Arlington Redevelopment Board - Mar 24th, 2025

Meeting held at 27 Maple Street. Materials were available from https://arlington.novusagenda.com/agendapublic/MeetingView.aspx?MeetingID=2239&MinutesMeetingID=-1&doctype=Agenda.

Review Meeting Minutes

The board approved minutes from their March 10, 2025 meeting.

Docket 3838 - 15 Ryder St

This is a second hearing night for Docket 3838.

(Claire Ricker, Planning Director) Ms. Ricker says that Arlington Brewing Company is proposing a 1000 square foot addition and renovation to a former industrial building, in order to open a brewery and tap room. The restaurant will have approximately 3,900 square feet. The applicants have provided updated materials, including plans, elevations, and a LEED checklist.

(Mary Winstanley O'Connor, Attorney for the applicant) Ms. Winstanley O'Connor has provided the board with an updated memo. They've reduced the number of parking spaces to seventeen. The landlord will provide loading access through the rear of the property. Ms. Winstanley O'Connor says they've inventoried similar establishments and asked about their parking needs. Medford Brewing Company says that 60% of their patrons walk there. There are approximately 90 on-street parking spaces on Mass Ave, within a five-minute walk of the proposed brewery. They plan to promote active transportation as a way to get to the brewery. They've provided the board with an updated sign package and they're planning to plant different trees, after discussions with the Conservation Commission.

(?, Architect) The architect says they've eliminated all parking spaces in front of the building; they're now proposing seventeen with a request to make three of those compact spaces. They've added an isle in front of the side door to accommodate deliveries, and changed out the dogwood trees for a native species of cherry. They've added eight feet of impact mesh over the EIFS system and lowered the light fixtures. The exterior fixtures are dark sky-ready. They've moved the skylight and provided details of the mechanical equipment. They're proposing two wall signs: a large one facing the bikeway, and a logo near the front door.

(Steve Revilak, ARB) Mr. Revilak has no questions for the applicant.

(Eugene Benson, ARB) Mr. Benson would like to have a taproom in town, but says we have to see if it fits in first. He says the applicants will need to meet the industrial district parking standards in Section 6.1.11.F.

Mr. Benson sees several issues: traffic, parking, noise, litter, and light pollution. He visited a similar restaurant in California. There was no parking there, and people kept driving around and around looking for places to park. He fears people driving around here for the same reason. The streets are narrow and Mr. Benson thinks that creates the opportunity for accidents. One of the letters sent to the board suggested that Ryder Street be made one way, and he thinks that would allow a narrower travel lane.

Mr. Benson thinks the brewery's website needs to recommend parking on Mass Ave, and he'd like to see a "lot full" sign placed in front of the parking lot when it fills up. He'd like to see the applicant, the abutters, and staff meet together to work on issues that have been raised.

Regarding noise, Mr. Benson thinks there should be no music after 8:00 pm, and that the outdoor beer garden should close one hour after sunset. He's concerned about noise from people waiting in line to get in, and he thinks there should be a cord to wrap lines around the building. He thinks there needs to be decibel meter at the nearest residence, and that the 85 dB maximum in the town's noise bylaw is too high. Mr. Benson would also like the applicants to provide a litter prevention plan.

Mr. Benson asks what will be on the menu.

(Tom Allen, Applicant) Mr. Allen says they haven't finalized the menu, but it will be pub food.

(Eugene Benson) Mr. Benson says the restaurant may need a filtration system to contain frying odors. He's not happy with the sign facing the bike way, which patrons won't see. He'd prefer to have the main sign facing Forest St, and be near the main entrance.

(Shaina Korman-Houston, ARB) Ms. Korman-Houston asks where the long-term bicycle parking will be located.

(Architect) The architect indicates that it will be on the side of the building, near the large tree.

(Shaina Korman-Houston) Ms. Korman-Houston asks if bike and pedestrian paths will be distinguished.

(Architect) The architect says yes, but for informational purposes only.

(Shaina Korman-Houston) Ms. Korman-Houston asks about the material they plan to use for the sidewalk.

(Architect) The Architect says the sidewalks will be asphalt.

(Shaina Korman-Houston) Ms. Korman-Houston asks how they plan to screen the mechanicals.

(Architect) The architect says they're locating the mechanicals near the edge of the roof. Screening them would raise the profile of the building.

(Shaina Korman-Houston) Ms. Korman-Houston is interested in hearing the applicant's ideas about the source of the mural.

(Tom Allen) Mr. Allen says he's been talking to the Arlington Center for the Arts.

