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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024-04-01 ad Hoc - Symonds Way Exploratory Committee Minutesr Town of Reading ? Meeting Minutes Board - Committee - Commission - Council: Symonds Way Exploratory Committee Date: 2024-04-01 Time: 7:00 PM Building: Reading Town Hall Location: Select Board Meeting Room Address: 16 Lowell Street Session: Open Session Purpose: General Business Version: Final Attendees: Members - Present: Chair Carlo Bacci, Vice Chair Chuck Robinson, Angela Binda (remote), Heather Clish, Andrew Dribin, Karen Janowski, Nancy Twomey Members - Not Present: Others Present: Executive Assistant Jacquelyn LaVerde Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Jacquelyn LaVerde Topics of Discussion: This meeting was held in-person in the Select Board Meeting Room of Town Hall and remotely via Zoom. Chair Carlo Bacci called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm. Roll Call Attendance: Chuck Robinson, Karen Janowski, Carlo Bacci, Andrew Dribin, Nancy Twomey, Angela Binda (remote). Heather Clish arrived at 7:09 pm. Public Comment: There was no comment from the public. Review and Approve Slide Presentation to Select Board: The Symonds Way Exploratory Committee reviewed the draft presentation and changes made following the review by the Conservation Commission. They reviewed each slide to ensure they were still in agreement on the content, made a few more minor changes to further clarify their message, and agreed on the final presentation. [See attachment for final version of the presentation]. Approve Meeting Minutes: On a motion by Karen Janowski, seconded by Chuck Robinson, the Symonds Way Exploratory Committee voted 7-0-0 to approve the meeting minutes of March 18, 2024 as presented. Roll call vote: Angela Binds - Yes, Heather Clish - Yes, Nancy Twomey - Yes, Andrew Dribin - Yes, Carlo Bacci - Yes, Karen Janowski - Yes, Chuck Robinson - Yes. On a motion by Heather Clish, seconded by Nancy Twomey, the Symonds Way Exploratory Committee voted 7-0-0 to approve the slide presentation that serves as the Committee's report to the Select Board. Page 1 1 Roll call vote: Angela Binda - Yes, Heather Clish - Yes, Nancy Twomey - Yes, Andrew Dribin - Yes, Karen Janowski - Yes, Chuck Robinson - Yes, Carlo Bacci - Yes. The report will be presented to the Select Board in May after the special election, and the Select Board is back to five members. On a motion by Nancy Twomey, seconded by Karen Janowski, the Symonds Way Exploratory Committee voted 7-0-0 to adjourn at 7:51 pm. Roll call vote: Angela Binda - Yes, Heather Clish - Yes, Nancy Twomey - Yes, Andrew Dribin - Yes, Karen Janowski - Yes, Chuck Robinson - Yes, Carlo Bacci - Yes. Page 1 2 recommendations of the Symonds Exploratory committee Carlo Bacci, Chair — Select Board Chuck Robinson, Vice Chair — School Committee Angela Binda — Recreation Committee Heather Clish — Community Planning and Development Andrew Dribin — Conservation Com Karen Janowski — Council on Nancy Twomey — Permanent Bu t,7�11 SWEC Formation • In 2019 the Town purchased approximately 15 acres on Symonds Way, off Haverhill Street. A subsequent site survey, completed in September 2022, performed by the engineering company Weston and Sampson, showed approximately 2.5 acres of the land was buildable due to the proximity of wetlands. • In November 2022, the Reading Select Board formed the Symonds Way Exploratory Committee (SWEC) to serve as an advisory committee for the purpose of recommending the best options for uses of this land for our community. SWEC Charge The purpose of this committee is to serve as an advisory committee to the Reading Select Board for the purpose of recommending the best options for uses of the land for our community, understanding the needs of the community, located on Symonds Way. SWEC shall gather input from its members and the Reading residents as to what the property should look like and its functionality. SWEC will hold regular meetings and community outreach, SWEC will gather, analyze, and organize information for future planning decisions related to the best uses for this property. SWEC Charge The Committee shall