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Developer seeks to convert Needham data center at 105 Cabin Street into self-storage, requests large parking waiver and removal of occupancy cap
Summary
R.J. Kelly presented a plan to convert a former data storage facility at 105 Cabin Street into a self-storage facility, asking the Planning Board to amend prior special-permit conditions — including removing an 18-person occupancy cap and granting a substantial parking waiver — while agreeing to participate in the local shuttle program if required.
R.J. Kelly representatives asked the Needham Planning Board on April 7 to amend the site’s existing major-project special permit so the former telecommunications/data storage building at 105 Cabin Street can be converted to a climate-controlled self-storage facility. Attorney George, speaking for R.J. Kelly, said the Zoning Board of Appeals has already granted a use variance allowing self-storage and the current request is to align the site-plan decision with that use and to remove site conditions that no longer fit the proposed operation.
The applicant asked the board to remove a prior condition that limited occupancy in the building to 18 people at any one time and to approve a parking waiver because the town’s use table does not currently list a parking category for self-storage. George told the board that under the warehouse parking standard used for a similar project (540 Hillside Avenue) the property would technically require about 156 spaces; the site, however, contains only 45. The applicant and the traffic consultant from Kimley Horn argued that the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE)–based trip and parking studies for self-storage predict much lower real-world peak demand — roughly 13 weekday peak spaces and 12 on weekends (rising to about 16 if employees are added) — so the 45 on-site spaces would be more than adequate.
Traffic engineer Lisa Juan of Kimley Horn described methodology and peak-trip estimates for comparable uses, noting that trip generation is typically modeled on square footage because unit sizes vary by location. Kimley Horn’s memo estimates a Saturday peak hour of about 22 trips (14 entering, eight exiting) and uses square footage as the independent variable for consistent comparisons across sites.
Board members pressed the applicants for more operational detail and for precedent data from the 540 Hillside Avenue self-storage facility, which has been treated as a warehouse-equivalent for parking calculations in Needham. Several members said they were concerned about removing a requirement that the property participate in the 128 Business Council shuttle (a regional employer shuttle) without clear evidence that continued participation would not harm the shuttle’s financial sustainability. Applicant representatives said R.J. Kelly is willing to contribute to shuttle service if the board requires it and emphasized community engagement and occasional community-use space within the facility.
The board closed the public hearing after confirming that public safety, health and DPW had no outstanding comments. The matter will return to the Planning Board with a drafted decision and any conditions the board wants to impose, including possible preservation of shuttle participation, limits on hours of operation, and the exact scope of any parking waiver.
What happens next: The Planning Board will prepare a written decision for a future meeting and asked the applicant to provide additional operational data (including shuttle payment/participation detail and comparative trip counts from 540 Hillside) to support or refine the requested waiver and the removal of the occupancy cap.
