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Peabody approves developer’s 103 Foster Street redevelopment with off‑site riverfront plantings at 16 Lowell Street
Summary
After peer review and planning board sign‑off, the Peabody Conservation Commission approved an order of conditions for redevelopment of 103 Foster Street that includes paving required by an activity and use limitation and a required off‑site riverfront mitigation planting plan at George Peabody Legacy Park (16 Lowell St.). The order ties mitigation timing to start of on‑site construction and requires two‑year monitoring.
The Peabody Conservation Commission on Dec. 10 voted to issue an order of conditions for redevelopment of 103 Foster Street that will replace part of an industrial parcel with a contractor‑storage building and stormwater improvements, while requiring off‑site riverfront mitigation at 16 Lowell Street (the George Peabody Legacy Park).
Bridal (presenting for the applicant) told the commission the 1.8‑acre site sits entirely in the riverfront area and contains an Activity and Use Limitation (AUL) that effectively requires capping of subsurface services with pavement or three feet of clean fill. Because part of the site is not capped, the team’s design proposes paving and a full stormwater treatment system — including storm scepter units — and other measures peer‑reviewed by DPS/Western & Sampson.
"This is a redevelopment project, so the stormwater system complies to the extent practicable with DEP standards," Bridal said, adding that peer review comments have been addressed and planning board approval is in hand.
To address riverfront performance standards that cannot be met on the site, the applicant committed to a targeted off‑site mitigation package at 16 Lowell Street: a planting plan and a two‑year monitoring program that will become part of the order of conditions. The condition requires planting work to commence "at or before" the start of construction at 103 Foster Street unless weather or coordinating parties prevent it; the restoration will revert to the city of Peabody after successful monitoring and issuance of a certificate of compliance.
Commissioners also required that the technical memorandum describing the mitigation be attached to the order of conditions, that the project conform with peer‑review conditions, that the applicant provide 21 e‑docs to staff, and that all work follow a Massachusetts contingency plan for any regulated materials.
The order and its conditions were approved on an 8–0 roll call. Commissioners said they expect the applicant to provide dates for work sequencing and to keep the commission updated during implementation.
Why it matters: The decision allows redevelopment of a constrained riverfront site while using an off‑site restoration parcel to achieve wetland performance standards. The approach is a commonly used mitigation pathway when on‑site restoration is infeasible.
Next steps: The applicant must meet peer‑review conditions, coordinate timing with the city for planting installation at the Legacy Park, submit required documents to staff and comply with a two‑year monitoring program before the city assumes maintenance.