(Kin Lau, ARB) Mr. Lau would like to start with the light fixtures. At the last hearing, he asked for them to be lowered.

(Architect) The architect says they have been lowered. They're face-mounted, rather than being on the roof line. She says they're positioned as low as possible, while still being able to light the parking lot.

(Kin Lau) Mr. Lau thinks the levels shown on the illumination plan don't match the rendering.

There's a back and forth about the light levels.

(Kin Lau) Mr. Lau asks about the lights along the front of the building. He'd like to see them pushed down. He also doesn't like the lighting for the wall sign. He says he's trying to bring the massing down and make the building a bit softer, along with trying to bring attention the the building from the rink.

Mr. Lau thinks the kitchen exhaust is in a good place, and he's okay with not screening the mechanicals.

(Rachel Zsembery, ARB chair) Ms. Zsembery says she appreciates the modifications that the applicant has made. She says the board will take public comment until 8:25.

(Jim Hamilton, 18 Westminster Ave) Mr. Hamilton says the brew pub is about a hundred feet from Workbar, and he's massively in favor of it.

(David Fatoulo, 255 Pleasant St) Mr. Fatoulo is a member of the Chamber of Commerce, and expresses support for the brewery. He says that Pleasant St is one of the routes for 18 wheelers to get into town. He lives near Route 2, where the state does construction every year. He was aware of this when he bought his house. He says the town has issues, but it's not fair to put them all on one business owner.

(Stephanie Hahn, 17 Beck Road) Ms. Hahn requests that the board not move forward with the special permit. She's concerned about traffic and safety. Ms. Hahn says she's spoken with Medford Brewing Company. They have a smaller outdoor beer garden and close earlier. Medford Brewing Company is not on a private way. She says it will do more harm than good, and that it's not realistic to expect people to park on Mass Ave.

(Jim Foster, 4 Belknap St) Mr. Foster is a small business owner and he's 100% in support of the brewery. Part of his business involves surveying buildings for reuse, and he applauds the reuse of an industrial building. He says Arlington center is almost a dead zone.

(Nicole Weber, 14 Ryder St) Ms. Weber appreciates that the brewery won't have parking in front of the building. She thinks it's more of a location for biking. She asks why traffic can't use the delivery route around the rear, and thinks there should be a baseline noise assessment.

(Ann LeRoyer, 12 Peirce St) Traffic patterns are Ms. LeRoyer's main concern. Ryder street is busy and narrow, and Forest and Peirce streets are closer than Mass Ave. She wants to mitigate traffic confusion and is worried about the impact on the neighborhood.

(Alex Tee, 2 Ryder) Mr. Tee thinks that Arlington Brewing Company is trying to do something honorable and he hopes the brewery will allow us to address some of the issues with his neighborhood. He thinks it will be a net positive.

(Tom Davidson, Stillcroft Road) Mr. Davidson is happy to see a local entrepreneur starting a business in town. Having robust bike transit is important. He thinks the brewery can be a long-term benefit to the community.

It's 8:25. The chair closes public comment and turns the discussion back to the board.

(Rachel Zsembery) Ms. Zsembery says the board received a memo from the town's transportation planner. She asks Ms. Ricker to summarize the memo.

(Claire Ricker) Ms. Ricker summarizes the transportation planner's memo. Ryder Street is a private way, so the town can't use public funds for construction there. The proximity to the Minuteman Bikeway is good, and using the Artemis's driveway for deliveries is good. He suggested that property owners work together to establish a parking and towing policy and use the town's betterment process to improve the private way.

(Rachel Zsembery) Ms. Zsembery thinks this is a wonderful improvement. She questions the need for a litter control plan, since the board has not required one from other restaurants. She appreciates the applicant's intent in limiting music hours.

(Eugene Benson) Mr. Benson thinks the brewery is a good idea, but needs more mitigation because the zoning bylaw has requirements that are specific to taprooms. He says that noise and litter are clearly health and welfare issues, and the litter plan could be simple. He didn't understand if the brewery planned to regularly close at 11:00 pm on weekend.

(Tom Allen) Mr. Allen says he'd like the option to stay open later on occasion, because it's difficult to predict when the super bowl will end, for example. It's not hospitable to kick people out during the fourth quarter. He says he tried to be clear about what the regular hours are.

(Eugene Benson) Mr. Benson understands that the brewery's landlord owns the street.

(Kin Lau) Mr. Lau thinks the property owner should be able to control parking.

(Eugene Benson) Mr. Benson thinks there's an opportunity here that shouldn't be missed.

(Rachel Zsembery) Ms. Zsembery points out that the transportation planner's memo provided both short-term and long-term goals.

