The Internal Traffic Committee met in the Selectmen’s Hearing Room, 2nd floor Town Hall at 78 Main Street, Hudson, Massachusetts. At 10:00 AM the Committee called the meeting to order.
Present: Tony Marques, Captain Dave Stephens, Jeff Wood and Jennifer Burke
Traffic Issues
School Street Parking
Present was: Manuel Santos & Lucy Bairos, Old School House Pub, 17 School Street
Ms. Burke noted that the Board of Selectmen had requested the Committee review the parking on School Street at the request of Mr. Santos. She noted the existing regulations. Mr. Marques presented an aerial photo of the area and noted the no parking zones.
Mr. Santos stated that the sign in front of his building is wrong. Mr. Marques said that according to the regulations the sign in the correct location. Captain Stephens indicated that the sign has two arrows and should only have one. Mr. Marques will check on that. Mr. Santos stated that the sign does not look good in front of his new building. He is not complaining about the actual regulation, he does not like the aesthetics of the sign.
Ms. Burke spoke with Chief Blood he would like to keep all regulations as is. Mr. Wood agreed. Captain Stephens suggested moving the no parking area closer to Washington Street to get the sign away from the building if that was the issue.
Mr. Santos also spoke about vehicles not obeying the regulations and signs. He was told that the police would increase enforcement. The DPW will review all signage for accuracy. If there are still issues the Committee will discuss School Street again in July.
Deck Hockey
Present was: Linda Ghiloni, Director of Recreation
Ms. Ghiloni reviewed that the non profit group has taken over operations. There will be no tournaments. There have not been any issues. The group has spent money to fix up the rinks. The Park Commission would like to issue a use of town property authorization like all other youth organizations.
Ms. Burke stated that Chief Blood has had no issues with the hockey league and has no problem with an ongoing arrangement. Mr. Marques has already spoken with a member of the non profit and a member of the Park Commission. He has had no problems with the current operation. He would like an annual review so that the Town can catch problems before they become too large.
Ms. Ghiloni had no problem with that. She also stated that the Use of Town Property form can be revoked at any time.
Main Street
Ms. Burke noted she was in receipt of an email from a resident at Whispering Pines. The email expressed concern for the speed vehicles are traveling over the Main Street bridge and the inability for cars to exit Whispering Pines safely.
Mr. Marques indicated that the speed limit does slow down over the bridge and the posted limits were covered during construction. They may still be covered. He will check into that and fix the signs.
The Committee felt that the sight distance out of the driveway was better since the construction due to the road being straightened. The Committee felt no additional signage was necessary.
Rotary
Mr. Marques presented the traffic study from Highland Commons. He stated that he and Paul Blazar recently spoke about the money to fund improvements at the rotary. He would like the committee’s thoughts on which option would be desirable at this time. Option 1 is painting around the rotary, option 2 is cobblestones around the rotary and option 3 is full reconstruction.
After a brief discussion the committee felt that at this time option 2 would be most desirable.
Site Plan Discussions
JFK
Present was: Leigh Sherwood, OMR Architects
David Harris, OMR Architects
James Forrest, OMR Architects
Bill Brown, Brown-Sardina
Jared Gentillucci, Nitsch Engineering
Chris Kruger, RDK Engineers
Mr. Sherwood presented the conceptual plan to the Committee. He noted that the existing building will be demolished. The new building is designed to hold approximately 715 students over 3 grades. There will be a pod set up. The recent public meeting with the school committee indicated that safety was the number 1 concern and the neighbors want to encourage pedestrian traffic. A traffic study will be done by Nitsch Engineering.
Mr. Sherwood reviewed all aspects of the plan including the fields out back. Ms. Ghiloni indicated that she had been consulted earlier in the week. She would like to see one baseball/softball diamond and as many little guys’ soccer fields as possible. There is an access road along the side of the building to the fields. The committee felt that should be gated to prevent vandalism. There was discussion regarding using the opticom system to open the gate from the emergency vehicles. There was some discussion regarding the proximity to wetlands. Ms. Burke noted that Conservation should be consulted sooner rather than later even though it is previously disturbed area.
Mr. Wood noted his concern for the lack of storage in the building he commented on several areas that he felt was wasted space. Mr. Sherwood explained the need for the various spaces. He also noted that the MSBA is very strict in certain aspects of design.
Mr. Marques noted that there is drainage at the entrances to the school and that the contractor should be aware of that. He indicated that with sidewalks to both entrances form the school it might be prudent to review the surrounding area for sidewalks. He particularly noted going north on Manning Street toward Stratton Road.
Mr. Marques as well as Ms. Burke had concerns regarding the traffic/parking management during construction. Both felt it should not be left to the contractor and some plan should be in place prior to bidding the job. Ms. Burke indicated that the Planning Board will like have conditions regarding that issue.
Mr. Marques noted snow storage as a concern and to make sure that there is room to accommodate all the snow and have a plan for potential removal. He also noted that the water line should be looped.
Captain Stephens had several questions about vandalism and preventing mischief. He would like the roof inaccessible to students. He suggested motion lighting for the rear courtyards. He likes the idea of video cameras in around the perimeter of the building.
Ms. Burke reviewed the permitting process with the development team. She offered to sit down with them when the submittal time was closer.
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