SALEM — The City of Salem Planning Board is likely to vote Thursday to approve a new development off of Highland Avenue in one of the final steps of the approval process for the project.
The mixed-use development, proposed by Overlook Acres LLC, seeks to utilize land on Highland Avenue, Barnes Road and Cedar Road.
It would feature approximately 282 units of housing, a commercial building with an approximate footprint of 8,450 sq. ft. and 453 new parking spaces.
The expected vote comes amidst community concerns about the project, largely centered around its ecological footprint.
Not For Sale.m Coalition, a community group whose goal is to stop overdevelopment in Salem and preserve the city’s history, diversity and natural beauty, has expressed its opposition to the plan.
Alvi Ibañez, a Salem resident and Not For Sale.m Coalition member, whose house abuts the proposed development, argued that the project would have a harmful effect on the city’s wetlands.
“Salem has lost a lot of its wetlands,” said Ibañez. “There are endangered species that need that habitat to survive.”
In response to community concerns, Overlook Acres altered its proposal last week so that the buildings do not encroach on the 100-foot buffer zone around the wetlands, although a road does still encroach on the zone.
“It’s a whole lot better than having buildings in it,” said Patti Morsillo, Ward 3 councillor. “I’m happy that they’ve been responsive.”
Salem requires that all new developments have a negative ecological footprint, a goal which project principal Pavel Espinal claims Overlook Acres will meet.
“We’re currently conducting testing on contamination,” he said. “So we think that’s a win already. Also, we’ve managed the whole project with stormwater management.”
The development has guaranteed that 10 percent of its units would be offered at 60 percent area median income (AMI).
Espinal acknowledged that the AMI is not actually representative of the median income of the area, since Salem is grouped with other wealthier areas, and thus supported a lower threshold than the 80 percent recommended by the state.
Ibañez expressed concern that the affordable housing would not be provided by the developers but rather by a state or city tax credit.
“There is no affordability because that would be provided by the state,” said Ibañez. “So that’s a cost we have to pay.”
Traffic was also a major concern for Ibañez, who said that the project would bring 600 additional cars to the neighborhood.
“More people will create more cars throughout Salem,” said Mosillo. “But they are doing their best to provide information to residents about public transportation and they’re involved in creating a bike lane.”
Morsillo clarified that the project is still a long way from breaking ground.
“If they get approval on Thursday it’s not like they’re going to start building in a month,” she said. “These things take time.”
