The Revere Conservation Commission (ConsComm) held its regular monthly meeting last Wednesday evening, August 5, in the City Council Chambers. Chair Nicholas Rudolph, Joseph LaValle, Brian Averbach, Bernardo Sepulveda, Wilson Correa, and Anthony Parziale were on hand for the session.
The first matter of the evening was a request for approval of a Notice of Intent (NOI) from the city for Phase 2 of the Gibson Park project.
Elle Baker, the city's Open Space and Environmental Planner, told the commissioners that Phase 1 of the Gibson Park project has been fully permitted and is now under construction. She said the focus now is on Phase 2, which involves the property at 29 Thayer Ave., the site of the former Riverside Boatyard, which the city purchased in 2019 when a Master Plan for the area was conceived.
Ms. Baker said the city has been working diligently since that time to obtain grant funding for the project. She said that the project involves remediation for PCBs and cadmium that have been found on the site (for which the city has received grant funding). A deteriorating building from the former boatyard still stands on the site "and is an eyesore to the neighborhood," Baker said.
"The vision for this contaminated site is to have this cleaned and transformed into a space for all residents of all ages and abilities to enjoy access to the waterfront, whether to simply sit there and have a view, or to go canoeing, kayaking, paddle boarding, rowing, and for all other non-motorised activities," Baker said.
The ConsComm then heard from Clair Hoogeboom, a Wetlands Scientist with LEC Environmental, who has been involved with the Gibson Point project from the outset. Ms. Hoogeboom, in her usual concise and straightforward manner, presented photos of the existing condition of the site that highlighted the areas that need remediation. She noted that the site exceeds both the state and federal permissible levels for PCBs and will have to be excavated to a depth of about 1.5 feet, with the dirt (about 1600 tons) to be trucked off to an appropriate facility. About 3000 cubic yards of clean material will be brought in to refill the site.
Hoogeboom said the site is considered a coastal barrier beach and as such is protected as "a coastal dune." The plan for the property includes construction of a new building to be elevated on pilings and a fixed pier that will extend into the Pines River. The pier will lead to a ramp and a floating dock that will be seasonal.
The plan also includes 27 parking spaces, paved walkways, a boardwalk, a rain garden, an open space lawn area, and a net increase of 25 trees.
The commissioners were unable to take a vote on approving the NOI because the Mass. DEP has yet to issue a File Number for the project, which is a prerequisite before a local ConsComm can take action on an application.
The members continued the matter to next month (by which time a File Number should be issued) and will hear from the public on the proposal before taking a vote.
The ConsComm next heard a request for a Certificate of Compliance (COC) for the completed Modera residential project at 550-560 Revere Beach Boulevard. Rick Salvo from Engineering Alliance represented the developer, Mill Creek.
Salvo noted that it has been just about three years from the start of the project to its completion. The commissioners briefly complimented the project and voted unanimously to issue the COC.
The ConsComm next heard an application for approval of an NOI for an additional 12 parking spaces for residents and the restaurant at the Gibson Point complex at 22 Whitin Ave.
Wetlands Scientist Caitlyn White and Registered Engineer Kathleen Cruz with Hancock Associates presented the application. Ms. White told the members that the property is bounded by the Saugus River to the north and the Pines River to the west. The resource areas on the site include bordering vegetative wetlands, a tidal flat, a coastal bank (which is the entire shoreline), salt marsh, shellfish area, an endangered species habitat, and fish run.
Ms. Cruz added that the additional parking area will consist of asphalt and will drain into the existing drainage system on the site. The ConsComm unanimously approved the NOI and issued an OOC.
The next meeting of the ConsComm is set for September 2.