Fwd: About Grove Street development

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AJFR...@aol.com

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Jul 14, 2017, 11:10:24 AM7/14/17
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Hi all,
 
I was asked to forward this to the list on behalf of a resident.  I hope everyone's having a great summer.
 
Andy Friedlich
 
Dear Mr. Canale, Ms. Corcoran-Ronchetti, Mr. Creech, Mr. Hornig, Ms. Johnson, Mr. Leon and Mr. Henry,
 
Thank you for your service on the Lexington Planning Board. The reason for this letter is to express my concerns regarding the proposed development on Grove Street. I have been vocal at multiple planning meetings when this development has been on the agenda. I have also written several letters to the Editor of the Lexington Minuteman.
 
I’m extremely concerned about the impacts of increased housing density on Grove Street. As a homeowner in the Turning Mill neighborhood, which is near Grove Street, I want to maintain if not enhance the quality of my life and my property. That means: maintain the aesthetics and livability of the area, minimize impacts to public services such as schools and infrastructure, keep our roads safe, preserve trees and landscape, and reduce encroachment on nature. By being thoughtful about development, we can make Lexington an even better place.
 
I would support the By Right proposal of 13 units reduced to 11 (to take into consideration the wetlands) if the construction is limited to the road side of the stone wall, and if the developer keeps a majority of the trees. The units and properties would also need to be appropriately sized and priced in keeping with the other homes in the area. Building more than 11 homes on the Grove Street parcel would be detrimental to our neighborhood, and to the town overall. 
 
We live in this area in large part because of the privacy and the serenity of the woods and the wooded lots. With a new subdivision on Grove Street, these qualities will evaporate. 
 
People are moving into Lexington because of the schools. It’s great that Lexington is so recognized. However, we’re now experiencing a serious problem of school overcrowding. The high school is bursting at the seams, and even the relatively new Estabrook School is already at capacity. Traffic is often at a standstill on Grove Street -- all the way from the crest of the hill at the proposed development site to one mile down the hill at the intersection of Eldred and Bedford Streets. At rush hour in the morning it can take 20 minutes to drive that one mile. This is a huge problem before we add more homes, more cars, and more school-aged children to take up classroom spaces that don’t exist. 
 
Please vote AGAINST the special permit for additional housing on Grove Street. You have an opportunity to set an example for the rest of Lexington. With a NO vote, we can demonstrate that Lexington is thoughtful about development -- considering the impacts to the immediate neighborhood, as well as to the Town overall. A special permit request should trigger consultation with Town Meeting so that other experts can weigh in regarding the overall town strategy on density, infrastructure, traffic and safety, schools, and conservation.
 
I invite you to visit the Grove Street property. Drive by, walk around, and see the woods, the scale and character of other properties, as well as the Wright Farm, the Burlington Landlocked Forest, and the Turning Mill neighborhood.
 
Thank you so much for your kind attention and consideration.
 
Best regards,
 
Beth Zonis
4 Gould Rd

 
 

Vicki Blier

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Jul 14, 2017, 11:41:45 AM7/14/17
to Andy Friedlich, lextmma
I hope that someone can help  Beth Zonis and many other residents to understand that the Town just simply does not have the legal power to make the developer do what she desires, as expressed below, for the 13-unit by-rights development... no matter how much she, or I, or anyone else wishes that it did. By Rights means By-Rights. 

I am very concerned that many of our constituents think that the Town has the kind of control she desires and that the silly or misguided or dumb PB members are just stubbornly ignoring the will of the people. We owe it to the PB and to the Town to help our constituents understand the realities of By Rights development, 40B, and the other issues that the Town must deal with.

I refer to this statement in the letter:
"I would support the By Right proposal of 13 units reduced to 11 (to take into consideration the wetlands) if the construction is limited to the road side of the stone wall, and if the developer keeps a majority of the trees. The units and properties would also need to be appropriately sized and priced in keeping with the other homes in the area. Building more than 11 homes on the Grove Street parcel would be detrimental to our neighborhood, and to the town overall."

Vicki Blier
Pct. 9


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Jian Helen Yang

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Jul 14, 2017, 12:15:31 PM7/14/17
to Vicki Blier, Andy Friedlich, lextmma
Vicki,

Just for my own knowledge, is it within the power of the town and the planning board not to approve any plan with more than 13 units?

Thanks,
Helen

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/lextmma/CAKJ90ghBH1L%2B76nW3_GfWL5kD3%2Bvy-OUhBVe4Y084rQ17t331g%40mail.gmail.com.

Wendy Manz

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Jul 14, 2017, 12:33:03 PM7/14/17
to Vicki Blier, Andy Friedlich, lextmma
Vicki,

For those who were unable to attend the Planning Board hearing last Wednesday, it can be accessed on LexMedia.  There was an excellent discussion among the board members, and I believe the legal limitations that you describe were made very clear.
 
Wendy Manz
 



From: Vicki Blier <v...@vickiblier.com>
To: Andy Friedlich <AJFR...@aol.com>
Cc: lextmma <lex...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Friday, July 14, 2017 11:49 AM
Subject: Re: [LexTMMA] Fwd: About Grove Street development

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Ricki

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Jul 14, 2017, 2:53:53 PM7/14/17
to Wendy Manz, lextmma
I just want to weigh in simply on Grove Street. Full disclosure, I am in support of clustered multi-housing that includes a diverse type of housing that serves multiple economic sectors, while preserving the wetlands, trees and our access to the conservation land. The argument that I find difficult to support is the one that the current neighborhood is one of large houses on large plots and the desire is to maintain the "feel" of the neighborhood. My neighborhood, when I mover in 30 years ago, were all small houses on large plots. As sellers sell, we now have more and more tear downs and larger houses. I liked my fellow small houses, but that is how it went. So, neighborhoods with small houses don't get to use that argument to maintain the look of a neighborhood, nor should large houses. We have zoning laws to handle these questions.
Another thought on this is the Climate Action Plan that has been presented to the BoS by Sustainable Lexington. Perhaps this is one of those situations where the land impact should be considered through the lens of how it would affect climate change.
Ricki

Harry Forsdick

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Jul 14, 2017, 6:04:19 PM7/14/17
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