(Steve Revilak) After the previous hearing one of the abutters invited the board to meet for a tour of the neighborhood. Mr. Revilak met with them on March 1st, along with Peter Caradonna of Arlington Brewing Company. Mr. Revilak sent a meeting summary to staff and Ms. Zsembery and he'd like to give that summary to the rest of the board.

The meeting lasted about an hour and fifteen minutes, where Ms. Contreras of 2 Ryder Street took us from one end of Ryder to the other, and pointed out several areas of concern. The first was the intersection of Forest and Ryder. It's a shallow turn which vehicles tend to take quickly. Mr. Revilak thinks the intersection could benefit from a curb bump, but the Redevelopment Board doesn't have jurisdiction over road design; that's the Select Board. Regardless of the brewery, Mr. Revilak would encourage the abutters to send a traffic request to the Select Board.

The next area was the sidewalk that leads from Ryder St. to the Artemis. The sidewalk was designed to provide an accessible route to the apartment building. There's a railing around the corner which creates an obstacle to walking to the brewery. Mr. Revilak believes the accessible route was a condition of the Artemis's comprehensive permit. He'd like to see the pedestrian route improved, but believes changes there would require approval from the Zoning Board of Appeals.

There is a speed table on Ryder St, where it intersects with the Artemis's driveway. The abutters were concerned that it's shallow and doesn't slow traffic down enough. After the meeting, Mr. Revilak rode his bike over to Medford to compare it with some new speed tables there, which are signed at 20 MPH. He thinks the speed table on Ryder has a design speed that's well above 20 MPH. He agrees with the request for traffic calming, but the speed table was another condition of the Comprehensive Permit and the ZBA would have to approve modifications.

There is a street light next to the driveway which flickers, contributing to poor nighttime visibility. Mr. Revilak says that's also not under the ARB's jurisdiction but he encourages the abutters to use the Request/Answer center on the town website to ask that it be looked at.

There is a landscaper at the end of Ryder that tends to use the street as a truck washing station, with no effort to control runoff. Mr. Revilak thinks that's a questionable practice, but again, it's outside of the board's jurisdiction.

Mr. Revilak would like to make two comments, beyond the meeting summary. First, he appreciates how the brewery's main signage will be facing the bikeway. He thinks that's a good way to encourage patrons to arrive by bike or foot rather than by car. Second, Mr. Revilak questions the idea of making Ryder Street one way. While there's nothing wrong with considering the option, making Ryder one way would require traffic to exit via Beck Road, which is functionally an alleyway.

(Shaina Korman-Houston) Ms. Korman-Houston says those are valid concerns and she's wrestling with the jurisdictional issues. She agrees with Ms. Zsembery regarding noise considerations, but thinks that having to change the town's noise regulations is going a bit too far. She's concerned about requiring the beer garden to close an hour after sunset. The comment about putting parking recommendations on the website is a very good idea. She thinks signage facing the bikeway is a good way to draw people in.

(Kin Lau) Mr. Lau says that street parking is another topic to put on the table. For example, having a parking ban on the street during school hours. This won't change what the street is. Mr. Lau doesn't think that a meeting between the applicant, abutters, and town staff needs to be a condition of the special permit.

(Rachel Zsembery) Ms. Zsembery summarizes what she's heard from the board: incorporating parking lot mitigations from Section 6.1.11.F(2), lowering the lights on the building and incorporating bollard lights, providing parking information on the brewery's website, and having the owner, brewery, abutters, and town meet to discuss a betterment plan.

Ms. Zsembery also likes having a sign that faces the bikeway.

(Shaina Korman-Houston) Ms. Korman-Houston asks if Mr. Lau suggested not illuminating the sign facing the bikeway.

(Kin Lau) Mr. Lau says that's correct. He doesn't think the lighting is necessary.

(Shaina Korman-Houston) Ms. Korman-Houston understands the concern about having the sign overly lit, but she thinks the signage should have lighting.

(Rachel Zsembery) Ms. Zsembery suggests two goosenecks for lighting the wall sign, and moving the other lights further down.

(Eugene Benson) Mr. Benson thinks that outdoor queuing should wrap around to the parking lot, rather than being in front of the building.

(Tom Allen) Mr. Allen says that crowd management makes a lot of sense. It may take a little bit of trial and error to get right.

(Kin Lau) Mr. Lau suggests a folding sign to indicate when the parking lot is full.

(Rachel Zsembery) Ms. Zsembery asks about employee parking.

