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Planning Board forwards 34 State Street site plan to Board of Trustees for waterfront special permit
Summary
After reviewing revisions on landscaping, lighting and circulation, the Planning Board voted to recommend the 34 State Street development to the Board of Trustees for a waterfront special permit; the project team highlighted Dark Sky–compliant lighting, an ADA-accessible recreation area and materials matching existing stonework.
The Planning Board voted on June 23 to recommend the 34 State Street site plan to the Board of Trustees for review of a required waterfront special permit, signaling broad comfort with the project subject to detailed conditions noted in staff memos.
Project representatives told the board they had submitted revised site plans addressing prior consultant and staff comments. "We believe that we are very close with regard to satisfying all of those comments," a project representative said, asking that remaining technical items be included as conditions of approval.
On programming and site layout, the design team said it had located an accessible recreation area between buildings on State Street to preserve trees and provide a centrally placed, naturally used amenity rather than a heavily programmed space. The architect described landscaping choices intended to create a low, natural border while keeping the space visible from the street.
The team also presented a lighting plan the board had asked to review. The architect said fixtures are dark-sky compliant and specified at 3000K or lower; the plan uses bollards and post-mounted lights in courtyard areas with limited building-mounted downlights to avoid light trespass.
Technical clarifications discussed included a grading solution to extend the sidewalk onto the site, a fiber-reinforced access area rated to accommodate required fire-truck loading (described as near 90,000 pounds), and a material approach replicating the existing State Street stone for a masonry stair and wall. The project team also described a design change reducing the apparent brick podium base where it earlier overstated the garage span so the proportion and structural spans are improved.
Public comment at the hearing was supportive: Mark Frye and another resident praised efforts to preserve the Smith-Robinson facade and commended the project team and board for responsiveness. Following discussion, a board member moved and the board voted to forward the application to the Board of Trustees with the recommendation that outstanding technical comments be handled as conditions prior to final approvals and permits.
Next steps include referral to the Board of Trustees for the waterfront special permit review and incorporation of remaining detail items into conditions of site-plan approval or permit requirements.
