Easton Point Project

Public Meeting 10/01/2015

Notes from the Discussion Groups

Gateway to Downtown Discussion Group:Presented by Jerry Friedel

  • Support shown for the idea of a bike route into town
  • Suggestion to simplify the signage so that it blends with the landscape, and to not display business signs
  • Street widening seen as a possible conflict with existing housing
  • Note to be aware of the EMS Hospital Transport on Port Street
  • Would like to see a before/after visual of how this section of Port Street looks now, and how it will after proposed development in accordance to the master plan
  • Concerns about the housing stock currently on the street and the displacement of residents in rental properties, suggestion to work with owners/residents to get these properties upgraded and improved.
  • Concern about the effect of increased traffic on the intersection of Port and Washington Streets and the need for possible signal improvement in order to allow for traffic to flow, and also about the possible need for the addition of lanes
  • Discussion with the State Highway Authority may be needed, as Easton Parkway is a state highway constructed with the purpose of diverting traffic around the Town of Easton
  • Possible need for further connectivity to the downtown: Once Washington Street ends, people still need to filter through the town through Harrison and Dover Streets.

At Water’s Edge Discussion Group: Presented by Ted Bautz

  • Enthusiasm shown for the idea of a boardwalk as an amenity
  • Strong interest in establishing and maintaining the quiet use of the waterfront with decreased boat traffic, canoes, kayaks, rather than motor boats, quietude, safe, habitat
  • Naturalized waterfront (not lawns)
  • heritage plants, habitats, wetlands & grasslands
  • Emphasize green elements
  • Interest in maintaining the heritage of the industrial aspect of the point, possibly something symbolic of past uses
  • Possible preservation of storage tanks (adds to rural heritage concept)
  • Pavilion with history of Easton Point
  • Interest in a possible art venue for when the plein air artists come to town
  • Concern about brownfields, how to clean up/solve industrial wastes
  • Concern about the implementation of the plan, timeframes, who and how
  • Concern about how to plan for the impact of rising sea levels and subsidence What preventive measures need to be implemented to protect investment?

Easton Point Park Discussion Group: Presented by Lisa Ghezzi

  • Emphasis on the feel of the park: to maintain a natural setting with native plants, the establishment of a place of solace to look out on the shoreline and view wildlife
  • Also, interest shown in football and basketball fields
  • Emphasis on children’s safety: for the park to be a place where children can ride their bikes and/or walk to safely
  • Possibility of the park to be connected to other parts of Easton by rail car, possible tie-in to the rails to trails
  • Interest shown in a wide range of possible park activities including nature-oriented activities such as critter hunts and native plantings, to kayaking, sailing, and paddle-boarding, as well as football and basketball

Housing Discussion Group: Presented by Mike Thielke

  • Continued interest in a rail car that would go down Port, cross over to West, and then up Glenwood
  • Comments on the challenges involved in widening Port Street at the Port/Washington Street intersection, and how it could negatively affect the housing there
  • Concerns about displacement of the people who live on the upper part of Port Street
  • Suggestion of pedestrian overpass at the Port/Washington Street gateway
  • An observation that BCT’s rendering may be somewhat inaccurate, as some of the proposed developments encroach into Londonderry’s current property
  • Concern about retail at the expense of businesses downtown, suggestion that the point remain focused on entertainment, cultural, and waterfront activities as opposed to retail development
  • Concern about how much of the point is on a floodplain
  • As the point is annexed into the Town of Easton, what ward will it be, and how will that impact the district make-up of Ward 4