Developers seek six‑story self‑storage on American Legion Highway; conservation hearing continued to September

Developers proposing a six‑story, climate‑controlled self‑storage building at 195 American Legion Highway told the Revere Conservation Commission they had filed for an order of conditions and for local height and floor‑area variances, but commissioners continued the notice of intent until September to allow time for outstanding permit and technical questions to be resolved.

Matthew Caso of Beals Associates presented the project on behalf of the applicant, identified in the filing as Chem's Development Court and Ed Doherty. He said a DEP file number is now listed for the project (0610849) and the team is seeking a special permit from city council to increase height from a previously permitted five stories (about 60 feet) to six stories (about 70 feet). "We're now seeking, 70 feet and 6 stories," Caso said in the presentation.

The project site sits behind a large existing warehouse and abuts bordering vegetated wetlands and FEMA coastal flood zones. Caso said the property is within FEMA flood elevation Zone AE (flood elevation ~11 at the site) and that the site contains historic fill and buried organics. Subsurface investigation found loose to medium silty sand fill over an organic peat layer with marine clay beneath; geotechnical borings reported refusal at glacial till roughly 70–84 feet below grade. Caso told the commissioners the building will be pile‑supported to reach that refusal layer.

Because prior industrial uses produced closed releases and testing has shown elevated concentrations of heavy metals and semi‑volatile organics, the applicant said they plan to cap contaminated fill in place rather than infiltrate stormwater through that material. A phase‑2 limited subsurface assessment is in progress; the applicant said contaminated areas will likely be subject to an Activity and Use Limitation (AUL) after MassDEP review. Caso said the project will import about 8,000 cubic yards of clean structural fill, raising the rear of the site about 6–7 feet and the highway frontage about 1–2 feet.

Project details presented to the commission included a 24,295 square‑foot building footprint across six stories (about 135,000 gross square feet total), a 24‑foot wide drive around the building, an interior drive‑through and approximately 13 parking/loading spaces, a proposed rip‑rap boulder slope at the rear to resist coastal wave action, and a plan to reduce existing impervious area by roughly 18,000 square feet (about a 26% reduction) while adding landscape plantings (16 trees, 28 shrubs) and a waste‑cleanup commitment. The applicant said they will not use infiltration for stormwater treatment because of the contaminated fill; instead the plan relies on hydrodynamic separators, lined detention, and other water‑quality measures and will require an EPA Construction General Permit and likely a MassDOT access permit for work on the state‑owned American Legion Highway.

Commissioners asked detailed questions about foundation piles, contamination remediation vs. capping, ability to access the rear wetlands for city maintenance, long‑term trash control, and whether construction would disrupt American Legion Highway. The applicant said piles will be driven to refusal, that tanks and site structures will be removed and replaced with clean fill, and that there is a plan for regular trash cleanup in the operations and maintenance manual. The applicant agreed that some items—DEP fee processing, outstanding variances, and city site‑plan review—remain active.

After discussion the commission continued the hearing to September so members could review outstanding technical documentation and pending local approvals. The applicant agreed to the continuance.