Board hears proposal for Lyman, Route 30 intersection
By Ken Powers Community Reporter

Westborough - Plans for a twostory, 3,800-square-foot office building proposed for 4 Lyman St. were presented to the Planning Board at its Jan. 15 meeting.

The property is currently owned by town resident Jim Ball, but Ball said he would sell the two-acre parcel to Westborough resident Michael Cohn, who would develop the project.

"My plan is to build an office for my wife, Dr. Suzanne Lucash, who is an ophthalmologist," Cohn said.

Lucash currently has an office in town at 57 East Main St.

Presently, three buildings sit on the 4 Lyman St. property: two houses and a garage. All are in advanced stages of disrepair, Ball said, and would be removed to make room for the office building.

The only issue the Planning Board had while reviewing the project involved traffic flow at the already busy intersection.

Ball and Cohn both said they would like to see visitors to the site have access to it from both directions on Lyman Street, and would like those visitors to be able to exit in both directions when leaving the site.

The Planning Board, however, recommended that access to and departure from the site be allowed via right turns only.

"We think, given the volume of traffic that already exists on Lyman Street and the dangerous nature of trying to cross two lanes of traffic into two lanes of traffic if you wanted to go north on Lyman Street toward Route 9, that access and exit to the site be right-in, right-out only," Planning Board member Skip Ashton said.

Ashton's comments came after the board's traffic consultant provided his report about traffic flow and congestion at the Lyman Street and Route 30 intersection. It was in stark contrast to the traffic study presented by a representative for Ball and Cohn.

Front and center in the traffic discussion was the gridlock that occurs at the intersection during the afternoon rush hour.

"Anyone who has been stuck at that intersection knows traffic is a nightmare, especially between 5 and 6 p.m.," Planning Board member Maureen Bliss said.

Ball said he understands the board's concerns regarding traffic, but said he thinks the gridlock at the site is exaggerated. He said he travels through the intersection routinely during rush hour and said that sometimes it takes him a minute or two to negotiate through, while at other times it can take up to 10 minutes. He said he never has to wait more than two light cycles to turn onto or off Lyman Street.

"We would have liked to see

" total access to the site from both directions, but if this is what the board is recommending, and if this is what will move the project forward, we can live with it," Ball said.

Cohn was sympathetic to the board's concerns, but thought those concerns didn't apply in this situation.

"Anyone who lives in town or is a regular visitor to town knows traffic at that intersection can be difficult," Cohn said. "But the flow to and from the site is going to be so minimal it's not going to aff ect it."

Cohn said his wife's office would be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Friday and that she would see an average of two patients per hour, or about 14 or 15 a day. He said he hopes to have the space open for business by the middle of 2009.

The Planning Board is expected to rule on the project at an upcoming meeting.