Wholesaling Facility In Milford Eyed For Route 16 Parcel

MILFORD, MA — A 192,000 square-foot wholesaling facility might be coming to a largely undeveloped section of Route 16 in Milford near the town's stone quarries, according to documents filed with the town.

The facility would be constructed at 460 East Main Street, a wooded parcel between Whispering Pine Drive and Milford Stone Co. An LLC tied to Imperial Cars owner Kevin Meehan purchased the 6-1/2 acre site in late 2021 for $1 million, according to Worcester County property records.

The Milford Planning Board is in the process of reviewing a September traffic study of the proposed building.

"The proposed project would include the construction of a 191,700 sf wholesale with storage facility. The facility would provide 160 parking spaces, 41 loading docks, and 41 trailer parking spaces. Two-way circulation would be provided throughout the site. Access to the site would be provided via two full-access driveways on a new access roadway located on East Main Street (Route 16) approximately 350 feet south of Whispering Pine Drive," the study said of the project.

The area around 460 East Main Street is zoned as a business park use. Wholesaling with storage is allowed in that zone under town bylaws with approval of the zoning board.

The traffic study does not name a specific user for the facility. According to town zoning laws, a wholesaling business sells "commodities in quantity to retailers or distributors for use, re-sale or further processing, rather than directly to end consumers." In other words, it would not be a wholesaler akin to Costco or BJ's.

The traffic study estimated the facility would add about 16 trips per morning and 19 per evening to the East Main Street area, plus four truck traffic trips per day. The area has a daily volume of close to 13,000 trips, according to the study. The study examined the area between Rockland Boulevard and Fortune Boulevard/Beaver Street.

Meehan's, LLC RTE 85 Realty Corp., owns multiple properties in Milford. A separate LLC headed by Meehan, Quarry Place Three LLC, paid more than $10 million last year for the Granite Heights Marketplace plaza, which was previously home to a Bed Bath & Beyond. Meehan was not immediately available for comment about the East Main Street project.

The Milford Planning Board on Tuesday will discuss hiring Tewksbury-based Green International Affiliates to conduct a peer review of the original traffic study.