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Select Board keeps downtown planning on its goals and seeks review of EBSCO deed restriction
Summary
Board members agreed to keep downtown community planning — including parking, outdoor dining, crosswalks and signage — on the goal list and asked staff to follow up on a deed restriction held by EBSCO for a riverwalk lot used by the Takeout Terrace.
At the June 10 Select Board meeting in Ipswich, members agreed to retain downtown community planning on the town’s prioritized goals for the coming year and discussed concrete items such as parking, outdoor dining policy, sidewalks and crosswalks.
Select Board member Charles “Charlie” Surpitski said the board should focus on what it can control downtown and identified DPW, Police and Planning as departments to engage with local businesses. Board members debated whether to include specific physical projects (for example, bump outs) in the goal language or instead commission a study to determine needs and costs.
Linda Alexson asked that the EBSCO deed restriction — which affects the lot where the Takeout Terrace operates on the riverwalk — be addressed and, if possible, released regardless of EBSCO’s plans. Chair Dougherty asked Town Manager Brendan Sweeney to follow up with town staff and with EBSCO about the possibility of release or acquisition of the lot.
The board agreed on a measurable downtown goal to finalize and initiate a downtown safety and implementation plan, including identifying financing with a goal of next summer. The board’s downtown planning goal will be reviewed quarterly as part of the broader goal-tracking approach.
