West Newton parking lot item meetings: former Bank of America spaces; Police HQ fencing project

[Julia Anne Malakie]

There are two meetings coming up related to parking in West Newton Sq.

First, this Wednesday 6/12, 7pm the Real Property Reuse Committee will consider Docket #205-24, whether to re-lease a portion of city owned land that we have been leasing to the owners of the bank building at 1 Chestnut Street since 1984. Here is the link to agenda with backup: 

https://www.newtonma.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/120445

and this is the Zoom link: https://newtonmagov.zoom.us/j/82257108697

(Note this is only Zoom, not hybrid, so there is no in-person option. Not my choice.)

This is from Planning Director Barney Heath's memo:

Since 1984, the City has had a continuous lease with the owners of 1 Chestnut Street for a portion of the parking area at the adjacent the Newton Police Annex property at 25 Chestnut Street. The property at 1 Chestnut, formerly the Bank of America, is now vacant and the existing lease with the City is set to expire in September. 

At this time, the new property owner for the vacant building at 1 Chestnut Street has inquired as to whether the City would entertain a new lease for a portion of the parking lot comprising 1,049 sq. ft. (see attached). The Newton Police Department has indicated that they are comfortable with continuing a lease arrangement for the proposed eight parking spaces.  

At the forthcoming meeting, we would be seeking for the Committee to make an initial determination to make a portion of the property, in the present example, 1,049 sq. ft., made available for lease. The second request would be to waive the requirement to form a Joint Advisory Planning Group (JAPG), given both the fact there is no building involved and the relative size of the lease portion requested. And the third request would be for the Committee to set a public hearing on the matter.  

There is no information provided as to who the new owner is; on the Assessors Database and Registry of Deeds, it still appears to be Bank of America.

While the expiring lease appears to have been for 14 spaces, the proposal is to only lease 8 spaces. Note the notched blue line border (which is also reflected on the Assessors Database map. For seven of these parking spaces, the city only owns the bottom half.

Second item: for those not aware, there is a project underway to improve security at the main police parking lot by fencing it and putting a gate at both entrances. Paving the lot was the first step. There were some mistakenly placed pads for the gate at the east entrance (from the Waltham St lot) which looked like they would be taking away about 4 public parking spaces, but I looked yesterday and those had been removed before the lot was paved, and the Ward 3 councilors have been assured there will be no loss of public metered parking spaces, except for maybe one of the parallel parking spots (east-west orientation adjacent to the Post Office spaces) that was hard to get into anyway due to space constraints.

Personally I will miss being able to walk through from Waltham St to Captain Ryan Park or vice versa, but NPD has felt the pedestrian access was a security problem and also a safety hazard if police cars needed to leave quickly.

Here is the meeting notice about the change, which is on the Electronic Posting Board at newtonma.gov:

There will be a remote Police Headquarters Fence Installation Project Community meeting on Thursday, June 20th, 2024.  The meeting will be held via zoom and will start at 6:00 p.m. Please follow the link below: Join from a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone or Android device: 

Please click this URL : https://newtonma-gov.zoom.us/j/88572445530   

  

Meeting ID: 885 7244 5530 One tap mobile +16469313860,,89900097531# US +13017158592,,89900097531# US (Washington DC) Or join by phone:  Dial (for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location):     US: +1 312 626 6799  or +1 646 558 8656  or +1 301 715 8592  or +1 346 248 7799  or +1 669 900 9128  or +1 253 215   8782     International numbers available: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kcM778mtMB 

Regards,

Julia Malakie

Ward 3 Councilor

[Richard Dinjian]

Julia and Councilors -

Is the plan to actually put a fence around the entire police parking lot?  The folks at the court were under the impression it was just going to have gates at the vehicle entrances.

To fence in that entire parking lot would   basically put a big, ugly barricade right in the middle of West Newton Square.  

Is this really the plan ? 

Richard Dinjian

On Jun 8, 2024, at 3:49 PM, Julia Anne Malakie <juliaann...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Meryl Kessler]

Councilors and others…

I have long wondered about the need to dedicate a large parking lot in the middle of West Newton Square to police parking.  As we have discussed in this group many times, West Newton would benefit from a central public parking lot.  The use of that central location behind the station for so much police parking has never seemed to me to be the best and highest use of that site.

Just to the west of the police station—a 1/4 mile away and roughly 5 minute walk—is a large MBTA lot that is usually mostly empty.  Couldn’t the City lease space from the MBTA to park some or all of the police vehicles (and the private cars driven by police officers to work) and turn part or all of the lot behind the station into public metered parking.  Revenue from the public parking could help pay for at least part (or perhaps all) of the lease with the MBTA.

Has anyone in the City ever discussed this idea?  

Meryl Kessler

On Jun 8, 2024, at 10:14 PM, Richard Dinjian <rdin...@gmail.com> wrote:

Julia and Councilors -

Is the plan to actually put a fence around the entire police parking lot?  The folks at the court were under the impression it was just going to have gates at the vehicle entrances.

