Council committee backs referral on Lower Broadway zoning fixes, including retail-floor and parking corrections

The Everett City Committee on Legislative Affairs voted to refer to the full City Council with a favorable recommendation an ordinance sponsored by Councilor Robert Van Campen to amend use regulations and dimensional standards for the Lower Broadway Economic Development District.

Jonathan Silverstein, outside counsel, told the committee the proposal has three principal parts: correct a typographical parking requirement that currently reads as if industrial uses need “1 parking space for every square foot” of industrial space; change the ground-floor mixed-use rule so some residential is permitted initially to improve economic viability for early development; and include a density/special-permit provision intended as a temporary measure while the city crafts a master-plan zoning district for the ExxonMobil site. "So those are the primary components," Silverstein said as he described the package.

Council members pressed for guardrails to ensure initial residential uses on ground floors convert to retail or commercial uses later. Councilor Smith asked how the city would prevent developers from leaving residential on the first floor after initial construction; Silverstein said mixed-use residential still requires a Planning Board special permit and that the Planning Board has made clear it views early approvals as a "down payment" on stricter future requirements. He added the proposal "is really a stopgap for allowing some initial investment in the site" and said the council should expect a separate, site-specific zoning proposal later in the year.

Committee members also questioned the corrected parking minimum (presented as a 1,000-square-foot benchmark in the discussion) and the density carve-out for portions of a large parcel. Silverstein said the parking figure is consistent with typical measures used for warehouse/industrial uses in comparable municipalities. The attorney reiterated that many provisions remain discretionary and subject to Planning Board permits.

The committee moved and seconded a referral to the City Council with a favorable recommendation and indicated assent on the motion.