WESTFIELD – The proposal to build an Aldi Market at 231 East Main St. in the Westgate Plaza, which is in the permitting process with the Conservation Commission, will be going under a peer review after a vote by the commission on Nov. 24.
Both the Planning Board and the Flood Control Commission approved the building proposal, but the Conservation Commission wants an outside expert to review whether the new building will worsen flood conditions in the Plaza. The question was raised by abutters on Mainline Drive in previous public hearings, which have been continued.
Rob Levesque and Ryan Nelson of R. Levesque Assoc., on behalf of site owner Reuben Twersky of Brixmor, have argued that the compensatory storage plan they proposed meets the performance standards.
At the Nov. 24 meeting, Nelson shared further email correspondence from David Foulis of the Western Regional Office of the MassDEP, which stated that the applicant is only required to provide compensatory storage, and anything beyond this is extra-jurisdictional for the commission. Foulis also stated in the emails that if the DEP received an appeal on an adverse ruling, those are the only standards that would apply.
Commissioner James Murphy, chair pro temp for the discussion due to chair David Doe’s recusal, said he still wasn’t comfortable enough to make a ruling. “I don’t feel like I have the knowledge to respond to this without getting outside professional advice,” Murphy said.
Their uncertainty is on the second performance standards, which states that the project shall not restrict flows so as to cause an increase in flood stage or velocity. Conservation coordinator Meredith Borenstein said the DEP wrote back to her and said that the compensatory storage, which will direct water to a nearby agricultural field, addresses this concern. “That’s why I’m hung up,” Borenstein said.
Commissioner Alex Fagnand said the second standard has more to do with a floodway, but that this project falls under bordering land subject to flooding. Fagnand said the DEP was pretty clear that they would deny an appeal on the provisions. He said the best protection would be special conditions on the permit.
Opening the discussion up to the public, Ruth Aborjaily, who owns three abutting properties at 227 East Main St., 6 Mainline Dr., and 10 Mainline Dr., said the commission has spoken to abutters who have witnessed what has happened during previous floods. “This ends up almost being a floodway. I do think we need people who specialize in this area to look at it,” she said.
The commission voted to undergo a peer review by the engineering firm Stantec, at the cost of $2,000 to the applicant, which will include having them come to a meeting and address their findings. The hearing was continued to Dec. 8.
