WESTFIELD – Two city boards are reviewing the specifications of a proposed 58,692-square-foot addition to the Walmart story located at 141 Springfield Road.
The applicant, W/S Westfield Properties Limited Partnership of 1330 Boylston St., Chestnut Hill, Mass., submitted 120 pages of engineering and traffic impact data and site plan details, as well as environmental impact information to the Conservation Commission at its Nov. 8 session.
The Planning Board will open its review of the proposed expansion project Tuesday, Nov. 15 at a 7 p.m. public hearing.
The applicant is seeking approval of both boards to expand the existing 127,284 store into a 186,064-square-foot Walmart Superstore.
The present building in located on 91.6 acres of land zoned for Business B use and is within a flood zone overlay and a Bordering Land Subject to Flooding. The Conservation Commission will review the project under the state Wetland Protection Act (MGL, Chapter 131, Section 40) as part of its process to issue an order of conditions to mitigate the environmental impacts.
The petitioner is seeking a special permit, site plan approval and stormwater management plan approval through the Planning Board.
The expansion work, primarily on the west and south sides of the existing structure, will include construction of a new loading dock, a larger sales area, parking and access modifications, enlargement of the stormwater management areas, expanded parking and installation of new utilities services.
The application includes a 24-page traffic study prepared by McMahon Associates, Transportation Engineers and Planners, an east-coast based firm with offices in stretching from Boston to Fort Myers, Fla.
The application also includes a 68-page drainage report prepared by Bohler Engineering of Southborough, Mass. pertaining to changes in the stormwater drainage system needed to support the 58,800 square foot addition because of the increase of the store’s impervious surface footprint.
Conservation Coordinator Karen Leigh said the Conservation Commission will request the applicant to fund a third-party peer review, a consultant to assist the board in its digestion of the data.
