City of Salem Massachusetts
Public Meeting Minutes
Board or Committee: Redevelopment Authority, Regular Meeting
Date and Time: Wednesday October 14, 2009, at 6:00pm
Meeting Location: Third Floor Conference Room, 120 Washington Street
Members Present: Chairperson Michael Brennan, Robert Mitnik, Conrad Baldini, Michael Connelly, Russell Vickers
Members Absent:
Others Present: Executive Director and City Planner Lynn Duncan and Economic Development Manager Tom Daniel
Recorder: Lindsay Howlett
Chairperson Michael Brennan calls the meeting to order.
Executive Director’s Report
Council on Aging Building: Duncan states that six proposals were received and from those, two were selected for interview process. LDA (architectural firm) was chosen as a result of the interview. There was a kick off meeting held which Russell Vickers attended. Natalie Lovett is the project manager.
There will be two public meetings held to gain input from the neighborhood on potential reuses. Duncan will confirm the meeting date in an email once confirmed with the consultant.
Duncan verified that the next SRA board meeting will be held on November 4th due to Veteran’s day. Baldini will be leaving November 1st, will be unable to attend and has no objections to the meeting being held in his absence. The annual meeting will also be held on November 4 at which time there will be the election of officers.
Old Salem Jail: Charlie Perkins is actively marketing the restaurant space and has reported an encouraging amount of interest. Removal of the second floor is complete. A site visit has been offered to members of the SRA. Daniel will confirm a date and time for the site visit. Vickers asks how they are getting the blocks out. Duncan responds they are being broken up and being removed out the windows. Mitnik states all the slate roofing has been removed.
Brennan states that the old weathervane blew off the Old Salem Jail in a storm years ago and that the building official has it. Brennan suggests informing the developer in case they want to refurbish it. Daniel states there is not much left to the weathervane. Duncan suggests reimplementation of weathervane could require additional review by MassHistoric and the National Park Service because of the state and federal historic tax credits. Mitnik states a redo of the review would cost money.
Outdoor Cafés: Duncan informs the board that there is a City Council meeting tomorrow night at 7:00 pm at Council Chambers and hopes the SRA board will attend to discuss the ordinance for outdoor cafés. Duncan will bring a copy of the ordinance to the meeting tomorrow.
Duncan explains that the City ordinance was changed to have cafés approved by the SRA within the Urban Renewal Areas. Duncan believes it is possible they are now reconsidering that process. Brennan and Vickers will attend the meeting. Vickers would like to understand the original rationale behind the ordinance.
Duncan explains the issue at hand with Tavern in the Square. Massachusetts liquor regulations require outdoor serving areas to be contiguous to the restaurant. Thus, the sidewalk immediately adjacent to the building will be closed using stanchions when the outdoor dining area is open. Pedestrians will use the other sidewalk that brings people directly to the crosswalks at the intersection. This was brought to the attention of the SRA during the review and approval process. Duncan notes that liquor licenses are under the authority of the Licensing Board and not the SRA.
Duncan states Rockafellas is a similar scenario with the exception that Rockafellas’ outdoor dining area is on brick. Tavern’s café area was a green area and was not pre-existing.
Daniel reviews the Tavern’s café seating plan with the board. Duncan will bring plans to tomorrow night’s meeting. Duncan affirms that the café seating went through the normal SRA process, has already been approved, and is currently under construction.
Duncan reminds the board of a letter signed by Brennan to the Salem Licensing Board supporting the project.
Connelly asks if the ordinance changes, would the SRA be able to reject plans even if the proposal was approved by the City Council, and Duncan responds yes. Vickers asks if any changes in the ordinance would be retroactive. Baldini states that the Tavern is spending a considerable amount of money on outdoor patio concept. Duncan notes that the original concept originated with the Planning Board. Vickers states there was a major push by Main Streets to make downtown Salem more vibrant and inviting and outdoor dining is part of that effort. Duncan notes that Karl Sideman’s report talks about streamlining the process for café projects and how important it is to bring vitality to the area.
Vickers, Brennan, Connelly and Mitnik plan to attend the meeting.
