be at the core of issues that have resulted in multiple planning board and zoning board meetings is the monstrous square footage of the proposed structure," wrote Winchester resident Cathy MacDonald in a letter to the Board of Appeal, Planning Board and the Board of Selectmen. "It is this aspect of the proposal that has generated the numerous concerns from all board members, from soil toxins and ground water issues to parking space dimensions and traffic flow.

"If CVS is determined to open a second store in Winchester, then one of half the size proposed would work nicely with a collection of small, pedestrian friendly shops in a fashion much like the small shopping area at 600 Main Street. Store design, ground remediation and building issues, to name a few, would be far more manageable than the issues currently generated by a plan to build a box store on a site that presents significant obstacles to construction of this magnitude."

Despite recent concerns raised by abutters pertaining to rooftop noise and traffic, peer reviews and studies concluded that there would not be a significant impacts to the community.

Acting Chairman Richard Sampson has said the site plan has been "markedly improved" since January, and that the most recent traffic study "seems pretty conservative" and shows a 2 percent increase in impact according to the traffic expert.

Given the board's approval, there is a 60-day window for opponents of the project to file a written appeal, and then there would be a 20-day appeals process. It is unclear if an appeal will be filed by abutters.

What are your thoughts about the CVS project? Do you agree with the recently approved site plan? Let us know by posting a comment in the comments section below.


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