Commission approves new pro shop, parking reconfiguration at Shore and Country Club

The Planning & Zoning Commission approved a special permit and coastal site plan for a first-phase renovation at Shore and Country Club, authorizing a new FEMA-compliant pro shop, a reconfiguration of parking near the clubhouse, and relocation of several tennis courts.

Attorney Liz Saatchi presented the application on behalf of the club. The plan would remove two courts adjacent to the clubhouse, build a roughly 1,500-square-foot pro shop elevated above the FEMA base flood elevation plus the city’s two-foot requirement, relocate courts to the north side of the property, and reorganize parking to better serve the clubhouse. Staff and the Harbor Management Commission found the project consistent with coastal management and harbor plan requirements, and required sign-offs were reported from fire, public works, WPCA and utilities.

Civil engineer Andy Sumalidis and architect Mela Kernan described stormwater improvements, proposed bioretention and Coltec systems for water quality treatment, and landscaping to increase vegetated buffer space next to the marsh. The applicant also proposed a noise-deadening barrier for courts that may be used for pickleball to reduce impacts on nearby residences; staff requested that screening along the northern property boundary be made sufficient to meet the waterfront-club screening standard. The applicant agreed to coordinate with staff on screening and to consider permeable paving or solar canopies later as part of future phases.

After public notice and no speakers requesting to testify on the item, the commission approved the application with conditions requiring final landscaping and screening details to staff approval and standard coastal-site conditions.

Why it matters: The action updates long-standing club facilities, raises coastal and stormwater management questions and establishes required screening and landscape conditions to reduce neighborhood impacts.