Massachusetts Site Fight: Fail-Safe Review Sought on Plan

Fail-safe review sought on plan [Worcester Telegram]

WORCESTER— Ten city residents have petitioned the state secretary of Environmental Affairs for a “fail-safe review” of the proposed Worcester Crossing shopping center development — which includes a 209,000-square-foot Wal-Mart Supercenter — in Quinsigamond Village.

The group has asked for the review because it believes the project is subject to the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act Office, requires the filing of an Environmental Notification Form, and compliance with other environmental provisions to avoid or minimize damage to the environment.

Shannon Senior, a city resident and member of Worcester First, said the petition was delivered to Ian Bowles, secretary of the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs.

“We find it strange that a Wal-Mart project half the size in Lancaster and Leominster had a state MEPA review, but this huge project is being ignored by state officials,” Ms. Senior said last night. “This seems arbitrary and capricious to us.

“This project raises environmental issues around the Blackstone River, air pollution, traffic concerns and even storage of hazardous materials,” she added. “The state should review this project, and we are calling on the secretary of environmental affairs to do just that.”

The Worcester Crossing shopping center development is to be built on 44 acres along the Blackstone River.

Madison Worcester Holdings LLC, the project developer, intends to construct eight buildings, totaling more than 350,000 square feet, in an area bounded by Route 146 to the east and the Blackstone River to the west. The site is where U.S. Steel once operated foundries.

Wal-Mart has so far been the only tenant identified for the shopping center, and it will be the first building in the development. The Planning Board has already approved the site plans for that phase of the project. The rest of the development will be a mix of retail and restaurant businesses, and possibly a bank.

The petition requesting the fail-safe review contends such a review is warranted because:

•The project is of a nature, size and location that is likely, directly or indirectly, to cause damage to the environment.

•The development site is within a 100-year flood plain and the proposed Wal-Mart building comes within 160 feet of the Blackstone River.

•The project is located on a former industrial site that may have contaminated soils.

•The Wal-Mart store will have a 7,582-square-foot seasonal garden center, which creates the threat of pesticides in stormwater runoff.

•The project will generate significant air pollution levels because of an increase of 14,696 new vehicle trips on roadways leading to and from the shopping center.

Ms. Senior said the project would have automatically triggered a state review under the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act had state permits been required for it. As far as she can tell, she said, no state permits are needed.

But, Ms. Senior added, the size and scope of the Worcester Crossing project triggers several other MEPA thresholds. Some of the thresholds cited in the petition contend that the project will:

•Result in the generation of more than 3,000 new average daily vehicle trips.

•Create 10 or more acres of impervious area (paved parking lot).

•Directly alter 25 or more acres of land and create 5 or more acres of impervious area.

•Result in the demolition of an historic property or landmark located within a National Historic District that is significant to the city’s history.

The petitioners also contend that the project requires a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for construction activity disturbing more than five acres, and that it may require a water quality certificate from the state Department of Environmental Protection

Ms. Senior also organized an effort in which an administrative appeal was filed with the Zoning Board of Appeals, claiming the Planning Board did not adhere to the city’s site plan review standards when it approved the first phase of the project in March.

Those who filed the appeal are asking the zoning board to overturn the Planning Board decision and are looking to scale back the project so it is more compatible with the surrounding residential neighborhood.

The ZBA is scheduled to hold a public hearing on that appeal June 25.

The shopping center project has been largely embraced by residents of Quinsigamond Village, many of whom have praised Denis P. Dowdle, the chief principal of Madison Worcester Holdings, for going out of his way to work with the neighborhood and addressing many of their concerns.