Town Meeting Members Assail Dave and Buster's Proposal

On Thursday night, February 18th, the Planning Board grappled with traffic issues surrounding a proposed Dave and Buster’s entertainment center at 90 Middlesex Turnpike in Burlington.

Town Meeting member Ernest Zabolotny kicked off the meeting with a brief statement about the need for further review of zoning bylaws and stated “The choir of discontent among Town Meeting Members is growing louder in volume.” He urged the Planning Board to work closely with the Land Use Committee to address issues surrounding the controversial Planned Development District (PDD) zone.

Dave and Buster’s representative, Robert Buckley of Reimer and Braunstein, brought in Traffic Engineer Vinod Kalikiri of Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. (VHB) to explain the results of the traffic study that VHB performed for the PDD at 90 Middlesex Turnpike.  Dan Mills of MDM Transportation Consultants of Marlboro was also in attendance. MDM will perform the peer review of the traffic study and report findings to the Planning Board. Mills stated that he did not receive the updated traffic study in time to properly review it and thus could not comment on it at this meeting.

Kalikiri explained that because Dave and Buster’s peak traffic times would not coincide with peak “rush hour” traffic along Middlesex Turnpike, it was his opinion that the additional traffic impact would not be substantial.

Member Ann Cummings raised questions about the increase in the number of daily trips and the resulting U-turns. VHB estimates that the proposed Dave and Busters would attract 2300 daily trips as opposed to 900 daily trips generated by a car dealership, which is the type of business that formerly occupied the space.  Since 80% of the patrons of the entertainment center would be required to perform a U-turn when entering or exiting the site, the resulting number of U-turns is approximately 1800 per weekday.

Member Roth asked Kalikiri if he considered this number of daily trips and U-turns insubstantial. Kalikiri replied that he did because most of the activity would occur during non-peak traffic times. Kalikiri maintained that the most important issue to consider was the impact on peak traffic times.

Town Meeting Member Frank Monaco cautioned the Planning Board against considering only rush hour traffic concerns and stated that some of Burlington’s biggest traffic problems are seasonal. Monaco stated that much of the Dave and Buster’s business would be on weekends and holidays. He said that he would like to see a traffic study that reviewed weekend and seasonal traffic.

“We could be setting ourselves up for a much bigger problem than we realize,” warned Monaco.

Kalikiri also reviewed the company’s traffic mitigation plans which included adjusting the island across from Best Buy to make U-turns easier to navigate, and increasing the left turn queue at the northbound ramp to Route 95. In addition, the company will improve pavement markings and traffic signage near the site. All of these mitigation strategies require review and approval of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation.

 VHB used traffic data collected from Dave and Busters headquarters and compared that data to a similar business located in Lynnfield Massachusetts. The Lynnfield-based business is approximately half the size of the proposed Dave and Busters and thus VHB doubled their traffic data for comparison purposes. Burlington has a residential population of just over 24,000 and a daytime population of 150,000.  In contrast, Lynnfield’s residential population is approximately 12,300. According to Lynnfield’s Town Clerk, the town does not collect daytime population figures because it does not have a significant business sector.

Member Roth reminded the applicant that in the original request, there were extensive discussions surrounding the possible construction of a shared driveway and traffic signals to eliminate the need for U-turns.  That traffic solution is currently impossible due to resistance from neighboring tenants.

Town Meeting Member Christine Warren agreed with Roth and stated that when the zoning change was presented to Town Meeting, it was offered as an opportunity to address the U-turn problem.

“That was one of the appeals of this project,” stated Warren. “It does seem that what we are contemplating now is very far from the concept plan that was presented and I would agree that this should go back to Town Meeting for a new PDD proposal because it is so different,” added Warren.

Town Meeting Member Norman Steeves concurred and stated “What is being proposed is not in substantial conformance. It bears no resemblance. It is difficult for me to understand how the Planning Board can even consider granting this special permit.”

Attorney Buckley disagreed and in an interview on Friday, February 18, 2011 stated “We are in total conformity with the concept plan and we will continue to pursue the project in accordance with the provisions of that concept plan.”

“I think that the traffic issues that have been identified, we feel we can mitigate, and we feel that this use has less impact than other uses given the off peak orientation of the use,” added Buckley.

Near the end of the hearing, Member Raymond asked some questions about security issues raised at the last planning board meeting. He questioned whether or not the “captains” employed by Dave and Buster’s to maintain order and monitor patron behavior were not in fact “bouncers.”  Buckley chided Raymond for what he termed were “emotional words.”

According to Wikipedia, a bouncer is an informal term for a security guard employed at venues such as bars, nightclubs or concerts to provide security, check legal age, and refuse entry based on criteria such as intoxication, aggressive behavior, or other standards.

The Dave and Buster’s proposal was continued until the March 3, 2011 board meeting at which the board will discuss landscaping and architecture as well as hear from MDM regarding the peer review of the traffic study.

In other business the Planning Board unanimously approved permits for a Chipotle Mexican Grill  (www.chipotle.com) to open at the former site on Burlington Mall Road and for PetCo Unleashed (www.unleashedby.petco.com) to move into Crossroads Plaza to the space formerly occupied by Pet Supplies.