Plans to turn a former church's parking lot into a five-story, mixed-use apartment building in downtown Northampton went before the city's planning board - with some members of the public voicing concerns over the proposal.
A local developer hoping to convert a space near Smith College into 71 apartments, along with space for a restaurant and cafe, has a new load of questions and concerns to answer.
For the past few months, designers working with the Amherst-based Sunwood Builders have been presenting and tweaking designs for an 85,000-square-foot structure that would line part of State Street, starting at the intersection with Elm Street.
Sunwood purchased the property last year. It was once home to St. Mary of the Assumption Church before being closed and later sold by the Diocese of Springfield.
The historic church and rectory will be redeveloped at some point in the future, but for now, Sunwood Builders and its designers are focused on the proposed apartment building slightly downhill.
“We believe the design of this building needs to reflect the massing and rhythms of the downtown buildings, needs to respond to the design guidelines, building codes and energy codes, create a welcoming public space along Elm Street and State Street, fill an empty parking lot with much needed housing, which help further activate our downtown and, all the while balancing the requirements of the client’s program and budget,” said Charles Roberts of Kuhn Riddle Architects, speaking before the Northampton Planning Board on Thursday.
Sunwood Builders and company are currently seeking site plan approval and special permitting. Already, Roberts and others have gone before the city's Historical Commission, seeking a "Certificate of Appropriateness" since the project's situated in an historic district.
Trees, compatibility with the “existing character” of the Elm Street Historic District and neighborhood, and other elements were concerns raised at the Commission’s last meeting in January.
They and other issues surfaced again during the planning board meeting during a lengthy public comment section.
Michael Di Pasquale, a resident and registered architect and certified urban planner, called out the proposal’s ground floor offerings facing State Street – largely a series of slatted walls separating the 37-spot parking garage from the sidewalk. He compared it to ongoing efforts reimagine and redesign nearby Main Street.
“What we're trying to do on Main Street is to enliven the street and make wide sidewalks, active storefronts - that's not happening at this project,” he said. “I don't have a problem, really, with the design upstairs, but the success and failure of a building and its contribution to the city is all at the ground floor. Put a blank wall - you may as well … I'd rather see a parking lot, frankly, and I hate parking lots.”
Di Pasquale also pointed out that while the developer appeared to plan on turning the old church rectory into a 17-unit short-term hotel, what will become of the church dating back to the 1880’s is still being decided.
Sunwood Builders founder Shaul Perry has previously indicated the church would likely house some sort of community space, though firmer plans are still in the works.
Roberts also noted earlier in the presentation that designers are incorporating feedback from the public.
Given its location, surrounded by brick structures that anchor the city section, like the D.A. Sullivan School building or Forbes Library, some have called for more brickwork to be incorporated in the project. In a new rendering, Roberts showed what was once a gray, metallic-looking portion of the south side now included bricks, among other alterations.
Other concerns remain, though – with Planning Board members hoping to hear more about facets that include the developer’s plans for trash storage and removal on the site, in addition to more info on parking.
Still, members like Janna White acknowledged the amount of effort going into the proposal – even as concerns remain over the building’s close proximity to the sidewalk and pedestrian friendliness, or the supposed, potential lack thereof.
“… it's going to be really, really tough to put anything on this corner, leaving aside the scale and the massing, because you cannot create a new ‘old building,’” White said. “And this is surrounded by … iconic Northampton old buildings and so … my heart goes out to the developers and the designers, because the bar here is incredibly high, and it's impossible, really, to put something here that's going to match the character - I just don't think it's possible. So, the question is, then, what do you do instead?”
Officials voted to continue the hearing for a future planning board meeting.