consider the following: • Best uses to serve as many residents as possible • Using public funds and grants where possible towards development • Private/public partnerships to develop the property The first task of SWEC will be to define the best use for the property. SWEC will provide feedback on potential physical layouts on the property developed by SV Design Architects and funded by Town Meeting on April 2022. If a private/public partnership is deemed appropriate, the SWEC will work with Reading Town Hall staff to develop and review a Request for Proposals (RFP) for private developers to invest in the property. Once proposals are received, and with the help of Reading Town Hall Staff, SWEC will help review and evaluate the submittals to the RFP. The Committee will offer recommendations for potential funding options, if pursuing public development is deemed appropriate. SWEC Actions 1. To gain an understanding of what the community would like, a survey was developed and published. 2. Initial schematic drawin s were produced by SV Design to help the committee understand the scope and scale of various types of recreation that could fit within the 2.5 acres. 3. At a March 2023 meeting, comments made by the public suggested that we look at all Town -owned area on Symonds Way. 4. At SWEC's request, the Select Board, at their May 2023 meeting, voted to expand the Committee's charge to include areas that te Town's Conservation Administrator determined were possible areas to develop, including behind the Burbank Ice Arena, the baseball field, and a small area next to 18 Symonds Way. 5. A Request for Information (RFI) was developed and published to solicit responses from parties interested in a private/public enterprise. Evaluation Criteria • To help the Committee identify the best use(s) of the property, evaluation criteria were discussed and established as follows: 1. Provides a wide -range of public use. 2. Provides inter -generational use. 3. Meets a demonstrated need. 4. Maintains Town's ownership of property. 5. Minimal taxpayer expense/fiscally responsible. 6. Compatible with surrounding uses. Community Input • Over multiple meetings, several requests were heard from the public including: 1. Contracting with Black Earth for a compost facility. 2. Building pickle ball courts behind the Burbank Ice Arena utilizing their overflow parking area and built through private donations. 3. Creating more practice fields for Reading Youth Lacrosse. 4. Creating an aquatic center. 5. Using a portion of the land for a dog park built through a grant specifically for dog parks. • Finally, the Town is concurrently conducting a feasibility study that potentially places the Reading Center For Active Living within the original 2.5 -acre site. C�c/D� Community Survey Responses Total responses Age of Respondents Are there children under age 18 in your household? • 1,727 18-29 30 Yes 1,061 30-39 299 No 591 40-49 628 Not Applicable 46 50-59 340 Prefer Not to Answer 29 60-69 213 70-79 144 80-89 35 w_. 90+ 2 Prefer Not to Answer 36 Question 1: What areyourtop priorities for improving the quality of life in Reading? TTOAnswers: Q1 What are your top priorities for improving the quality of life in Reading, op it any (You may choose up to TWO ) 1. Recreation 66.76% (Chosen highly among households with and without children) 2. Open Space 33.12% 3. Senior Services & Senior Center 16.56% 4. Other (fop Fill-in Responses out of 362) 1. Hockey/Ice Rink 113 2. Pickleball73 3. Fields (turf/outdoor/athletic) 39 Question 2: parcel. Rank (hese in your order of pdoMy (1 Is Mos[ Impadant). Rank the priority of example projects. • Top Answers: 1. Outdoor Athletic Fields/Courts 2. Recreation Center (Indoor) 3. Conservation Land/Green Spaces M 5� /.NYYNWI 1M UP v.u..b � � tl1�[� L Nov • iRl Sb tq•w Y W �• Y � ]P 1tl LM LP W e Y Y e.n }iwN 61. KLRI ST Pia[pi•mgn V.� Yb! 4Wf rllw n L�tl •u •YYetlep N»Wmm9 ae N M b Itl IY Ill • Lan .» •.pupm exwim 0.y1 iZ 212 Question 3: How important is the development of the Symonds Way Property? • Weighted Average 3.51 in importance (out of 5) Q3 How important is it to you for the town to invest in the development of the Symond's way Property? R�. 