These minutes are not verbatim – they are the secretary’s interpretation of what took place at the meeting. – Open Meeting Law – Section III.
Board Members: Marc Garrett, Malcolm MacGregor, Paul McAlduff, Larry Rosenblum, and Bill Wennerberg
Planning Board Alternate: Timothy Grandy
Staff Members: Valerie Massard
Recording Secretary: Eileen Hawthorne
MEPOD Workshop
Bill Wynne updated the Board in regards to the residential component of Plymouth Rock Studios (PRS). The unit count has been reduced to 125 with all but 10 units as rental units. The 10 “for sale” units will be the 10 single family residential lots that front Long Pond Road. The rental units will be smaller, one and/or two bedroom units. The changes will be reflected in the traffic report. The Studio is working with legal counsel to draft the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). They have posted the current version of the Movie and Entertainment Production Overlay District (MEPOD) bylaw on their website. Mr. Wynne asked if the Board or public had any comments on the documents to forward them to the studio as soon as possible, so the comments could be addressed.
Marc Garrett asked which version of the MEPOD bylaw is the one that the Board would be reviewing.
Valerie Massard replied that the most current draft is dated August 22, 2008 and is posted along with the draft design guidelines on the Town’s website.
Mr. Wynne announced that they have scheduled a walk of the proposed access road on Saturday, August 30, 2008 at 9:00 a.m. Anyone that would like to participate should park in the high school lot and then carpool down to the proposed entrance off Clark Road.
Mark Wallace, Tech Environmental, presented the noise analysis status report. Mr. Wallace explained the common measures of sound: sound levels expressed decibels (dB) and are based on a logarithmic scale because sound that is perceived by the human ear has a wide range of intensity; sound levels are not directly additive (i.e., 70 dB + 70 dB= 73 dB, not 140 dB); noise exposure is commonly expressed in dBA (approximate frequency of the human ear).
The human perception of sound varies, but most people can just perceive a 3dB change in sound pressure levels with a 5dB change noticeable and a 10 db change twice as loud. Mr. Wallace reviewed some common indoor and outdoor sound levels ranging from 25 dBA to 110 dBA. A 25 dBA indoors would be similar to the noises in an empty concert hall and outdoors would be similar to a rural area at night. A 110 dBA indoors would be similar to a rock band playing and outdoors would be similar to a jet takeoff at 1,000 ft. The existing acoustic environment was measured by conducting a site visit selecting five sites to be monitored. The five monitoring locations were 440 Long Pond Road, 14 Mast Road, 1 & 2 Bowsprit Lane, 1 Martingale Lane and the Middle and High Schools. Measurements were taken for 20 minute
intervals in the daytime between 9:30 and 11:30 a.m. and during the night between midnight and 2:00 a.m. They measured both low and high frequency sounds. The dominant noises in the area were traffic, aircraft and insects. Types of sound sources expected for the studio would include: stationary sounds such as AHU’s, cooling towers, emergency generators, exhaust fans, and the mill shop; mobile sounds such as delivery trucks and backup alarms; and temporary construction noises such as excavation concrete pouring, framing and paving. Types of sound mitigations would include: use of mufflers, silencers and acoustic louvers; use of buildings as shielding; specifying the use of quieter equipment; and construction of earthen berms especially along Long Pond Road. The next steps will include creating a detailed sound analysis; assessing the operational and construction sound levels and mitigation measures. The analysis should be completed in the
next 2-3 weeks.
Larry Rosenblum asked about what kind of noise could be expected from the activities on the back lot.
Mr. Wallace explained that the back lot would have some equipment moving in preparation for scenery shooting. He stated that the model would include the potential activities on the back lot.
Marc Garrett asked why the existing sound levels were not measured at night at the high schools and whether the model would include comparison tables for the existing and future sound levels when the studio is operational.
Mr. Wallace stated that typically the sound generated from the schools is during the daytime hours. The model would have tables that compare existing sounds to the added sound from the studios.
Bill Wennerberg stated that there is night time noise at the high school especially during a football game and that the noise level of a football game could be used as a comparison. He stated that it would help to put the noise in context with what is known to generate noise; For example, the noise would be no louder than a football game or less than what a football game would generate.
Gary Maestas, Superintendent of Schools, stated that the band practicing and playing, large tournaments, and sport activities, etc. generate a great deal of noise at different times throughout the year, including weekends.
Malcolm MacGregor stated that the law allows an increase of 10dB over ambient noise. He stated that as activity increases over the years, the ambient goes up and he asked if the allowable noise level from the site increases, would the allowable dB then increase? Could it be limited now?
