By MARK SARDELLA
WAKEFIELD — The Town Council last week agreed to participate in the “friendly 40B” development of a property at 484 and 504 Salem St. in Montrose. The 9.5-acre parcel in question sits behind the Dunkin’ Donuts on Salem Street.
The proposed 24 rental units would replace five rental units presently on the site, according to Brian McGrail the attorney representing the developers and owners of the property, Sao Miguel Realty Trust and DLT Family Limited Partnership LP.
At a previous meeting, the Town Council had agreed to explore the feasibility of participating in the friendly 40B affordable housing development at the site and had designated Councilor John Carney to pursue the matter with the development team.
McGrail reported that as part of its due diligence, the development team had completed a site civil design plan, architectural drawings, a traffic study, wetland delineation and a review of utilities and drainage. The team also met with Senior Town Planner Samantha Elliott and Town Administrator Stephen P. Maio.
McGrail said that the traffic study done by Hayes Engineering and submitted to the Traffic Advisory Committee showed that the project would have no significant impact on traffic in the area.
Because the units would be rentals, all 24 would count towards the town’s Subsidized Housing Inventory.
The four-story building would have 20 parking spaces on the ground floor with 22 additional surface parking spaces, McGrail said. Although the parking provided exceeds the local requirement, he said that additional parking would be available on the Dunkin’ Donuts property, which is owned by a related entity.
McGrail said that if the Town Council agreed to participate in the friendly 40B development of the property, the next step would be the joint submittal of a Local Initiative Program
Application to the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities. This would hopefully result in EOHLC issuing a letter of eligibility for the project and property, McGrail said. Such a letter is a prerequisite for the developer to apply for a Comprehensive Permit at the Wakefield Zoning Board of Appeals.
McGrail stressed that the project would still have to go through the full hearing process with the Board of Appeals and the Conservation Commission.
Town Councilor John Carney called the proposed project “an improvement” and said that he supported it 100 percent.
Councilor Edward Dombroski asked about the height of the proposed building and its visibility from Salem Street.
McGrail said that the building height would be 44 feet and it would be set well back on the property so it would not be easily seen from the street.
Dombroski asked that the existing line of trees between Dunkin’ Donuts and the site be maintained as added screening.
Because the site is somewhat hidden, Councilor Robert Vincent suggested street signage to direct first responders to the site.
Councilor Douglas Butler asked McGrail to explain the difference between a “friendly 40B” and a typical 40B proposal. McGrail said that if it were not a friendly 40B, a developer would likely be seeking to build 75 units on the site.
The Town Council voted 7-0 to direct Town Planner Samantha Elliott to move the project forward with the EOHLC.