Parking Study: Daniel updated the board on the parking study currently in progress. An online survey was sent out, and utilization counts took place in August and October.
There will be three interactive public meetings to give opportunity for the broader community to provide input. The first public meeting will be Monday November 16th at Old Town Hall. The second will be in January where recommendations will be presented. The final meeting will be in February or March when the final report will be presented.
Vickers asks where exactly counts were taken. Daniel responded in the B5 zoning area plus portions of Derby Street, Bridge Street, the McIntire district, and various residential streets.
Duncan informs the board that the MBTA garage has received approval from the state for funding which makes this a real project that will be moving forward. This will now have to be factored into the parking study. There will be over nine hundred spaces replacing the current three hundred available at the train station. The garage has to be available for occupancy before the end of 2011. There will be an 8-12 month permitting period and three more public meetings at 30%, 60%, and 90% plans.
Duncan states the first public meeting last week went very well. The report is on the web.
Pole Sign by George’s Pizza: Daniel informs the board that freestanding signs are not permitted in the Urban Renewal Areas. After researching the ordinance there was no record found of an exception to that policy. Therefore the pole is illegal, and the sign from George’s Pizza will not be erected on pole. Daniel will inform the owner.
Baldini states that a-frames are illegal as well. Daniel explains that the building official is not enforcing the removal of a-frames that are within safety guidelines because they are playing an important role to businesses downtown. However there is an ordinance in development that would require a-frames to be permitted.
Duncan notes that the zoning efforts have been focused on re-codification. Now that the re-codification has been completed, other ordinance changes can be addressed.
Old/New Business
Development Project Review
- 17 Central Street (Old Police Station): Discussion and vote on removal of pedestrian lights from project
Daniel states that there were outstanding items the developer needed to complete—installation of two doors, repair to scroll work, and installation of pedestrian lights. He adds that to date the doors have been installed. Over the years the developer made efforts to repair the scroll work, but the challenge was finding a contractor who was capable of doing that type of work. The building’s trustees have identified a contractor and that work is to proceed in a few weeks.
Daniel explains that the City standard pedestrian light fixture is not the same fixture National Grid uses. National Grid will not accept anything but their standard fixture. To install the fixtures, new bases would be required with new conduit and metering off of the development. The condo association is not interested in this approach and thus there is an impasse. The trustees have requested the condition be removed from project so that the project can be considered complete. Once the project is complete, escrow will be released back to the developer.
Vickers asks how many light fixtures are in question to which Daniel replies two.
Brennan: Motion to approve the removal of the pedestrian lights from the project, seconded by Connelly. Passes 5-0.
- 232 Essex Street (Fountain Place): Discussion and vote on proposed signage, painting, windows, and door
Daniel describes the extent of new work proposed at Fountain Place. Daniel explains the proposal includes simple signage with new lettering and two new vertical dividing pieces to create three panels. The awnings will have new smaller sized text to make it more appropriate. The proposal also includes all new windows and doors. The new system will include an awning style window that can pop open. There will not be divided lights as seen currently. The DRB felt this was a good improvement as it offers better transparency into the restaurant. The owner is excited about the renovation because the existing windows are very drafty and difficult to clean. The DRB wants to see the finalized text on the awning before final approval.
Mitnik expresses his opinion wishing there was something a little more imaginative for this prominent location.
Vickers: Motion to approve this design as recommended by the DRB, with the DRB to review the final awning text, seconded by Mitnik. Passes 5-0.
- 244 Essex Street (For Kids Only After school): Discussion and vote on proposed signage.
Daniel walks the committee through the proposal. The red of the blade sign works with the trim, and the decal is part of the business’ logo. The decal would run at the bottom of the window.
Baldini: Motion to approve this design as recommended by the DRB, seconded by Vickers. Passes 5-0.
Approval of Minutes: September 9, 2009.
Connelly: Motion to approve the minutes, seconded by Mitnik. Passes 5-0.
Baldini: Motion to adjourn, seconded by Vickers. Passes 5-0.
The meeting is adjourned at 6:50 p.m.
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