Revised Site Plan v4

Nov 16

Written By

For the November 22, 2021 Millbury Planning Board Meeting, the project engineer for the proposed Rice Pond Village project located at 17 Rice Road in Millbury, Massachusetts, James Tetreault of Azimuth Land Design, LLC, has submitted revised proposed Rice Pond Village Site Plan of Land (v4) that contain the following changes:

Added one handicapped accessible ramp to the sidewalk opposite the satellite parking handicapped accessible parking space;
Revised the site entrance of Hillcrest Circle off Rice Road to incorporate a median island; and
Added an R6-2L one way arrow sign to the intersection within the site to help clarify the proposed one way traffic circulation pattern

Many of the neighborhood and Millbury Planning Board concerns remain unaddressed in the latest revision of the proposed Rice Pond Village project plans, some examples include, but are not limited to:

The overall high density of condominium units on a minor access road abutting a Suburban 2 zoning district;
The minimum road width, the overall condition and safety of the intersections of Rice Road with South Main Street and Providence Street (Route 122A), and the one vehicle at a time Providence & Worcester Railroad crossing;
Substantial increase in daily traffic;
Increased noise impacts to the neighborhood and beyond from the Providence & Worcester Railroad and traffic on Providence Street (Route 122A);
Numerous issues of non-compliance with Millbury Zoning Bylaws and Subdivision Control Law; and
Numerous other significant concerns and issues, that have been expressed, but ignored by the developer, Steven F. Venincasa doing business as Whitney Street Home Builders, LLC. and his project engineer, James Tetreault of Azimuth Land Design, LLC.

More than 70% of the neighborhood, if not more, are strongly opposed to the proposed Rice Pond Village project, which most believe will adversely impact the quality of their daily lives and property values, and have asked the Millbury Planning Board to deny any and all special permits, waivers or variances that would allow the proposed Rice Pond Village to be approved. The majority of the neighborhood would instead favor the development of the proposed property as 100% compliant single-family houses.