Mr. Wallace stated that the noise levels are based on existing noise in 2008. Another noise study would have to be done in the future to look at whether the noise level has been exceeded.
Paul McAlduff suggested that the study should include the noise generated by the Rte 3 corridor has ambient noise.
Mr. Wallace stated that they did pick up the noise from Rte 3 along Long Pond Road which blends in with the background noise.
Tim Grandy asked if the units used to measure the sound were calibrated and when the measurements were taken.
Mr. Wallace replied that the instruments were calibrated and that the measurements were taken during the hours of 9:30 – 11.30 a.m. and 12:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. The goal was to capture the lowest sound levels at night and during the daytime, so that the measures are conservative.
Rich Rothstein explained that the character of the noise is measured and used to compare how additional noise the studio would create would be similar or dissimilar.
Jerry Benezra stated that it is difficult to understand the implications and if the public was going to participate in a meaningful way, the presentations should be posted in advance. He also asked when the financial study would be available.
Mr. Garrett stated that the Board is working toward getting all the information to the public as it becomes available.
Margaret Conant commented that when the weather changes there are days when it seems like the noise from Rte 3 travels and sounds like it is very close.
Mr. Wallace explained that wind and other weather conditions will be included in the model.
Joseph DeSilva asked if the numbers that were presented were an average taken over time. He commented that football games only happen 5 or 6 times a year only for a few months.
Mr. Wallace explained that the figures were an average of the sound levels taken at 20 minute intervals during the study period.
Mr. Garrett asked Mr. DeSilva to provide information on episodic events that take place at the school or in the area.
Loring Tripp asked if the noise the studio will generate would be louder than the seaplanes that use Long Pond for a landing strip. He stated that the noise of the seaplanes should be monitored.
Mr. Garrett suggested that it would be possible to gather information on the noise level of a single engine seaplane and include that in the model.
Mr. Wallace replied that he could include the information if he can obtain data on the type of planes that are landing.
Steve Saja was concerned that the school traffic was not included in the noise levels.
Mr. Garrett explained that the noise levels are gathered at the quietest possible scenario to compare to the noise the studio would generate. The study will show the worst case scenario and what the community is living with on a day to day basis.
Colleen McDonough asked if the numbers incorporated weekend sound levels.
Mr. Wallace replied that the sampling was done mid week.
Sharon LaRosa asked how the modeling data was derived and if actual data exists for working sound stages.
Mr. Wallace stated that he does not have the sound stage information yet, but will add into the model the sound sources that the sound stages will generate. It will help them strategize to create sound mitigation.
Mr. Garrett asked PRS to obtain sound data for comparison purposes from existing studios in California.
Mike Hogan stated that he was involved with Saturday night concerts on the waterfront and they constantly tried to accommodate the neighbors. It was difficult to determine what an acceptable sound level was. Mr. Hogan felt that the studio would not generate as much noise as the concerts did because the studio is a controlled environment where it has to be quiet while filming.
Dennis Hanks, Executive Director of the Chamber of Commerce, stated that he went to California and visited Paramount Studio. He presented pictures of the activity at the studio and stated that he was amazed at how quiet the facility was. It is not like a Disney or Universal experience, it was very quiet. The back lot noise was less than what happens on Plymouth’s waterfront. He stated that when a helicopter flew overhead, all filming stopped because it was too noisy. Mr. Hanks stated that during the time period he was there, there were actually 2,600 people working, but he only actually saw 100 people. Most of the activity takes place within a closed sound stage.
Mr. Rosenblum stated that there is a huge a psychological factor to sound that is a nuisance it is subjective.
Mr. Wynne explained that the workshops are to gain the public input and address the concerns. He stated that the workshop information is presented to the Planning Board first and is then posted to the websites; but the public hearing information will be posted in advance.
Marc Garrett stated that the Planning Board wants the information posted well in advance of September 15th, and that there will continue to be meaningful debate at the next meetings on September 3rd and September 8th of what has been presented to date.
