Keri Pyke of Howard/Stein-Hudson, the firm retained to assess the parking issues in East Milton and propose solutions gave her final report to the Board of Selectmen. Ms. Pyke and her team have held community hearings, presented and received feedback multiple times before the Business and Community Advisory Committee, performed traffic and parking analyses, and explored a variety of options. Their recommendation, dubbed the hybrid plan, was presented last Tuesday. The plan may move ahead pending the sign off of the Selectmen and confirmation of funding.
Ms. Pike reviewed short-term efforts that could be taken to relieve parking congestion. These included changing the service zone parking by the post office to public parking and changing the no parking restriction on Boulevard street and allowing public parking.
A more substantial change looks at changing zoning to allow commercial businesses in houses along Mechanic and Bassett streets. Selectman Shields questioned this. He questioned how homeowners would feel if a business opened next door when their expectation was that it would be a residence. The zoning change is considering commercial business on first floor with a residence above. This recommendation was made in response to how the district might grow.
The key recommendation, however, was a substantial change to the square that would alter the current greenscape that exists over the expressway and develop into public parking. Officials noted that the space which consists of benches and pedestrian walkways goes largely unused. Intended as a small park for people to enjoy an outdoor lunch or quiet moment, the space is something of a no man’s land. Shields commented that it is an extremely windy spot and cold.
The plan wold call for closing off Adams, allowing only eastbound traffic past the post office and creating a circular traffic pattern around the parking area. Here is a concept design of the proposal:
The white bars indicate new crosswalks.
The cost of the proposal is estimated by Ms. Pyke to be approximately $1 million. The cost is not that high because the underlying structure will be preserved. Essentially whoever is selected to develop the lot would be peeling back the existing surface and replacing it with the parking overlay. Consequently, the amount of disruption should be minimal. Shields recalled the original construction and said it was a nightmare for local residents.
The town has $1.8 million in earmarked funds to apply to this and is at risk of losing the funding if it is not allocated shortly. Pyke estimates that it may take about a year to get through the Massachusetts Department of Transportation.
The plan is endorsed by the BCAC and the Selectmen did not voice any strenuous objections. They will review the proposal in more detail and resume discussion on August 18th.
You can find complete presentations and meeting minutes here.