Politics & Government
Possible Petersen Pool Traffic Woes, Drainage Worries Some Planning Board Members
A traffic study said the facility could bring an average of 2,500 more cars to the area.
BRAINTREE, MA — Traffic remains one of the key concerns with the Petersen Pool project at the Braintree High School campus.
The project was back in front of the planning board Tuesday night. Planning Director Christine Stickney said some issues remain with the drainage as well, along with some minor questions with the traffic study. DPW Chief James Arsenault backed the project, saying he has no major issues.
“We want to move forward. There has been significant time going back and forth. We just want to move forward and get it resolved,” he told the board.
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Traffic has been one of the major concerns of the project. A recent traffic study indicates that the facility will bring an average of 2,500 more vehicles to nearby roads on a daily basis, including Five Corners, which is notorious for traffic backups. Board members additionally remained concerned about vehicles parking on Town Street.
“The neighbors won’t stand for it and parking on Town Street makes it tighter. You have high school students leaving and leaving parked cars is a critical issue,” board member James Eng said.
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Scott Lacy, a representative for the project, said the high school would not tolerate parking on the road.
The traffic lights at five corners may need to be reprogrammed, Eng said.
To lessen the risk of full parking lots due to events at Petersen Pool and the high school, the facility has agreed to accept 16 days from the school where they must close during a major event or during the event to prevent a parking crunch.
Board members are also seeking answers about whether the drainage system can handle a large rainstorm. Project representatives said the drainage can handle a 100-year storm.
“This thing has to work 150 percent on day one. You can’t have any failures. If the drainage fails, this project fails,” board member Darryl Mikami said.
The project that would bring a pool and two ice rinks to Braintree goes back in front of the board Sept. 12.
Image: File Photo
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