Jeff Dirk, Vanasse Associates, presented updated data for the Transportation System Impact Assessment. The traffic report has been drafted and will be provided to the Town next week. As requested during the preliminary review of the traffic report, additional data was collected on the northern section of Long Pond Road. Mr. Dirk explained the methodology of the assessment. The assessment was prepared in accordance with EOEA/Mass Highway standards; assessed existing conditions; projected future conditions to 2018; projected an impact assessment and will present proposed transportation system improvements. The goal of the assessment is to establish a baseline and make sure we have safe conditions and can handle the capacity of projected traffic. The state requires a five year projection, but the assessment
was done for a ten year period as some of the approved projects for the area will be built out over a longer period of time. Traffic counts were done at above-average use times (which exceed the state-required average counts) and peak conditions were used on route 3. Mr. Dirk reviewed the study areas which include the following intersections: Long Pond Road at Jordan Road; Long Pond Road at Alden Road; Long Pond Road at Mast Road and Waverly Oaks Drive; Long Pond Road at Clark Road; Clark Road at the Route 3 Southbound ramps; Clark Road at the Route 3 Northbound ramps; Route 3 Southbound at the Clark Road On/Off rams and Route 3 Northbound at the Clark Road On/Off ramps. The traffic counts were taken June 2006, June 2008, and July 2008. The school traffic was included in the traffic counts. Mr. Dirk found that the majority of the traffic coming off Route 3 is heading to Long Pond Road. The existing traffic counts showed that 11,620 vpd use
Clark Road, 4, 500 vpd use Long Pond Road, and 42,900 vpd use Route 3. He also looked at the average travel speeds on Long Pond Road (37 mph) and Clark Road (38 mph). Long Pond Road is an existing portion of the Claire Saltonstall Bicycle Route from Boston to Cape Cod and there is an existing paved multi-use trail along Alden Road through the State Forest. There are no sidewalks in the area. Existing public transportation exists at Cordage Park and Kingston; the Plymouth & Brockton bus service and the PAL bus service could be extended to the site.
Mr. Dirk reviewed the motor vehicle crash data at each of the intersections over the past three years which is based on the number of crashes per million vehicles traveling through the area. The intersections of Long Pond Road at Jordan Road and Long Pond Road showed a higher number of crash rates than the State average. At Long Pond Road and Jordan Road the number of crashes that occurred involved single motor vehicles that drove off the roadway and hit a fixed object. The crashes at Clark Road and Long Pond Road were mostly slower speed fender benders. When looking at future conditions he took into account full build out of three major development projects in the area by others (Pinehills, River Run, and the school expansion) along with the traffic the studio would generate, and a 1.0% growth rate. The
studio’s projected traffic numbers have been reduced to reflect the reduction in residential units. The total number of projected trips the studio would generate external to the site is 9,916 with the weekday morning peak trips at 1,146 and weekday evening peak hour at 1, 192. The traffic distribution to and from the site is estimated as follows: 55% from Route 3 north; 20% from Route 3 south; 5% from Long Pond Road south; 4% from Long Pond Road north; and 1% from Jordan Road. Transportation system improvements include the following:
Clark Road – Reconstruct Clark Road corridor between Long Pond Road and the Route 3 overpass to provide a general 4-lane cross-section and a landscaped median; provide a 3-lane cross-section between the Route 3 overpass and the Route 3 northbound ramps.
Long Pond Road North Corridor – implement a comprehensive sign, pavement marking and sight line improvement program; install traffic calming features at defined locations (Jordan Road, Alden Road, Mast Road, School Access, and Clark Road).
Other traffic improvements include improving the proposed roundabout with a right turn only lanes onto Long Pond Road at the Clark Road/Long Pond Road intersection, construction of a northbound slip ramp onto Route 3, and signalization of the following three intersections: the proposed studio access road and Clark Road; the Clark Road and Route 3 southbound ramp and the Clark Road and Route 3 northbound ramp. The site access would have a single lane into the site and two left turn exiting lanes and one right turn lane exiting onto Clark Road, with a bicycle pedestrian path. A landscaped median has been provided from the Route 3 southbound ramp to Clark Road. Alternatives for slip ramps off Route 3 south directly to the site were presented as follows: a new slip ramp from the existing Route 3 southbound ramp to the access
road near Clark Road; a new Y shaped southbound exit and entrance ramp directly onto Route 3 from the site and a new southbound access ramp directly to the site. Other traffic calming measures that would have no private property acquisitions included a raised median to slow traffic and a curb line bump out with a raised crosswalk at the school entrance on Long Pond Road. The proposed improvements will accommodate pedestrians, bicycles, school buses and emergency vehicles. There will also be a transportation demand management program, traffic monitoring and reporting program and follow-on transportation planning after the improvements are completed. The final traffic report will be submitted next week.
The Board took a five-minute break.
Paul McAlduff asked if a roundabout at the intersection of Long Pond Road and Jordan Road would be appropriate, what time the evening traffic counts were taken, if a slip ramp south onto Route 3 (which would allow the signalization to be moved) has been considered, and whether the proposed crosswalk on Long Pond Road could be raised.
