Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Special Permit 473 Eastern topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning Board grants special permit to Thrive Beauty Spa at 473 Eastern Ave
Summary
The Malden Planning Board unanimously approved a special permit allowing McKenzie Richards to operate Thrive Beauty Spa as a medical aesthetic spa at 471–473 Eastern Ave, subject to conditions on plans and privacy fencing; staff noted the use is pre-existing nonconforming and may be affected by pending zoning amendments.
McKenzie Richards, a nurse practitioner and owner of Thrive Beauty Spa, received unanimous approval from the Malden Planning Board on May 13 to operate a medical aesthetic spa at 471–473 Eastern Ave.
Richards told the board she has operated at the address since 2019 and provides treatments including Botox, dermal fillers, IV hydration, PRP, chemical peels, laser hair removal and photofacials. She said the business currently has no other clinical staff and plans only to hire a front-desk receptionist; operations are by appointment Monday–Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and the business typically sees four to eight patients per day.
"I'm an independent nurse practitioner as well as the medical director and owner of Thrive Beauty Spa," Richards said when introducing herself to the board. She confirmed sharps containers are in use and a third-party medical-waste company collects and disposes of regulated waste.
Planning staff recommended approval in a written report dated May 13, 2026. Michelle Romero summarized the staff findings: the building is located in the Industrial 1 zoning district, a medical-center use may be allowed there by special permit, and the proposal maintains existing pre-existing nonconformities without creating new dimensional or parking violations. Romero noted the petitioner requires four parking spaces under zoning calculations and that the building-wide requirement is 29 spaces; the existing layout depicts 31 spaces though some parking arrangements are nonconforming in width and aisle configuration.
Romero recommended granting the permit subject to conditions including submission of final development plans, allowance for minor floor-plan modifications, and repair or installation of privacy fencing along the southern property line to screen abutting residences. She also flagged pending zoning amendments that could reclassify the use as allowed by right, which could affect how any conditions are enforced.
Board member Ken Antinucci moved to grant the special permit with the staff-recommended conditions; Diane Chua seconded. The roll-call vote was recorded as yes from Ken Antinucci, Diane Chua, Toad Gber Salasi, Maria Schroeder, Stephanie Stone and Chair Chuck Ivan. The motion carried unanimously.
The decision binds the applicant to the conditions listed in the planning report; Romero said the building commissioner (Nelson Miller) would make determinations if future zoning changes alter whether the use requires a special permit. The board closed the hearing after the vote.
