The Revere Conservation Commission held a meeting last Wednesday, February 1, in the City Council Chambers. Chairman John Shue and fellow commissioners Joseph LaValle, Brian Averbach, and Robert Cassidy were on hand for the meeting.
The commission first took up the matter of a request for a Notice of Intent (NOI) by the city for its project for the installation of 220 feet of drain pipe from Avon St. to the city’s storm drain system on Bay Rd.
This matter had come before the commission at its previous meeting, but was continued because the Dept. of Environmental Protection had not issued a file number, which is a statutory requirement in order for a local ConsComm to take action on an NOI.
“There is an existing drywell on Avon St. and this will create a connection to the city’s drainage system on Bay Rd.,” said Danielle Osterman, the city’s Community Development Program Manager. “This project will alleviate the flooding problem on Avon St.”
After a brief discussion about the environmentally-related mitigation measures that will be taken by the city during the construction process, the commissioners unanimously approved the issuance of a Notice of Intent.
The commision also addressed another request for an NOI by the city for its reconstruction of Leach Park, which is located at the corner of Leverett and Broadsound Aves. in Beachmont. The project will involve the replacement and maintenance of a wood fence, removal of tree stumps, the creation of an ADA-accessible entrance, and paving of 2200 sq. ft. of existing gravel walkway to make it ADA-accessible.
Part of the property is located within an area subject to coastal storm water flowage, which brings it within the jurisdiction of the local ConsComm. However, there had not been sufficient notice to the abutters prior to the meeting and the DEP has not issued a file number. In addition, the project will require a stormwater report.
As a result of these shortcomings, the matter was postponed and will be taken up at a future meeting of the commission.
The commission then took up a request for a Certificate of Compliance (CoC) by Amazon for its new warehouse at 565 Squire Road.
Shue said he had walked the project, which is now completed, and that it has met all of the requirements for its construction pursuant to the Orders of Conditions. Although the commission unanimously approved the CoC, it was noted that the warehouse will remain vacant for at least a year because of the nationwide slowdown in Amazon’s business.
The commission also approved a request for a Certificate of Compliance by Richard Farina for his home at 375 Revere Beach Blvd. Permission for the original project, which involved upgrades to the backyard, had been applied for (and granted), but never undertaken, in 2004, by the then-Conservation Commission.
However, the homeowner is now selling the property and needed the commission to take the necessary action for a CoC to clear his title, which the commissioners unanimously approved.
Finally, the commission took up a request for a Notice of Intent from Stack and Co. for the construction of a 30-unit, four-story, residential apartment building with first-floor podium parking at 810 Washington Ave. (which is located across Sherman St. from the Walgreen’s in the same general area as the new Amazon warehouse on Squire Rd).
The existing building will be demolished and the new structure will be constructed within the footprint of the property. It was noted that the present businesses in the building will not be located in the new building, which will be strictly residential.
The land is subject to coastal storm flowage and is within 200 feet of the Pines River. A representative for Stack & Co. presented the application and answered the commissioners’ questions about stormwater mitigation and the infrastructure to handle stormwater issues. Construction is expected to begin in April and will extend for about a year.
The commissioners unanimously approved the issuance of the Notice of Intent and the usual Order of Conditions.
The commission’s next meeting is set for March 1.