Mr. Dirk replied that a roundabout at the Long Pond Road/Jordan Road was not warranted because there isn’t a capacity issue at that intersection; the evening counts were taken between 4:00 to 6:00 p.m.; the signalization at the existing southbound ramp is needed to get the traffic off the ramp and functions well at peak; and the crosswalk at the entrance of the school could be raised and painted with reflective material. There is not enough capacity for vehicles entering southbound Route 3 traffic at Exit 3 even through the year 2018 to justify the cost or need for a ramp.
Mr. Garrett stated that at the Jordan Road intersection a portion of the travelled way is on private property.
Mr. Dirk stated that this situation might impact improvements for that intersection and a roundabout that is pulled back into the public right of way might be a better solution, he will consider this.
Mr. MacGregor asked how the distribution was determined and was a sensitivity analysis was done.
Mr. Dirk replied that the distribution was based on US census data for employed individuals, where Plymouth residents work and the residential population of the area. The sensitivity analysis tried to load a reasonable level of traffic onto the local roadway network because that is where impacts would be expected. Census data has been adjusted from 2000 to reflect current data and trends.
Mr. MacGregor asked if there was any data on the studio tourism component that will occur and whether the increased traffic on Route 3 would impact the merge on Exit 4. .
Mr. Dirk stated that the tourism component was built into the production component based on tourism data from Paramount Studios and that the impact to Route 3 would mainly be at the Exit 3 ramps, and adjustments are shown to mitigate for projected 2018 patterns.
Mr. MacGregor agreed with Mr. McAlduff on the traffic calming of the raised crosswalk, but thought that it would contribute to noise and should be included in the noise analysis.
Mr. Dirk explained that the crosswalk would rise about 3 inches from the road and there would be a gradual ramp up and down for approximately 10 ft. before and after the 10 ft. wide crosswalk; vehicles would have to slow to approximately 20 mph to safely traverse them.
Mr. MacGregor suggested that the access road should have a boulevard entrance.
Mr. Dirk agreed and perhaps a median with sidewalk to break up the paved area.
Mr. Rosenblum noted that if the slip ramp solution was used, they would only have to signalize the left turn lane off the southbound ramp and wouldn’t have to do the improvements to (widening) Clark Road between the roundabout and the ramp. This would also eliminate the two mile long access road would not have to be built.
Mr. Dirk stated that they would still need the access road to get the traffic that needs to go north on Route 3 onto Clark Road, and approval for a brand new interchange could take 5 to 10 years. Additionally, the alternative Mr. Rosenblum is suggesting loads weaving and undesirable spacing on the highway, introducing unnecessary traffic onto Route 3 over a short distance at highway speeds.
Mr. Rosenblum encouraged the proponents to keep the traffic off Clark Road by accessing the site directly from Route 3. He asked what the alternative solutions that would be presented to MEPA were.
Mr. Dirk stated the scenarios being presented to MEPA would be:
1. To use the existing access to the site off Long Pond Road with the improvements committed to by the Pinehills and A.D. Makepeace on Clark Road;
2. Creating the access road off Clark Road with the proposed improvements as presented and the slip ramp alternatives that were presented this evening.
Mr. Rosenblum stated that the access road would be a two-mile road through the woods which would be used by tractor trailer trucks, employees, buses and teenage traffic and would become a speedway and be a safety hazard. He stated that the Clark Road solution is not a rural solution and there will be all sorts of problems.
Mr. Dirk stated that the access road would be designed to function safely and would have lighting and traffic calming measures, and that he has designed many school access roads.
Mr. Rosenblum expressed an interest in hearing from the Superintendent of Schools and parents regarding the proposed access road.
Mr. Maestes stated that he was supportive of the concept for the access road to provide school access, but that safety was a priority and he would need to see the road design before offering more comment.
Mr. McAlduff asked if the school department could take away student parking privileges if they were speeding on the access road.
Mr. Maestes replied that parking is a privilege and they could lose their parking permits if they were caught speeding.
Tim Grandy stated that he had a newly licensed driver in his family and was supportive of the proposed access road if designed for safety. He asked where they were at the State level for the review of the proposed access alternatives and whether a breakdown of the crash data would be included in the final report.
Mr. Dirk replied that he would be meeting with the State tomorrow. He explained that the improvements to an existing ramp could be done at a local level, but that a new ramp would require both state and federal approval. He stated that three years of crash data would be included in the final report.
Mr. McAlduff was concerned that if the slip ramp was only done in one direction (southbound) and there was no access to Clark Road vehicles would have to go to Exit 5 and turn around to head south and access the slip ramp. He was also concerned with tractor trailers being able to access the slip ramp onto Route 3 safely.
Mr. Garrett asked if the Board could get a summary of the results of tomorrow’s meeting with Mass Highway.