To fence in that entire parking lot would   basically put a big, ugly barricade right in the middle of West Newton Square.  

Is this really the plan ? 

Richard Dinjian

On Jun 8, 2024, at 3:49 PM, Julia Anne Malakie <juliaann...@gmail.com> wrote:



There are two meetings coming up related to parking in West Newton Sq.

First, this Wednesday 6/12, 7pm the Real Property Reuse Committee will consider Docket #205-24, whether to re-lease a portion of city owned land that we have been leasing to the owners of the bank building at 1 Chestnut Street since 1984. Here is the link to agenda with backup: 

https://www.newtonma.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/120445

and this is the Zoom link: https://newtonmagov.zoom.us/j/82257108697

(Note this is only Zoom, not hybrid, so there is no in-person option. Not my choice.)

This is from Planning Director Barney Heath's memo:

Since 1984, the City has had a continuous lease with the owners of 1 Chestnut Street for a portion of the parking area at the adjacent the Newton Police Annex property at 25 Chestnut Street. The property at 1 Chestnut, formerly the Bank of America, is now vacant and the existing lease with the City is set to expire in September. 

At this time, the new property owner for the vacant building at 1 Chestnut Street has inquired as to whether the City would entertain a new lease for a portion of the parking lot comprising 1,049 sq. ft. (see attached). The Newton Police Department has indicated that they are comfortable with continuing a lease arrangement for the proposed eight parking spaces.  

At the forthcoming meeting, we would be seeking for the Committee to make an initial determination to make a portion of the property, in the present example, 1,049 sq. ft., made available for lease. The second request would be to waive the requirement to form a Joint Advisory Planning Group (JAPG), given both the fact there is no building involved and the relative size of the lease portion requested. And the third request would be for the Committee to set a public hearing on the matter.  

<image.png>

There is no information provided as to who the new owner is; on the Assessors Database and Registry of Deeds, it still appears to be Bank of America.

While the expiring lease appears to have been for 14 spaces, the proposal is to only lease 8 spaces. Note the notched blue line border (which is also reflected on the Assessors Database map. For seven of these parking spaces, the city only owns the bottom half.

Second item: for those not aware, there is a project underway to improve security at the main police parking lot by fencing it and putting a gate at both entrances. Paving the lot was the first step. There were some mistakenly placed pads for the gate at the east entrance (from the Waltham St lot) which looked like they would be taking away about 4 public parking spaces, but I looked yesterday and those had been removed before the lot was paved, and the Ward 3 councilors have been assured there will be no loss of public metered parking spaces, except for maybe one of the parallel parking spots (east-west orientation adjacent to the Post Office spaces) that was hard to get into anyway due to space constraints.

Personally I will miss being able to walk through from Waltham St to Captain Ryan Park or vice versa, but NPD has felt the pedestrian access was a security problem and also a safety hazard if police cars needed to leave quickly.

Here is the meeting notice about the change, which is on the Electronic Posting Board at newtonma.gov:

There will be a remote Police Headquarters Fence Installation Project Community meeting on Thursday, June 20th, 2024.  The meeting will be held via zoom and will start at 6:00 p.m. Please follow the link below: Join from a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone or Android device: 

Please click this URL : https://newtonma-gov.zoom.us/j/88572445530   

  

Meeting ID: 885 7244 5530 One tap mobile +16469313860,,89900097531# US +13017158592,,89900097531# US (Washington DC) Or join by phone:  Dial (for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location):     US: +1 312 626 6799  or +1 646 558 8656  or +1 301 715 8592  or +1 346 248 7799  or +1 669 900 9128  or +1 253 215   8782     International numbers available: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kcM778mtMB 

Regards,

Julia Malakie

Ward 3 Councilor

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[didi_614]

I would consider the safety of the Police Vehicles in a Lot that is that far from the station and the possibility of vandalism or worse.   I think they need to have the lot protected as they are planning on doing.

Maybe the city should consider taking the building that is for sale next to the Police Station Annex  by eminent domain and using that space for more parking.

https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/westnewtonneighborhood/52B0F32F-9989-451E-9A3D-5974DAE35A50%40me.com

.

[Francis Yerardi]

The question really is, As a community -How can we better plan so solve the parking crisis that exists in west Newton.

I think the city transportion dept, planning dept and economic development people should make this a focus and actually develop a real plan before any decisions are made.

Merly idea of better utilization of the state lot is a good one, whether or not that’s viable for the police, better utilization could help the community.

Maybe work out a deal( as opposed to taking by eminent domain) to purchase the vacant bank building across the street from police head quarters and move the police annex there 

There are all sorts of creative solutions that could be developed. 

End of day, the city needs to develope a compressive plan to address parking in west Newton.

