710 Southampton Road Westfield. (WNG file photo)
WESTFIELD – Following a public hearing at the Planning Board meeting June 19, a special permit and site plan amendment for stormwater management were approved for a car wash at 710 Southampton Road.
During the hearing, Filipe Cravo of R. Levesque Associates and applicant Todd Cellura said the revised site plan, which had been previously approved in 2017, changes the use of one building from retail to a car wash. The site plan calls for future construction of a total of three mixed-use buildings on the property which is zoned Business A.
Cravo said that based on comments from the previous meeting on June 5, they corresponded with the city engineer and water department, who said there is no moratorium on uses at this point. He also said they will be retaining the row of pine trees along the property line to abutters. He said included in the application were sign specifications for the 12 foot tall, 4 foot wide and 18 inches thick sign for the business.
Planning Board member Philip McEwan asked if the sign would be for the one use of car wash, or whether it would be for the entire complex. They said it would be for the entire complex, and would have room at the bottom for future businesses to be added. In response to a question from Planning Board member Jane Magarian, Cravo said the material on the bottom would be plexiglass, until a tenant comes in.
Vinskey asked the board to consider what if the applicant just builds a car wash and nothing else.
“Right now, our plan is just to build a car wash. Our hope is to market the other parcels for rent or sale in the future, a year or longer. At this time, we’re just concerned with the car wash,” Cravo said.
McEwan asked whether in the car wash operation, the business would be reusing the water. “I don’t know much about car washes. It seems the industry standard is to reuse the water, and allow it to settle,” he said.
“80% of car washes do not recycle, because the source and cost of recycling. It’s really a cost factor; also, the effectiveness of the wash,” Cellura said.
Cellura said all of the chemicals are environmentally friendly, that he has letters from the Department of Environmental Protection, and they all comply with state and federal codes.
“Do you have a maintenance plan as a part of your application,” said McEwan, asking how the board would know if the stormwater had been cleaned out.
“The design is very modern, clean and neat. We plan to continue to operate in a manner that maintains its use,” Cellura said.
Magarian said that sometimes there is a water restriction within Westfield. “How does that affect a car wash,” she asked.
Cellura said that restaurants use three times what a car wash uses. “We would be regulated in the same way as a Wendy’s. This is my first car wash. The piece that I didn’t want to do was a self-serve, so I’m learning as I go here. The type of equipment we’re proposing is state of the art, very low water usage – one-third of restaurant usage,” he said.
Opening up the hearing to the public, nobody came forward to speak in favor or against the proposal. A motion was made and passed to close the public hearing.
During deliberations, McEwan suggested making the phasing in of the planned complex part of the condition; to build the first half, and then phase in the second half.
Planning Board chairman William Carellas said the permit should include stormwater plans as well
Magarian asked Cellura if he had any thoughts about how long this process would take, but Planning Board member Cheryl Crowe said once the hearing is closed, they can’t ask new questions.
Carellas suggested putting a time limit with extensions on the approval. He said a normal permit is good for two years. McEwan suggested three years.
“He wants to build a car wash first, then hopefully, when it’s up and running, he’ll have a tenant identified for the next phase, the next piece of the puzzle,” said Cravo, adding that the applicant plans to do the buildout one building at a time.
Planning Board member Robert Goyette suggested putting in the permit three years to have it built out. Cellura said five years might be more realistic to be completely built out.
“If you’re making progress three years from now, you’re not going to have a problem. But if in three years, you have a pile of dirt…,” said McEwan.
“My first thought is 10 years for full build out, and two years for the car wash. It just sounds like it’s a little speculative,” said City Planner Jay Vinskey. After more discussion, the board decided on five years.
“After five years, if they haven’t taken out all their building permits and proceeded with buildout, the site plan will expire, and they need to come back for renewal,” Vinskey said.
Carellas said the last piece is a storm sector maintenance plan for the car wash. The board then voted to issue a special permit site plan approval with normal standard bylaws, and three conditions; phasing in of the plan across five years, hours from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., and a proven stormwater sector maintenance plan for the stormwater permit.
