The Acton Planning Board met earlier than its regular time on September 19 at Town Hall in order to join the Maynard Planning Board to hear a presentation by the Planning Department and Sarah Scott of the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) on the Powder Mill Road Corridor redevelopment initiative. The project is funded, in part, through technical assistance grants awarded from MAPC and the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs.
Phase 1 of the project, begun in 2022, defined the strategy for redevelopment: create an overlay zoning district (where owners are given additional options for use of their property); improve access to, and environmental quality of, the Assabet River; incorporate “complete streets” features to make Powder Mill Road safer; and design future transportation projects to advance safety and environmental goals. The current Phase 2 aims to “create a more walkable, safe Powder Mill Road neighborhood where people want to live, visit, walk, and spend time” according to the presentation.
Community outreach showed a majority preference for a more populated area with additional housing and businesses in the Powder Mill area. Members of both Maynard’s and Acton’s Planning Boards commented on the plans for Phase 2. Acton Planning Board member Pat Clifford asked Town staff for other examples of contiguous towns creating an overlay district together. The situation is not common enough for the team to name examples immediately, but they said they would research that question. Staff and Planning Board members from both towns indicated that they enjoy this joint planning process.
The Planning Board meeting also included three public hearings. One was an application from the RH Adhesives company at 308 Old High Street for a Groundwater Protection District Special Permit. The company, which makes a variety of glues, applied for a permit to expand a non-conforming use, based on the construction of concrete footings under storage containers housing non-hazardous materials, a 2021 change for which they had not obtained a permit. The engineer on the project, George Dimakarakos from Stamski and McNary, Inc., noted that the company would go before other boards, such as the Conservation Commission, following this hearing. He said that the changes to the property had resulted in a “net improvement” to the land. The Planning Department reached out to the Acton Water District, Health Department, and Economic Development Committee for input as they reviewed the company’s application. The board voted to approve the Special Permit.
The Planning Board also reviewed an application for a Planned Conservation Residential Community (PCRC) on Quarry Road that would add four single-family lots east of two existing houses. The applicants, Jamie and Bettina Norton, and Jamie and Bill Hryniewich of Rhino Construction, answered questions about septic disposal, wells, and electric service–the latter of which would be brought to the land for the first time. After creating the PCRC, the Nortons hope to donate part of the open space to the town. Bettina Norton, long-time resident on the land, said the donated section would be a complement to the Acton Arboretum, as there are 27 different varieties of lilac- –100 plants— on the land that came from the Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain. Due to some outstanding items, including expected comments from the Design Review Board, the Board continued the hearing until its next meeting.
The Board also voted to allow a new sign to be installed on the side of Citizens Bank in Gould’s Plaza, removing the word “Bank” according to a company name change.
The Planning Board heard updates on work at the Bumble Bee Way subdivision at 46 High St. from the developer, Mark Gallagher of Seal Harbor, and from the engineering firm GCG Associates who had conducted a site walk that morning at the request of the Planning Department. GCG estimated that the remaining work ranged from $30,000 to $50,000. The board heard complaints from neighbors about debris, slow and incomplete work, and drainage issues.
The town holds a $149,000 performance bond to assure the completion of the road and associated stormwater system. The bond itself does not expire, but has a deadline by which the construction must be completed. The board had previously changed the terms of the bond to extend the deadline of January 1, 2023 to May 30, 2023. At this meeting, that deadline was extended again, to November 15, 2023 with a statement that the Town would pull the bond if the work were not done by the deadline. After the vote, members of the Board urged Gallagher to get the’work done. Director of Planning Kristen Guichard added, “We want it to be done correctly and we want it to be done with expedience.”
