Quincy planners continue review of 3-story mixed-use at 90 Columbia Street after resident concerns about parking and traffic

The Quincy Planning Board continued its review of a proposed 3‑story, mixed‑use building at 90 Columbia Street after an evening of technical presentations and extensive public comment.

The applicant team described a 29,500‑square‑foot project that would replace an existing one‑story printing facility with a building housing a childcare center (The Learning Experience) and an indoor swim school (Lift to Swim) on the first and second floors and six residential units on the third floor. Architect Matthew Jarmel said the building footprint would be about 11,000 square feet and the site covers roughly 0.74 acres. "The 1st and 2nd Floor include the childcare center and the lift to swim and the 3rd Floor includes the apartments," Jarmel said during the presentation.

Project materials submitted to the board show 25 surface parking spaces, including two ADA spaces, an underground stormwater chamber to manage runoff, new landscaping and lighting designs, and a six‑foot fence around the pool area. The civil engineer said the stormwater system is designed to meet local and state requirements for TSS and phosphorus removal. Traffic consultant Sean Kelly summarized trip‑generation estimates using Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) data and told the board the team expects on the order of several hundred trips a day associated with the daycare and staff (roughly 300 inbound and 300 outbound across 24 hours in the consultant's estimate), with peak hour volumes in the neighborhood of 80–90 trips. Kelly recommended measures such as restricting exiting turns to limit neighborhood cut‑through traffic.

Residents who live near Columbia Street described worries about curbside parking, morning congestion, snow storage and the scale of the building. "154 kids was the max calculated. That's a lot," said resident Vivian Daivari of 95 Columbia Street, who asked how parents and employees would be accommodated on a narrow, residential street already used as a cut‑through. David Parsons, who lives across from the site, said he is concerned about weekend operations and pedestrian safety when sidewalks are blocked by snow.

Supporters also spoke. Abigail Murphy of 35 Queen Street said she recently moved to Quincy and wants more housing and childcare options: "I think this is an area that is much in much need of development like this."

Applicant witnesses addressed operations and licensing. Architect Jarmel said the proposed center would likely be licensed for about 154 children under state facility guidelines (and operationally might hold roughly 134 children on a typical day) and described caregiver‑to‑child ratios used in the design. He also said many children are siblings, and the team expects that to reduce peak vehicle trips. The project team acknowledged several open items — including peer review of stormwater and traffic analyses, transformer siting, and certain design details — that they will address before returning to the board.

After taking testimony and public comment, the board voted to continue the matter to the April 8 meeting to allow for peer review and additional follow‑up with departments and the applicant. Planning staff told the board they will coordinate peer‑review feedback and additional submittals ahead of the continued hearing.

The Planning Board did not approve or deny the project at this meeting; the board set the next public hearing date so neighbors and departments can review updated responses to technical concerns.