Donut shop dunked 'till July
Published on June 18th, 2003
STONEHAM, MA - A delayed traffic report from an independent consultant resulted in a granted continuance for the proposed 30 seat Dunkin' Donuts/Baskin Rob-bins facility at 128 Franklin Street.
The Board of Selectmen voted 4-1 to continue the site plan hearing until July 1 at 7:40 p.m.
The traffic report, compiled by Vanasse, Hangen and Brustlin, Inc. out of Watertown, recognized problems within the site plan concerning lack of parking, volume of traffic interfering with an already problematic intersection at Stevens Street and Franklin Street, an insufficient loading zone for trucks and potential problems sharing the land with Mac's Landscaping equipment
The Selectmen, after hearing a litany of resident complaints, first voted by a 3-2 margin to reject a request for a continuance by the petitioner's attorney, Charles Houghton.
At the behest of Town Counsel William Solomon, however, the Selectmen reconsidered and continued the hearing until July 1 to "give the petitioner a chance at a fair process."
The entire meeting was moved to the Stoneham Town Hall auditorium after a 30 minute recess to accommodate the large group of people interested in the Franklin Street proceedings.
"As the plan is currently constituted, it does not provide adequate parking for the site plan, and would make for an unsafe situation in the area," read Robert Nagi, spokesmen for Vanasse, Hangen and Brustlin.
According to Nagi, the plan currently calls for 11 standard parking spaces and one handicapped parking space at the Franklin Street plan, and his firm recommended between 15-20 spaces for a Dunkin' Donuts site.
"We've worked with Dunkin' Donuts on projects in the past, and, during peak business hours, we expect approximately 200 cars in and out during an hour," said Nagi of the traffic data compiled from an April 9 visit to the area. "We also estimate the Franklin Street area generates approximately 17,000 to 18,000 trips a day, which is consistent with areas popular to the Dunkin' Donuts people."
According to Nagi, the limited amount of parking could result in one of three distinct options. Commuters passing through a full parking lot would, according to Nagi's report, either travel through the lot and re-enter the lot continuing to look for a parking space, idle in the lot waiting for a space to open up and create "a traffic queue on Franklin Street", or begin to park either on the street or in illegal, non-designated areas.
"The plan is already a little short on parking for what we would recommend for a Dunkin' Donuts site, and it could have an impact on proper circulation in and out of the site," said Nagi.
"We do estimate that there will be very little creation of new traffic as a result of this project," said Nagi. "We estimate that 70 percent of the traffic will be commuters already passing by the area, and there will only be an estimated 30 percent of drivers stopping specifically to make the trip to Dunkin' Donuts."
Nagi also mentioned that the development could "exacerbate an already difficult traffic situation at the corner of Franklin Street and Stevens Street."
Charlie Houghton, attorney for petitioner Frank Pino and land owner Gerard C. McCarthy, explained that the 90,913 square foot site would hold the bakery/eatery as well as an area in the rear that would serve as a storage area for the Mac's Landscaping Equipment currently housed on the site. The restaurant and parking lot would sit where a greenhouse, planned for demolition, currently resides, according to Houghton.
"The structure will fit in with a New England contemporary style and would create 17 jobs in the town of Stoneham," said Houghton. "The rental of this property would create significantly higher revenue on the tax rolls"
Houghton did have one caveat, as the local barrister needs more quality time with the later-than planned traffic report.
"We only received the traffic study at 6:15 last evening, and we haven't fully had a chance to digest the details of its findings," said Houghton. "There are some good things in the report, and then there are some things we just don't agree with. We've never met with this consultant, and we'd like the opportunity to do that."
Houghton further asked that residents and officials comment on other portions of the plan, and that an extension be granted to work through the traffic issues.
A boisterous group of residential abutters, numbering more than 60, cited noise problems, litter issues, the oft-mentioned traffic issues, and late night trailer-truck deliveries as major reasons to slam dunk the Donut project.
"There will be no rest for the residents of Brook Meadow, Benjamin Lane and Franklin Street if this is built," said Ruth Sheffe, who added that the development will cause a precipitous drop in property values.. "We'll have the coffee and donut people in the morning, and then we'll have the ice cream people until 10 or 11 at night. When do we get a rest from it."
Other residents put it a little more bluntly.
"There are 120 people at the Brook Meadow apartments," said Michael Palimoni. "That's a lot of voters in this town."
Stoneham Selectmen Cosmo Ciccarello, Mary Pecoraro and Anthony Kennedy all originally voted to reject a July 21 continuance attempt for the site plan as the traffic report revealed some problems with the current site plan.
"I spent my lunch today reading the traffic report, so I think counsel could have had the time needed," said Board of Selectmen Chairman Mary Pecoraro.
Houghton visibly scoffed at the decision, and hinted that quick legal action would follow such a decision.
"For the record, we feel we've been denied due process....you haven't been fair to my client," said Houghton.
Like he was shot out of a cannon, Town Counsel Bill Solomon stepped forward and advised the board to reconsider their vote.
"It's in the best interest of the town to allow the petitioner due process," said Solomon. "We don't want a situation where a judge can decide that the town was unfair to the applicant, and that the process doesn't pass the smell test."
Both Solomon and Nagi felt it was fair to allow Houghton and the traffic consultant to meet outside of the public hearing, and attempt to mitigate some of the problems.
"We may come to an understanding about some of the issues, or we may just agree to disagree," said Nagi. "The only way we'll know is by meeting and discussing the site."
The Selectmen then voted to continue the hearing until July 1 with Mary Pecoraro continuing to vote against the continuance.
"I'm not saying I'm going to approve this, but they do deserve a fair chance," said Selectman Charlie Smith.
Stoneham resident Frank Pignone, who "talked about losing three or four teeth at Dunkin Donuts in years past" urged the Selectmen to consider their rejection of the project a little more closely.
"What could possibly change about this project that would allow it to go forward?" asked Pignone.
Houghton then rebutted with an angry exchange where his voice rose as he gained momentum in his argument.
"Would you want a fair hearing if this were your project, Frank?" asked Houghton. "Of course you would...of course you would. We spent $6,550 on that traffic study that the town requested from an independent consultant...this is the United States of America and we're entitled to due process."
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