Mr. Dirk agreed to provide the meeting notes to the Board.
Public Comment:
Steve McAuley stated that if the access road is not installed, they won’t build the studio and to suggest that we wait for the approval of slip ramps may hold up the project.
Mr. Rosenblum stated that the Board has to look at all options.
Al Hoyt was supportive of the studios, but not supportive of the proposed roundabout at Clark Road and Long Pond Road. He asked if there would be a right turn lane for people coming from the south on Long Pond Road to take a right onto Clark Road.
Mr. Dirk explained that the heavy traffic movements are separated by the traffic circle.
Fr. Richard Curran asked if the studio would be open to visitors and if the hotel would be open to the public. He also asked if the commissary would be in the existing clubhouse and if there would be a central location for people to park and be bussed into the site.
Mr. Garrett explained that the hotel and amenities would be open to the public, but the sound stages and back lot would be in a secured area of the site. There will be a shuttle to bring people to the studio.
Mr. Wynne stated that the commissary would be in the clubhouse.
Jim Concannon stated that traffic and access are the most important issues and will impact more than just Route 3. He asked if Mass Highway has looked at the alternatives and if tonight’s information would be available to the public soon. He was concerned that there would not be enough time to evaluate all the information.
Mr. Dirk replied that Mass Highway has seen some of the proposed improvements and will be assessing all the options, costs, timelines, etc.
Mr. Garrett stated that there will be time to comment on the reports once the MEPA filing is made.
Kevin Doyle was supportive of the proposed northbound ramp and the roundabout. He stated that the intersection of Route 3A and Beaver Dam Road will also be impacted by the traffic and stated that this intersection should not be overlooked. Mr. Doyle asked if the existing main entrance to the school would be eliminated.
Mr. Garrett replied that the existing school entrance would remain and the access road would be an alternative and provide bus access to the schools.
Larissa Barry, 65 Ceveland Road, stated that with or without the studio traffic will continue to increase. She stated that she has worked in Hollywood and noted that when they were filming 90210 in a Van Nuys neighborhood there were no complaints regarding noise and traffic. Loring Tripp was not satisfied with the proposed mitigations for the area, but felt that they would come up with a solution that works during the site plan review. He was concerned with the safety issues at the Jordan Road/Long Pond Road intersection. He also suggested eliminating the Clark Road/Long Pond Road roundabout, and relocating Long Pond Road to directly line up with the access road and enter Long Pond Road at some point north of the studio.
Eric Nemes was concerned that traffic would back up into the roundabout and asked if the traffic mitigations would be temporary until the State could be an interchange.
Mr. Dirk explained that the signals would have sensors in the pavement and would be timed to eliminate back-up and that a fully functioning interchange would require private property takings.
Steve Saja stated that this is a unique opportunity to mitigate the traffic and sound issues. He suggested relocating Long Pond Road from the south to line up with the access road and putting the rotary or signalization at that intersection. He also suggested disengaging the load factor off Long Pond Road and looping the access road to come out near the Crosswinds Golf Course, the entrance to the State Forest or Jordan Road. He also suggested putting a full cloverleaf interchange of Route 3 to access the site.
Andrea McMullen stated that the proposed improvements are already in place for Long Pond Road because of other projects in the area. She was concerned with the safety of the bicyclists traveling on Long Pond Road.
Mr. Garrett confirmed that the Long Pond Road/Clark Road improvements were required as part of the approvals for River Run and the Pinehills Development. Mr. Garrett explained that the bicycle route on Long Pond Road is part of the Saltonstall Bikeway which is overseen by Mass Highway.
Oliver Durell asked if the impact of the studio has exceeded the projected studies for the Makepeace project (a.k.a. River Run).
Mr. Dirk explained that the Makepeace project, the Pinehills Development, and the studio were all taken into consideration for this traffic study.
Leighton Price asked how much traffic during the peak hour in the evening would be exiting the access road without backing up.
Mr. Dirk stated that a double left turn lane has been provided and the signalization will be timed to allow the traffic volume to exit in a timely fashion.
Mr. Rosenblum asked what the State Highway’s easement at the northern end of the Waverly Oak site was and if there could be slip ramps that don’t require a land taking.
Mr. Dirk stated that tractor trailer trucks would have difficulty accessing the site at that location and he could show that to the Board; that the ramps will not fit when taking the 3-dimensional design factors in to consideration without land takings.
Mr. Rosenblum encouraged the studio to consider all the options.
Paul McAlduff moved to adjourn at 10:20 p.m.; the vote was unanimous (5-0).
Respectfully Submitted,
Eileen M. Hawthorne Approved: September 8, 2008
Administrative Assistant
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