Are you with us or with them?
Published on October 4th, 2006
STONEHAM, MA - Drawing angered response from some Planning Board members, a local resident revealed that he had been ejected from a recent meeting between the Richmond Company and residents along Winchester’s Bellevue Road and Eugene Drive.
The purpose of the meeting, held last Monday night, was to discuss a “memorandum of understanding” between those abutters and the Home Depot proponents, one that would assure a number of building, design, and visual mitigations for the neighbors in return for their guarantee not to oppose the project.
“The issues that were discussed were totally specific to their neighborhood,” said Armanetti, denying that he ordered that Stoneham residents leave the private discussion. “It was their meeting, not a pubic meeting, and they felt it was only appropriate to have members from their neighborhood.”
“We have made, in the past four months, no less than a dozen appearances to the Park Street and Marble Street community that have either identified themselves to us or appeared to us as leaders of that area. They have rebutted us on each occasion,” the Richmond Company project manager furthered, saying that he would welcome any opportunity to meet with neighbors.
Although Planning Board members originally had no issue with that news, arguing it was within the developer’s rights to negotiate with neighbors, that stance changed when it was disclosed that the deliberations have been ongoing for 10-months, nearly twice as long as any talks with Stoneham residents.
Vaughan, who tried to diffuse the situation by reiterating his willingness to meet with any neighborhood group, was chastised specifically by Federico, who blasted the proponents for ignoring Stoneham’s needs and changing the project design for Winchester residents without first consulting the Planning Board.
“I’m a little concerned here with timing. You noted that you have been meeting with that group for eight to ten months. When did the outreach begin in Stoneham,” Chairman August Niewenhous asked, somewhat incredulously.
“With all due respect Mr. Vaughan. There’s not one truck that’s coming to Home Depot that’s going to drive down Eugene Drive. You’re before the Stoneham Planning Board. You’re not in Winchester. And it seems to me that the issues of Stoneham should be on the forefront,” Federico vented.
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