Green numbers show where parking will be added. New surface spaces are shown in purple (click to enlarge). Existing tree are shown as circles with dotted lines.
At the first session this week of a public hearing on the site plan for expanding The Commons in Lincoln, presenters outlined some minor changes from the plan that was first aired almost a year ago. The Planning Board’s September 10 hearing will be continued to October 2 at 7:05 p.m.
At a Special Town Meeting in December 2023, residents approved rezoning the parcel, a first step in a process that also requires additional approvals from the Planning Board and others, including environmental officials.
As before, the plan calls for 28 new independent living units (14 two-bedroom units in the Flint building, six one-bedroom units in the Russell building, and eight new cottages). The Flint units will be in a separate structure connected to the main building with a sky bridge on the second and third floors.
The net addition of 52 parking spaces on the campus and more connecting sidewalks also hasn’t changed. However, the surface parking will be slightly rearranged so they’re located where they’re most needed on a campus where parking is tight for aides and visitors.
New trees to be planted are indicated in green (click to enlarge).
“The issue wasn’t the quantity of spaces but the location,” said Chris Fee of landscape architecture firm Stantec. “We tried to locate the new parking at three locations where we have problems, in addition to spots for [residents of] new buildings, so this should go a long way to help solve the parking problem.”
Another landscaping change from the previous plan: the existing community garden will be relocated, but a new bocce court and two additional smaller gardens are being deferred. Some trees that weren’t specified at the public hearing will be removed, but several dozen new ones will be planted, along with native plants are also being chosen in coordination with a resident group.
If all goes as planned, construction will begin in the first quarter of 2025 and will take a total of almost two years, though the cottages will be treated as separate construction sites and built on their own timeframe.