1,727 Skp 0 �xm eel L. �wmxnp. �sumenn.. �wrvMp�n.. 1u�emehl-� NOTR •ll WTSO wM EXIflELFLY TOTµ WF1GHiE0 IIfOR. 11Rg w I.F . IMPpR.WI NORfNIr RVEMCE 1031% 1811 11 ]I I'm 116 178 091 118 . 111 11, 4 CEDAR SWAMP J NORTH Parcel ID 041-59 11 S'N ypS '.0�./ RRIFLLEN& d Parcel ID 035-133 REVOLVER �.. ff LCLUB y i F ti mm�' CEDAR SWAMP SOUTH Property Constraints • Contaminants? 411 _.46 Property Constraints • Contaminants? • Wetlands (35' "No Build Zone") Property Constraints • Contaminants? • Wetlands (35' "No Build Zone") • Need for Emergency Fire Lane • Potential Range Road Upgrade • Limited Buildable Space Property Overview Expanded Charge May 16, 2023 • Baseball field • Parking area behind Burbank Arena • Small area adjacent to 18 Symonds Way EAE • FIELD,,. SWEC ORIGINAL CHARGE 1-=247mW?7WB 2n Recommended Options PUBLIC-PRIVATE MULTI -USE RECREATIONAL FACILITY CONSERVATION PICKLEBALL COURTS CENTER FOR ACTIVE LIVING DOG PARK (SENIOR/COMMUNITY CENTER) MULTI-PURPOSE FIELDS Multi -Purpose Fields • High need identified by Recreation DepartME leagues. • Need for additional lighted practice field growing as high school teams use fields later in the day and evening. • No other locations currently under consideration for additional fields. • Can be combined with other elements at Symonds Way property. Pickleball Courts • Demand identified in survey and public discussion. • Sound is unlikely to negatively impact neighbors. • Most suitable location for new courts identified in town, as discussed by several Town Boards, based on current noise impacts and parking needs. • Can be combined with other elements at Symonds Way property. Center for Active Living (Senior/Community Center) A recognized Town need. Feasibility Study being led by Reading Center for Active Living (ReCAL) Committee and Council on Aging. Two other locations in Reading also under consideration, neither of which appear suitable for the other recommended Symonds Way property uses. • Potential to combine with other recommended uses if full extent of Town property is used. Dog Park • Considered by SWEC in context of grant opportunity at the time. • While Town Forest is heavily used for dog walking, a dedicated dog park would offer a place for off -leash use and contain dog waste. • Unclear whether there are other locations that could serve this purpose. A Multi -use Indoor Recreational Facility • Request for Information (RFI) response received from Edge Sports Global. • Large flat area to east of Burbank Ice Arena offers uniquely suitable area for complex that could meet multiple needs, including indoor fields & courts, aquatic center, walking track, parking. • Would require renegotiation with Reading Ice Arena Authority for use of Town land and public-private agreement to assure Town use of facilities. • Potential to combine with outdoor fields and courts through full use of Symonds Way property. • For this option, SWEC recommends creating multiple uses over duplicating ice rink at this time. Conservation • Recommend gifting non -buildable land to the Conservatio Commission to be identified by future site plan. • Also highly ranked on the community survey. zotldo ojatssod 1. "Just a Little"... Multi -Purpose Fields • Multi -use lighted courts could include: Youth Soccer; Youth Lacrosse; Field Hockey; Basketball Courts; Pickleball. • Meets a Reading Recreation need. 2. "Just a bit more" Center for Active Living (Senior/Community Center) • A recognized Town need. Location under review by Reading Center for Active Living (ReCAL) Committee. • Need for Emergency Fire Lane around building. 3. "Outside the Box" Use of Burbank Leased Land • Expanded charge to include land behind Burbank Ice Arena (approx. 1.5 acres). • Pickleball Courts on parking lot proposed by Reading Pickleball Players Association. 4. Do A Lot... 06 Multi-use Recreational Facility • Make the most of the land available behind Burbank Ice �Jaaaaa�,�•'• Arena. • Public/private partnership �1�■ ,.' opportunity with Edge Sports. Old 1 0 0 QQ► • Where to park? : ; z,..� 5. Do it All! • Full use of Symonds Way property? • Public/private partnership. • Meets a wide variety of needs. • We can think big! 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