Somerville planning board approves family pizzeria renovation at 86 North Gaston

The Somerville Planning Board on Wednesday approved a minor site plan for 86 North Gaston Avenue, clearing the way for a family‑owned pizzeria to open on the first floor while retaining a two‑bedroom apartment above.

Applicant Antonio Rufa told the board he purchased the building last year and described the project as a fulfillment of a long‑held family dream. “The dream began 33 years ago when I left my hometown of Calabria to pursue the American dream,” Rufa said, describing plans to offer artisan pizza and prepared foods and to employ neighborhood residents.

Engineer Craig Stiers of Stiers Associates testified that the project will remain within the existing footprint and convert two commercial units into one pizzeria use while keeping the upstairs residential unit. Stiers described the lot as Lot 5, Block 44 on the borough tax map with roughly nine parking spaces at the north end and three on the easterly side; plans show a mix of 18‑ and one 24‑foot stall to allow maneuvering and an added ADA parking space. Stiers said the applicant will stripe and modestly refurbish the parking lot, add landscaping and screen a new dumpster enclosure to match the facade.

Board members questioned logistics for deliveries, trash pickup and grease handling. Stiers and Rufa said deliveries would be concentrated in morning hours (roughly 9–11 a.m.) and that used cooking oil would be stored inside and removed by a licensed service. The board asked for a condition limiting dumpster and trash pickups during quiet hours and for the applicant to provide a lighting meter to measure ambient light from proposed wall fixtures.

Fire‑safety measures were the most contested post‑approval condition. The fire marshal’s recommendations included NFPA‑standard sprinklers; some board members said a full NFPA 13 system would be cost‑prohibitive for this existing, small mixed‑use building. Architect Patrick Orum proposed a modern commercial hood with an integrated Ansul suppression system, monitored alarms tied to a central station, and a two‑hour fire‑rated separation between the kitchen below and the apartment above. Several board members pushed for at least a limited sprinkler system that would cover the kitchen area and buy time for emergency response.

The board directed the applicant to work with borough professionals and the fire marshal to design a targeted suppression strategy. The applicant agreed to pursue a limited sprinkler approach for the kitchen if it can be designed off the domestic water supply or otherwise meet the board’s safety objectives without triggering disproportionate infrastructure upgrades.

Board members also noted that the applicant reported an insurance requirement to replace the roof by June 9; the board said it had no objection to the applicant pulling a building permit for a roof replacement during post‑approval processing so the owner would not lose coverage.

The board approved the minor site plan on a roll‑call vote after conditions were clarified. Chairperson Warner welcomed the applicant to the neighborhood and said the project aligns with the borough’s Gaston Avenue redevelopment objectives. The approval is preliminary subject to final engineering, ARB facade review for colors and materials, and the final fire‑protection plan to be reviewed by the borough’s professionals and the fire marshal.