North Adams Planners Push Off 3 Business Changes to Allow Wider Debate
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| The Planning Board meeting is heavily attended on Monday. The board pushed three items to another meeting because the public would not be able to speak on them. |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Planning Board pushed three communications on their agenda to the next month to give citizens a chance to speak to the proposed business changes.
Stop & Shop and Bro MX both inquired about changing business hours and Ben Crespi is proposing to operate his glamping resort year round.
"All of which I believe ... are far larger than minor changes to their application," said Chair Brian Miksic. "And so, because of that, I want all of you guys to be able to speak to that. But the way the meeting is set up is that it has to be on the public meeting agenda."
Miksic said all three businesses had engendered debate from abutters in the past but because they weren't part of the public meeting, but rather under "other business," the public couldn't speak to them.
And there was a large body of people apparently hoping to speak.
City Council Chambers was filled and many people seemed to be there for the Bro MX motocross proposal. A large number of people were wearing Bro MX apparel.
Miksic said citizens in the past have expressed concern about the timing of large delivery trucks arriving late at night at Stop & Shop in the West End and the glamping proposal on Reservoir Road drew heavily attended meetings.
"I want to make that clear that this isn't the board or myself being for or against anything," he said. "That is what this body is for, as a bridge to the public and making sure that they have their comments."
When a business has a minor change — extending their opening by an hour, changing the color of a sign — there's rarely a public hearing. Rather, it's a notification to the board. Miksic did not think these changes were minor and board members did not disagree.
The applicants will have to file to be on the next meeting agenda.
The planners did approve a proposal by Holland Co. of Adams to build a 60 by 80-foot metal garage in an industrial zone on State Street. The property is two lots, near the Ocean State Job Lots plaza, that had been the site of two small homes. Holland had those razed last year. The company was represented by Hake-Westall Group architects.
The project will be done in two phases, the first being the construction of the garage with two bays. The building will have a slate blue siding and harbor blue roof. The northern and southern curb cuts will be expanded and a middle one removed.
The second phase will be the expansion of parking lot, will be gravel and permeable. This will be in the floodplain and will need to go to the Conservation Commission; Phase 1 has already been through the commission.
Holland has a fleet of nine trucks and will employ two diesel mechanics to maintain them at the garage. Traffic in and out of the facility is expected to be minimal.
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