Milton Planning Board
Re: 131 Eliot St.
Special Permit and site plan approval application.

Milton Planning Board,

We filed an application for a special permit and site plan approval for 131 Eliot St. in July, 2010.The chairman of the Planning Board at that time, Alex Whiteside, e-mailed our office stating that the application was incomplete.With input from the Planning Board we resubmitted the application in September,2010.It was accepted as a complete application.The check for the application fee was cashed by the Town of Milton.The public hearing started on September 23rd,2010.Over one year into our public hearing process the current chairwoman,Emily Innis,began to state at the start of each meeting that the application is incomplete.To date, we have not had in writing, a list of Ms. Innis’s new concerns from the Town of Milton.Our position is that the application as filed in September,2010 is a complete application.

During the public hearing process we have supplimented our application with additional studies and documents at the request of the Milton Planning Board.These include additional traffic studies, zoning analysis, massing study, site analysis, shadow study, site sections, new landscape plans with adjusted building location,building renderings with changed facade, new first and second building floor plans to accommodate additional business use, four certified arborist letters, a termite inspection report. In our opinion, we have complied with and performed on,in good faith, every request by the Milton Planning Board regarding our proposed development.

In our opinion, as applicants, the public hearing portion of the application process has lost it’s fruitfulness for the development. The application with the agreed to changes by the Milton Planning Board (see Emily Innis e-mail dated 10/17/2011) is the furthest we can deviate from the original submission and still be successful with the development of the property.Our development design has had the support of three Town Meeting votes in ay,2006,May,2007,Nov.,2007. We presented the articles at Town Meeting with our design for The Milton Planning Board.The design has the support of The Milton Board of Selectman,The Central Ave. Business Revitalization Committee, The Milton Hill Association, The Colombine Cliffs Neighborhood Association, along with numerous other town officals,employees, and residents.

We are requesting that The Milton Planning Board close the public hearing and engage in regularly scheduled meetings to complete the permitting process for the application.The current building design is what we need, at a minimum, as applicants to develop the site. The zoning bylaw language and “hard number” provisions requires a five floor, four story structure with the requisite parking spaces underneath the structure and at the rear of the property.After all, the zoning bylaw was written and amended predicated on our design.Also see 36 Central Ave as an example of a five floor,four story structure.

This proposal is critical for the revitalization of the business district and the quality of life for our community.We look forward to working with The Milton Planning Board in future meetings to a timely and successful conclusion to the application process.

Regards, Steven Connelly