(Tom Allen) Mr. Allen says that employees will not be allowed to park in the lot or on Ryder St, with exceptions due to need or disability.

(Rachel Zsembery) Ms. Zsembery says the board will need to make a few findings in order to approve the special permit: that the loading area is acceptable, that three compact spaces are acceptable, and that the excess sign area is appropriate.

Ms. Zsembery summaries conditions:

• Complying with Section 6.1.11.F(2), subject to administrative approval.
• Lowering lights on the building and adding bollard lights
• Providing an updated lighting plan, subject to administrative approval.
• Queuing patrons away from residences
• Having a "parking lot full" sign
• No employee parking in the parking lot, on Ryder St, or Beck Road, except by special need
• Outdoor music ends at 8:00 pm
• The property owner, applicant, abutter, and town staff meeting to discuss a betterment plan
• Clearly identifying parking and driving directions on the brewery's website

The board approves the special permit, 4--1 (Mr. Benson voted in the negative).

Docket 3348 - 821--873 Mass Ave

(Claire Ricker) Ms. Ricker says the board added this agenda item at their last meeting, in order to vote on the requested demolition of the house at 821 Mass Ave. A few days later, Inspectional services ordered the building to be demolished, and that order supersedes the special permit condition. The building has already been taken down, and the basement will be backfilled.

(Mary Winstanley O'Connor, Attorney for the applicant) Ms. Winstanley O'Connor confirms that the basement will be backfilled, graded, and seeded.

The chair opens the hearing to public comment.

(Peter Bloom, 15 Jason Terrace) Mr. Bloom watched ACMi's recording of the Board's previous meeting, where it was noted that the owner made efforts to board up the building, but the boards kept getting taken down. He was puzzled by that remark and is disappointed at how this turned out.

There are no further comments.

(Rachel Zsembery) Ms. Zsembery says she shares the disappointment at the lack of maintenance. The board discusses how to modify condition 5 of the 2009 Special Permit for CVS.

The board approves the modification, 5--0.

Warrant Articles for 2025 Annual Town Meeting

This is the board fourth night of hearings for zoning amendments for the 2025 annual town meeting.

Article 32 - Rezone B1 Parcels

(Claire Ricker) Ms. Ricker says the B1 district is used inconsistently throughout town and is overly restrictive. B1 parcels comprise approximately 22% of the business district, and staff recommends rezoning these parcels as B2A.

(Eugene Benson) Mr. Benson suggests a wording change to the background paragraph. He thinks it should talk about creating more opportunity for commercial and mixed use. He suggests having the amendment appear before the B1 and B2A comparison tables.

(Steve Revilak) Mr. Revilak agrees that the comparison tables should be separated. He suggests making them an exhibit.

(Rachel Zsembery) Ms. Zsembery says that all of the B1 parcel owners have been notified of the proposed map amendment. She asks if there are any parcels the board would like to remove.

(Kin Lau) Mr. Lau doesn't have issues with any of the parcels. He thinks this makes sense for parcel aggregation, and wouldn't want to impose restrictions.

(Shaina Korman-Houston) Ms. Korman-Houston had a question about 1145 Mass Ave.

(Eugene Benson) Mr. Benson generally agrees. He'd remove the parcels on Swan Place which are residential condominiums. He also wonders about a few parcels on Pleasant St.

(Steve Revilak) Mr. Revilak says he visited each of these parcels on February 23rd. He originally had questions about Swan Place, but after visiting he thinks they should be included. Mr. Revilak says they're directly between a B5 and an R6 district, so it makes sense.

(Rachel Zsembery) Ms. Zsembery had similar thoughts about the parcels on Avon Place.

(Kin Lau) Mr. Lau sees this as a way to create future opportunities, though nothing may happen for 50--100 years.

The chair opens the hearing to public comment.

(Paul Kent) Mr. Kent owns one of the B1 parcels on Court Street, and he would like to have it rezoned as B2A. He'd like to confirm that his property will be included.

(David Beckville, 21 Central St) Mr. Beckville says that some B1 parcels don't sit directly on Mass Ave, and those seem different.

There are no more comments.

(Rachel Zsembery) Ms. Zsembery says the board is including parcels that aren't directly on Mass Ave. She thinks there will be future opportunities to redevelop them, along with the parcels along Mass Ave.

Article 33 - Zoning map adoption for B1 zoning

(Claire Ricker) Ms. Ricker says that Article 33 is the map change that goes along with Article 32.

(Kin Lau) Mr. Lau says that board members have visited every one of the B1 sites. He asks how we can give town meeting some level of comfort. Perhaps by showing aerial photos? He wants to make sure we make enough time for that in our presentation.

