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Indoor golf club draws detailed questions on parking, food service and whether simulators are a permitted use
Summary
The Hickory Club proposed an indoor golf training facility at 117 Kendrick Street and requested a reduction to roughly 55 parking spaces. The board asked for empirical parking counts, clarification on food and liquor service and a building-commissioner interpretation of whether simulator-driven activity is a prohibited 'video gaming' use. The hearing was continued to Aug. 25.
The Needham Planning Board on July 28 heard an application to allow the Hickory Club, an indoor golf training and performance club, at 117 Kendrick Street under an amendment to a long-standing major project special permit.
Counsel Charles Loray told the board the club is best classified as an indoor athletic/exercise facility under the bylaw and argued the standard zoning ratio ("Indoor athletic or exercise facilities require 1 space per 150 square feet under the by law," he said) overstates demand for a reservation‑controlled, low‑density operation. Based on rentable-area calculations and anticipated reservation patterns, the applicant proposed reducing required parking to about 55 spaces rather than the 94–106 spaces derived from the zoning table.
Board members pressed the applicants for additional empirical data. Several members asked for an hourly/empirical parking count from the landlord (Bulfinch) or a short parking study to show peak demand during weekdays and weekends. The building commissioner will be asked to interpret whether the club’s heavy use of simulators constitutes a permitted fitness use or a prohibited video-arcade-style use; the board identified that interpretation as central to how the application should proceed.
Members also raised operational questions including staffing levels, hours and the food/alcohol program. Applicants said staff hours would cover early morning through evening shifts and that the club would ideally provide controlled, credentialed 24/7 member access for non‑service areas (with food and alcohol unavailable during after‑hours). The applicants described food service as limited, catering‑style and said they intend to apply for a liquor license; the board asked for more details on kitchen fit-out, trash handling and health‑department review.
The board voted to continue the public hearing to Aug. 25 to allow the applicant to supply parking counts, clarify operational details and obtain a written opinion from the building commissioner.