Which requires the desire by city leadership to do so 

Sent from my iPhone

On Jun 9, 2024, at 10:17 AM, 'didi_614' via West Newton Community <westnewtonn...@googlegroups.com> wrote:



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[John Dundon]

I think a big piece of this puzzle is what ends up happening to the Movie Theater, and the parcel behind the movie theater with egress to Davis Ave. There is room for parking back there, but it may end up being developed as it is now VC2. This could be a good spot for multi-level outdoor parking, something similar to the Green Street lot in Central Square Cambridge. My thought is that the square will likely be a pretty different place within the next 5 years, and hopefully the plan will include some additional parking spaces. With that being said, I live in the neighborhood and park in and near West Newton Square a lot - I find it manageable if I am flexible enough to build in a 5-10 minute walk if needed . I realize not everyone has the mobility to do this, but I think the parking is less fraught than some neighborhoods in Newton, like Newton Center for example. 

Best Regards,

John Dundon

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[Amy h]

I think you mean egress to Davis St.  Davis Ave is off of Waltham st. 

On Jun 9, 2024, at 3:49 PM, John Dundon <dundo...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[John Dundon]

Yes - Davis St. behind the Cinema - thanks for correcting that!

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[Michael Halle]

Former Councilor Jim Cote wrote to say that:

“The real issue is the need for a new Police station, with better facilities, secure parking and access. The police station replacement/upgrade has been on the radar screen for years and keeps getting back burnered for a variety of reasons, to include financing, location, and city's willingness to address a critical need. There is an annex, but rather than being strategically located on the other side of the city, the annex is also in West Newton only because the building was available, not because it's effective."

I concur, as well as concur that the city needs a comprehensive parking plan for West Newton that takes into account the signals and turn restrictions in the square from a driving and walking perspective.

The Police Annex is, as Jim implies, a bandaid in itself. And yes, it’s a challenge to site a new police station (either at its current location or elsewhere). The task is complicated by the fact we have a relatively large city with a single police station that happens to be located in a square with a complex roadway layout. The police really should have a facility designed for the task of today’s policing.

But the need for greater and greater parking for official and personal police vehicles is gradually removing strategic parking spaces from the square. I say strategic because some parking spaces, even a limited number, are useful for different businesses. The parking spaces behind the post office and on Davis Street are good for the “cinema block” of West Newton businesses, while the other two public parking lots are better for the businesses near Elm Street.

I don’t think that significantly increasing the number of parking spaces in the square will positively benefit the congestion that it already sees. But having some additional parking consolidation would improve the congestion that results from drivers circling all the streets looking for parking. That would also allow us to create safer and more convenient walking routes from those parking spaces into the square.

The (previously owned?) Rockport parking garage remains quite interesting to me, perhaps leased for official or private police vehicles or parking control vehicles.

The Washington Street Vision process suggested that a shared parking facility might be buildable in the cinema block. It will be interesting to see how that might develop to meet existing and new needs.

—Mike

[didi_614]

On Saturday having waiting for almost 5 minutes for the light to change - I think maybe having someone look at the lights and synching them better might help.  

There is a reason that I avoid West Newton square now because of traffic, poor parking etc.  It is easier and faster to try to go around the area than go through it.  

I do feel sorry for the businesses because I rarely go to CVS or the post office as it is easier to go to Nonantum to the post office.

And I could be wrong but once they change the 4 lanes from Chestnut to Lowell to 2 lanes I don't think many people will be dealing with going down Washington Street in West Newton.  

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[Michael Halle]

didi_614’said:

"On Saturday having waiting for almost 5 minutes for the light to change - I think maybe having someone look at the lights and synching them better might help."

Which traffic signal? The traffic signals on West Newton are on a 120 second cycle (too long for pedestrians, but needed for efficiency at peak hours), so if the wait was five minutes for a signal to change it might be a technical problem.

"And I could be wrong but once they change the 4 lanes from Chestnut to Lowell to 2 lanes I don't think many people will be dealing with going down Washington Street in West Newton. “

The section of Washington Street from Chestnut to Lowell has fewer vehicles per day than Beacon Street by BC or Comm. Ave. by Chestnut St. That’s been consistent for more than a decade. Those other Newton streets don’t even have turn pockets or shared turn lanes like Washington Street will have.

The same traffic challenges will remain at West Newton and Lowell, but not in between, and the city is looking into what they can do at Lowell and Washington.

—Mike

[Noa Rensing]

The fragmented nature of the parking in West Newton might be contributing to the traffic issues, as people drive to their favorite parking area, find that it's full, and have to double back to look for spaces elsewhere. A single larger parking facility might actually solve multiple problems. The former Rockport garage is an obvious choice, as it's an existing structure and usually empty. I've been told in the past that the owner is not interested in a partnership with the city, but I don't know if that is still true, or even if it ever was. 

On general principle, I'm opposed to blocking up convenient pedestrian routes and erecting fences/barriers that could make West Newton look like a fortress. Is there actually a problem with vandalism/vagrants in that lot? How often does the need for police cars to leave quickly and be blocked by pedestrians even come up, and would the visibility barrier created by a new fence make it worse, as they have to cross a sidewalk anyway? 

Noa

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