PEABODY — Mayor Ted Bettencourt is calling for the Planning Board to implement a pair of provisions on a proposed hotel development at the Northshore Mall as conditions of approval for the proposal, which was first presented in May.
Specifically, Bettencourt called on the board to require Planning Board approval for any change of use, and to require the board’s approval, as well as City Council review and approval, for a proposed change from hotel use to any residential use. The proposal before the Planning Board has no residential component, but the letter appears to be an effort on Bettencourt’s behalf to make it more difficult for any future development of housing on that site, should such a proposal ever emerge.
The letter is dated July 13, and is slated to be received by the board at its Aug. 3 meeting. The hotel proposal likely will not be up for discussion Thursday, as Attorney David Ankeles, who is representing the developer, sought a continuance to the board’s Aug. 17 meeting.
The new hotel, a Residence Inn by Marriott, would be constructed at 0 Prospect St., the current site of a Logan Express shuttle service and parking lot. Residence Inn, Marriott’s premium extended-stay brand, primarily caters to corporate travelers visiting a place for a conference or some other engagement, Ankeles said.
The Residence Inn would have an entrance on the eastern side of the Northshore Mall on Andover Street, and the mall owns the land the hotel would sit on. The developer, PEG Companies, is proposing 142 hotel rooms on the site, with no restaurant, bar, or function hall at the hotel. The hotel would feature an indoor pool and a small gym, Ankeles told the Planning Board in May.
The new building would be approximately 42 feet tall, and would take up slightly more than 25% of the existing lot with more than 100 parking spaces in place for those staying at the hotel. During his presentation to the board, Ankeles repeatedly emphasized that the hotel would not be used as a long-term solution for housing due to the prohibitive cost of paying a nightly rate for a hotel room and Marriott disallowing any renting or leasing of a hotel room as an apartment.
“It would be extremely expensive for anyone to use as an apartment,” he said, adding that typical stays at a Residence Inn range four to eight days, according to data compiled by PEG.
Only 50% of rooms are booked for five or more nights, Ankeles added, citing Marriott.
Michael Santos, a traffic engineer working on the project, told board members trip generation due to the new development would be low, and represent an increase of just 2% from the typical volumes in the busy area around the mall.
“Trip generation is very low compared to other mall-based trip activity,” Santos said, adding that there would be multiple points of access for the site and parking supply would comply with zoning regulations.
Should the hotel need additional parking, an agreement was in place with the mall to loan out spaces.
Ankeles said the goal would be for the hotel to boost businesses at the mall, particularly given the adjacency between the two properties. He estimated that build-out of the hotel would take a year or more.
