Mayor Thomas M. Menino has withdrawn his support for the first Lowe’s Home Improvement store in Boston following intense community opposition.
Last summer, the North Carolina-based chain proposed a 194,679-square-foot warehouse at the abandoned Barry Controls manufacturing plant on Guest Street in Brighton. But opponents said the project would compound traffic problems, causing a nightmare for residents who already are besieged by gridlock.
Up until now, the mayor has supported the project. But Menino wanted assurances that the additional traffic could be managed. The big-box store’s fate may have been sealed at a public hearing last week when the company’s traffic survey revealed that the two-level store would add 3,306 vehicle trips on weekdays and 5,068 on Saturdays, as well as 55 semi-trailers to the neighborhood.
“When we saw the traffic study it became clear to everyone that this project would create an undue hardship for the neighborhood, especially on weekends,” said John F. Palmieri, director of the Boston Redevelopment Authority. “We want to continue to work with Lowe’s to find an appropriate location in the city, but the Brighton site is not viable for that use.”
Peter Leis, a member of the Impact Advisory Group, a panel formed to advise the BRA on the impacts and mitigation of development projects, expressed shock over the city’s reversal.
“Wow,” he said. “I had heard that Mayor Menino favored the project. I’m pleased because it’s a recognition by the BRA and the city of the community’s concerns about this store.”
Leis stressed that the neighborhood is not anti-development, but that the impact of more traffic from a big box store would be overwhelming. “It would have been like a tidal wave coming through our streets,” Leis said. “We favor the right development but Lowe’s is not it.”
‘It’s a Victory’
State Rep. Michael J. Moran, who represents Brighton on Beacon Hill, hailed the mayor’s decision. “There is definitely a feeling in the neighborhood that the addition of [more traffic] on weekends when people are enjoying their time off with their families would be very tough.”
Moran praised Menino and the BRA for considering the impact the Lowe’s store would have on the already traffic-choked streets of Brighton.
“Like they’ve done in other instances, Tom Menino and the BRA pay attention to these things,” he said. “There is lots of anti-BRA sentiment across the city from people who say the agency operates without any regard for the community. And that’s an unfair characterization of what they do.”
Paul Berkeley, president of the Allston Civic Association, applauded the city’s decision. “That’s good news,” he said. “Maybe not for Lowe’s, but for the neighborhood it’s a victory. No one would have been able to move up and down those streets if that project had been approved.”
The Western Avenue resident said that the three previous project developers – Stop & Shop, New Balance and WGBH – promised to cure the neighborhood’s traffic ills. “Nothing has improved and it could be argued that congestion is worse,” he said. “So how could it help to have another giant retail store in our neighborhood?”
Jeffrey Dirk, vice president at Andover-based traffic engineering firm Vanasse & Assoc., who authored the study for Lowe’s, did not respond to repeated calls and e-mails seeking comment.
In an e-mail, Maureen A. Rich, a Lowe’s spokeswoman, said the company “remains committed to bringing a store to Brighton. We will continue to work closely with neighborhood groups to address their ideas and look forward to serving our customers in the community.”
Last Monday, more than four dozen Allston-Brighton residents listened as Lowe’s executives explained how the home improvement giant would ease the neighborhood’s traffic if the city approved the store.
During the hearing, Lowe’s said they would spend $1.2 million for traffic improvements, including coordinating traffic lights along Market and North Beacon streets and Western Avenue, and would encourage the use of public transportation.
But residents were skeptical.
“I’m still having trouble reconciling how the addition of 5,000 vehicle trips would improve traffic,” said Leis.
