SHREWSBURY – Interstate Crossing Industrial Park was back before the Planning Board on Feb. 8 with a focus on the stormwater design of the project.
The development — proposed for the 100-acre former Worcester Sand & Stone property at 142 Clinton St. — would include two buildings totaling 921,728 square feet. The project would have three entrances on Route 70. The plans also call for 524 vehicle parking spaces, 187 loading docks and 71 trailer storage spaces. The developer, 160 Holden Street LLC, is an affiliate of Boston-based developer GFI Partners LLC.
There is no tenant for the project as of yet.
Several dozen community members attended the Planning Board meeting to hear more about the development’s impact on the environment and local water supply. The project, which would contain a higher percentage of impervious surface than allowed by zoning regulations, sits close to wetlands, ponds, streams and aquifers.
The developer provided a 334-page document by Dedham-based Highpoint Engineering, Inc. outlining the stormwater patterns associated with the project.
Highpoint Engineering said that the project includes rain gardens, subsurface infiltration chambers, three surface basins and other measures to collect, treat, and recharge the underlying aquifer.
In the report, Highpoint Engineering states that the “project will improve existing runoff patterns and off-site discharge locations of the subject property… The project will also implement water quality treatment measures, and those measures will be maintained under a long-term stormwater operation and maintenance plan. The stormwater impacts associated with the development will be mitigated as required by state and municipal regulations.”
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The project would significantly reduce phosphorus in Newton Pond, developers said. Phosphorus is responsible for algal blooms and excessive weed growth in bodies of water. The developers also said the project exceeds expectations when considering water quality. Highpoint Engineering’s numbers indicated the project is 3.4 times better than required by regulations.
Planning Board Chair Moe DePalo asked about the property’s cleaning schedule. The developer said the pavement would be swept roughly two times per year, while the basins would be cleaned roughly four times annually. DePalo said he’d like more rigorous and frequent cleaning.
During the presentation, representatives from 160 Holden Street LLC said the fresh development might be a net positive for the area. The site currently has exposed stone and gravel, and the development’s fresh landscaping and additional vegetation may benefit the area both practically and aesthetically.
‘We don’t want this project’
However, community members at the meeting — composed mostly of abutters of the proposed development —voiced their skepticism about the project.
“We don’t want this project. We don’t,” said Christa Clark Duprey. “The project’s too big — too much of an environmental, residential, and pollution impact.”
The developer attempted to reassure residents, but Duprey and several other community members who spoke at the meeting stated they still had grave concerns about the proposed project’s impact on water quality.
For others, the issue boiled down to both aesthetics and the environment.
Karin Simoneau, who lives along Newton Pond, said her family has lived there for 30 years.
“Some of the neighbors have lived here for 50 years, which says a lot about this neighborhood. It’s a quiet, serene area that people come from all over with their families to enjoy recreational activities on the pond such as fishing, kayaking, boating, swimming, sailing, and with winter here, ice skating and ice fishing. We’re concerned that the magnitude of these two buildings will change the landscape considerably,” said Simoneau.
Resident Linda Heller said the project doesn’t seem to align with the town’s priorities. She read from Shrewsbury’s 2016 Master Plan, which she said stated that the town could implement groundwater protection efforts and the property could be used for passive recreation.
“How did we get here? It just seems impossible. This is the town plan,” said Heller.
Several residents said they felt Shrewsbury has become overdeveloped. Several members of the public criticized town leaders, including the town manager and other individuals, about the state of the town. Confrontations became heated — and personal — at certain points.
Although the issue will be addressed at later meetings, the developer and residents disagreed as to whether sound from the property will be heard by neighbors. While developers promised zero noise pollution, neighbors — who said they hear noise from the property’s existing Worcester Sand & Stone usage — worry that adding 18-wheel-truck engines could make the situation unbearable.
The development will continue to appear before the Planning Board in subsequent meetings; the project’s traffic impact will be discussed at the meeting in March. For more information, visit https://shrewsburyma.gov/1258/Projects-in-Permitting.
