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Development

Town Council, Planning Board Will Have to Agree on RMUD Changes

By Charlie Breitrose | February 10, 2016

When the hearing on the RMUD zoning changes was postponed, it meant the proposal was not voted on within the 90 day period, so a new procedure will be needed when the hearing is held on March 2. After Tuesday’s Council Meeting, Town Council President Mark Sideris said the meeting will be a joint session between the Town Council and the Planning Board. They will convene at the Watertown High School Auditorium on March 2 at 6 p.m.

While the Town Council will vote on the proposed changes to the zoning of the east end of Arsenal Street (including the malls and parts of Arsenal Street, Elm Street and Coolidge Avenue), the Planning Board must weigh in, too, Sideris said. “They have to have a say because we didn’t take up the proposal within 90 days,” Sideris said. The new zoning would allow residential, commercial and office developments in an area now zoned for industrial.

Development

Date and Location of RMUD Meeting Has Been Changed, Again

By Charlie Breitrose | February 9, 2016

Town Manager Michael Driscoll announced Tuesday that the meeting to discuss the Regional Mixed Use District zoning amendments has been changed. The original meeting date was cancelled due to snow. A joint public hearing on the Regional Mixed Use District Text and Map Amendment will be held with the Planning Board and Town Council on Wednesday, March 2, 2016 starting at 6 p.m. in the Watertown High School Auditorium, 50 Columbia Street, Watertown. The official meeting notice reads, in part:

BP Watertown Retail LLC submitted a petition request for a Zoning Ordinance Amendment and Map Amendment to create a new Zoning District, Regional Mixed Use District (RMUD), and further to amend the Watertown Zoning Ordinance (WZO). The amendments are intended to be in keeping with and implement the recently adopted 2015 Comprehensive Plan and the Future Land Use Map, which identifies an area for Regional Mixed Use. This request was reviewed by DCDP Staff and by the Planning Board and now includes amendments of, but may not be limited to:

Modified Definitions (open space),
Use Tables (mixed-use, cemeteries, assisted living, new/used vehicles for sale, light industry, heavy industry, and accessory uses) and Use Notes,
Dimensional Table (change of setbacks, coverage, impervious surface, minimum opens space, height)
Dimensional Notes (overall length and faced lengths),
new RMUD Section (intent, purpose, district delineation, dimensional criteria, authority, and procedure) – Creates a new Master Plan process and identifies the Planning Board as the permit granting authority
Site Plan Review (LEED and Energy Assessments requirements) and Parking, and updates to other sections as appropriate.

Development

Monday’s RMUD Hearing Cancelled, New Date Set to Discuss Zoning Changes

By Charlie Breitrose | February 8, 2016

{Note: The date and location of the RMUD meeting has been changed}

The much discussed Regional Mixed Use District zoning changes that would impact the area near the two malls will not be voted on until March at the earliest. The snow cancelled the RMUD hearing in front of the Town Council scheduled for Monday night. Town officials announced that a new joint public hearing on the RMUD Text and Map Amendment will be held with the Planning Board and Town Council on Wednesday, March 2, 2016 starting at 6 p.m. in the Watertown High School Auditorium, 50 Columbia Street, Watertown.