By Journal Staff
The Revere Conservation Commission (ConsComm) held its regular monthly meeting last Wednesday evening, August 6, in the City Council Chambers. Chair Nicholas Rudolph and fellow members Brian Averback, Joseph LaValle, Bernardo Sepulveda, Wilson Correa, and Thomas Carleton were on hand for the session.
The main portion of the evening’s business pertained to the Notice of Intent (NOI) application from the City of Revere to begin work on the construction of the proposed new Revere High School at the former Wonderland Dog Track at 190 VFW Parkway.
State law requires that anyone seeking to do work in a wetlands area must file an NOI with the local conservation commission and the Mass. DEP before they can undertake any work. The NOI provides the conservation commission and MassDEP with a description of the work to be done.
The local conservation commission reviews the NOI and, if acceptable, then issues a work permit known as an Order of Conditions.
Last Wednesday’s hearing was a continuation of the hearing from last month. Claire Hoogeboom, a Wetlands Scientist with LEC Environmental Consultants who has appeared before the ConsComm on numerous occasions over the past 18 months, and Brian Dakin, the project manager from Leftfield Project Management Co., were on hand for the session.
In addition, the ConsComm heard a recorded video presentation from Chanel Jackson, a Senior Water Resources Engineer with Nitsch Engineering, pertaining to the handling of stormwater and floodwater pursuant to the requirements of the Wetlands Protection Act.
Ms. Jackson presented an extremely granular examination of the project that went into greater detail beyond what the ConsComm heard in July. She noted that among the key aspects of the project are that it will reduce the present impervious surface area significantly compared to the present site (a majority of which is covered in asphalt paving) and the school will be designed in order to provide an emergency shelter for residents in the event of a major storm.
Ms. Jackson showed an interesting and highly-explanatory animation of how the entire area west of Revere Beach in the area of Rumney Marsh will flood in an extreme weather event. She noted that the first floor of the school will be at an elevation level of 19 feet, which will be six feet above a 13-foot storm surge in a theoretical catastrophic weather event.
Both Ms. Jackson and David Conway, another engineer from Nitsch, were present to answer the commissioners’ many questions.
DPW Director Chris Ciaramella also was on hand and answered questions from Commissioner LaValle about the operation and maintenance of the tidal floodgates in the area, as well as upkeep of the Eastern County Ditch, which runs through the property along its northern edge. The ditch flows into Diamond Creek, which in turn flows into the Rumney Marsh wetlands.
After an hour of discussion and questions, Rudolph noted that the state’s Final Environmental Impact Report (FEIR), which is required under the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA), will not be promulgated until the end of the month (August 29). When Rudolph then proposed continuing the hearing yet again until September, Dakin pointed out that another continuance could have an impact on the construction timeframe, and ultimately the opening, of the new school, which is set for the fall of 2028.
Tom Skwierawski, the city’s Chief of Planning and Community Development, stepped to the podium to point out that issuing an NOI is not dependent upon receipt of the FEIR. He noted that without an FEIR certificate, the project could not move forward even if the ConsComm were to issue an NOI.
However, Rudolph was not persuaded.
“I think we should have the FEIR in hand and have sufficient time to review it,” said Rudolph. “I want to make sure that there is no question that everything we do is above-board and that what the city is proposing is not going to impact the environment.”
Carleton added that despite his misgivings about the plan for water storage, he would issue the NOI if there is a favorable FEIR.
After Rudolph noted that the ConsComm’s next scheduled meeting is set for September 3, the commission voted to continue the hearing once again to that date. In the meantime, Rudolph agreed to Dakin’s request that the ConsComm issue a draft Order of Conditions prior to the September meeting so that prospective subcontractors will be aware of what likely will be required of them.
The ConsComm took up two other matters. One was a request for a Certificate of Compliance from the Cavallo Corp. for the completed construction of a single-family home at 3 Agneous Avenue. There were no opponents and the members, some of whom had walked the site prior to the meeting, unanimously approved issuing the certificate.
The third matter on the agenda was a request for an Order of Conditions pursuant to an NOI filed by Ed Doherty, the president of KEMS Real Estate Development, for demolition on the site and construction of a 6-story storage facility at 195 American Legion Highway.
Matthew Costa, a Senior Project Manager with the engineering firm Beals and Associates, represented the applicant. Costa presented a number of slides showing the current state of the site and what the developer is proposing. He noted that the City Council issued a special permit in 2023 to the prior owner of the property for the use of the land as a storage facility. He added that the new owner is seeking another special permit from the City Council in order to increase the height from the original five stories to six stories.
Costa noted that the project also will require variances from the Revere Zoning Board of Appeals, and approval from the Revere Site Plan Review Committee, MassDOT, the Mass. DEP, and the federal EPA.
The location at 195 American Legion Highway is next door to the Amazon warehouse facility, which is located in the former NECCO plant (which originally had been the Towle Silver manufacturing plant in the 1980s). There are bordering vegetated wetlands adjacent to the site. The Rumney Marsh Academy school is directly across the highway.
A gas station, a garage, and Millennium Auto Parts are presently on the property, which is located inside the FEMA coastal flood zone with an elevation of 11.
Costa showed aerial photos of the site from over the years. A 1938 photo showed that there was no development in the area, which consisted only of marsh and wetlands. By 1971, the gas station had been built, as well as the auto repair facility. By 1986, the former Towle plant, which is now the Amazon facility, had been constructed.
Costa said that the site is not suitable for housing, recreational areas, or a playground because of the presence of heavy metals, the pesticide chlordane, and semi-volatile organic compounds in the ground.
The proposed building will consist of a 24,295 sq. ft. footprint and will have 135,000 sq. ft. in its six stories. There will be 13 parking/loading spaces. The development will decrease the impervious area currently on the site by 26 percent, while increasing the green space, plantings, and shrubs.
The project will incorporate hydrodynamic separators that will greatly improve the water quality that eventually will flow into the adjacent wetlands.
The owner also will ensure that any rash and debris will be removed regularly and that measures will be taken to prevent trash from being blown into the adjacent wetlands.
The proposed structure will be a sleek, modern building that will mimic some of the architectural features of the Rumney Marsh Academy across the highway.
Costa concluded his presentation by summarizing the many improvements to the environment that will result from the project.
The members raised a number of issues, ranging from the potential impacts of the reflective windows on birds, compensatory water storage, raising the grade of the property, removal of the existing gasoline tanks, and the state of testing wells.
Rudolph then proposed continuing the hearing to September.
“This project is a little intricate and I want to make sure that we have a good handle on everything and that we have enough time to take all of these things into consideration,” Rudolph said.
The commissioners then unanimously voted to continue the matter to their September 3 meeting for their concerns to be addressed.
