Northborough board continues hearing on One Church Street mixed-use project after debate over lot-size variance and Route 20 driveway

The Northborough Board of Appeals continued a public hearing June 23 on a special-permit application from LK North Realy LLC for three mixed-use buildings and a restaurant at One Church Street, citing unresolved questions about a lot-size variance in the town's groundwater protection overlay and traffic-safety controls for the Route 20 (West Main Street) driveway.

Chair Paul Terry opened the hybrid meeting and confirmed the hearing is a continuation of an application described by the applicant's attorney, Barry Crims. Crims introduced the project team, including Millie Milton, the applicant manager, and consultants from Haley Ward, Fuss & O'Neal and Tetrate Tech.

Dan Sheen of Haley Ward said the Conservation Commission issued an Order of Conditions on June 8 and the applicant expects to record it after the standard appeal/recording window. Sheen said stormwater changes since the Board last met were limited to edits to the operations and maintenance plan (including pet-waste language) and a substitution of a water-quality inlet unit in place of a double catch-basin to preserve total suspended solids removal performance.

Dario, speaking for the applicant team, explained the need for a variance: the groundwater protection overlay district language in the zoning bylaw requires minimum lots of 40,000 square feet, but the combined One Church Street parcel measures roughly 32,800 square feet. "The groundwater rule doesn't apply to us because we have town sewer," Dario said, arguing the bylaw was written to limit nitrate loading from septic systems and that town sewerage removes that pathway. He said the town is discussing bylaw amendments so the overlay's minimum-lot-size standard would not automatically block downtown development on municipal sewer.

Traffic and safety dominated the hearing. The applicant's traffic consultant quantified the project's effect as adding only inches to a traffic queue in peak moments (described in the study as roughly four to six feet of additional queue length — less than a car length — equating to an estimated two- to five-second delay in worst-case peak conditions). The study recommended the West Main Street driveway be limited to a 14-foot wide exit lane restricted to right turns only with appropriate curbing and radii.

Ken Graham of Fuss & O'Neal, the town's traffic reviewer, and the town's peer reviewer at Tetrate Tech both endorsed restricting the Route 20 driveway to right-turn exit only. "Safety is our key issue," Ken Graham said, explaining that the five-lane geometry on this stretch of Route 20 and a dedicated left-turn lane to Church Street would create conflicts if westbound drivers attempted to turn left into the site. The acting fire chief also recommended right-turn-exit-only on life-safety grounds, noting potential impacts to emergency vehicle deployment from the nearby fire station at 63 West Main Street.

Board members probed enforcement and mitigation measures. The applicant agreed to prepare a sketch showing on-site geometry (curbed islands, sharper radii and signage) intended to direct exiting vehicles to the right and discourage left-turn entries; the applicant said it would coordinate that sketch with the fire chief and provide it before the July 28 continuation. Consultants noted that permanent changes to Route 20 itself would require MassDOT review after the Board completes its local approvals.

Other technical points: the applicant said the plan set shows a proposed 1,500-gallon grease trap on sheet 6 if the restaurant connects to public sewer; the development was described as totaling 18,189 square feet; and apartment units were described as a mix of one- and two-bedroom units, which the applicant said would limit school-traffic impacts. Dan Sheen reiterated that the stormwater changes were not major plan revisions but focused on O&M and a water-quality unit replacement.

A resident speaking during public comment (identifying by street address) raised concerns about local drivers cutting through rear entrances and asked the Board to consider historic no-left-turn controls when deciding how to allow or restrict site access.

Because the Board and applicants agreed more detailed geometry and signage drawings and a final condition set were needed, a motion to continue the hearing to July 28, 2026, was made and carried. No final vote on special permits or variances occurred on June 23.

The Board requested the applicant provide a sketch plan for the West Main Street exit showing proposed curbing, signage and any on-site islands; the applicant agreed to coordinate the sketch with the fire department and submit it for the Board’s review prior to the July 28 meeting.

What happens next: the hearing will resume on July 28, when the Board expects to review the sketch plan and consider conditions addressing driveway geometry, signage, parking impacts and any MassDOT coordination required for curb changes on Route 20.