(Rachel Zsembery) Ms. Zsembery agrees with showing images, but not necessarily for every parcel.

The chair opens the hearing for public comment.

(Bob Radochia, 45 Columbia Road) Mr. Radochia says this isn't clear. A GIS map with some photos shouldn't be a big deal. Anything the board could do in advance to convince town meeting would be helpful.

(Peter Bloom, 15 Jason Terrace) Mr. Bloom thinks it's hard to interpret the possibilities, and he assumes people will want to understand them. He says this needs to be clearly communicated and he's concerned about people being surprised.

There are no more comments.

(Rachel Zsembery) Ms. Zsembery says that GIS maps will be included in the information given to town meeting.

(Steve Revilak) Mr. Revilak has reservations about the definition for the B2A district, which includes a mention of businesses where patrons will "arrive by car". He suggests striking those words from the definition.

The board discusses this suggestion, and decides to leave the definition as-is.

Article 34 - Administrative Correction

(Claire Ricker) Ms. Ricker says this is an administrative correction, to update the date of the last zoning map adoption.

(Eugene Benson) Mr. Benson asks if we can get rid of the date altogether, so we don't have to change it every time the map is amended.

(Claire Ricker) Ms. Ricker will check with Town Counsel.

There are no comments from the public.

Article 35 - Zoning Map Adoption for Administrative Correction

(Claire Ricker) Ms. Ricker says this article may not be necessary if the date is removed from the bylaw.

There are no comments from the public.

Article 39 - Add 17 Palmer to the Neighborhood Multifamily District

(Claire Ricker) Ms. Ricker says this is a citizen petition to add 17 Palmer St to the Neighborhood Multifamily district. The property abuts the district, but was no originally included. The petitioner is John Herrity, who owns 17 Palmer.

(Steve Revilak) Mr. Revilak says he reviewed minutes from the MBTA Communities working group and wasn't able to find any evidence of a conscious decision to exclude 17 Palmer. When drawing the district boundaries, we tried to keep a uniform distance from Mass Ave and Broadway, though there were exceptions to preserve continuity or align district boundaries with block boundaries.

There are no comments from the public.

(Kin Lau) Mr. Lau agrees with making this happen.

Article 41 - Affordable Housing Overlay District

(Claire Ricker) Ms. Ricker says the petitioners for Article 41 have asked to have their article withdrawn, as they did not meet the technical requirements for noticing the map change.

There's no discussion from the board, and no comment from the public.

Article 42 - Zoning Map Amendment for Affordable Housing Overlay District

(Claire Ricker) Ms. Ricker says that Article 42 is the map change that goes along with Article 41.

There's no discussion from the board, and no comment from the public.

The board votes to close public comment on warrant article hearings, and continue them to April 7th.

Open Forum

(Susan Stamps, 39 Grafton St) Ms. Stamps has a question about Section 6.3 of the Zoning Bylaw, which contains standards for planting public shade trees. She asks how this will work on public ways that don't have tree well.

There's no more comment from the public.

(Claire Ricker) Ms. Ricker says she's had conversation with DPW director Mike Rademacher about this. Developers would need to build tree wells in a manner that's acceptable to the DPW.

(Kin Lau) Mr. Lau says that contractors would have to be bonded and follow DPW standards.

New Business

(Steve Revilak) Mr. Revilak would like to talk about MAPS, which is Cambridge's Mass Ave Planning Study. MAPS is one of four concurrent initiatives that Cambridge is undertaking: separated bike lanes, studying the economic impact of bike lanes, combined sewer separation, and a planning study of properties surrounding Mass Ave.

The study area runs along Mass Ave from Cambridge common to the Alewife Brook Parkway.

The goal is to make the corridor a liveable, walkable neighborhood with more housing and more neighborhood businesses. Presentations on the city website divide the area between Porter Square and Alewife Brook parkway into three sections. Blocks nearest the parkway will be built up a little. Porter Square could be built up a lot, with an emphasis on transit-oriented development; on the order of 6 to 18 stories. They're envisioning 8--11 stories in between, with an emphasis on commercial nodes at Day Street and Ringe, and Trolley square. Over the next 15 years, the plan envisions a Mass Ave that is less flat, has more trees and wider sidewalks, and areas with a focus on ground floor commercial.

(Eugene Benson) Mr. Benson asks if 882 Mass Ave has submitted a lighting plan, and whether their fitness center needs a special permit.

(Claire Ricker) Ms. Ricker says he doesn't have an update on that, but is working with Inspectional Services.

Meeting adjourned.