At its last February meeting, the Hudson Planning Board heard a conceptual design review from Ryan Hudock from Horizons Engineering.
“We are presenting a concept application for a mixed-use development; it’s along Central Street. On the southern general portion, we have two multi-family buildings with one being 70 units and the other being 30 units, so about 100.” explained Hudock. “On the northern portion, directly along Central, there’s an existing concrete pad. We’re trying to redevelop that into a mixed-use building with about 12 units on the upper floor and then commercial on the lower floor.”
He stressed that the design was still conceptual beyond a few early engineering studies and could easily change, especially when the permitting process gets underway.
“What’s the distance from Central to the end of the 70-unit building?” asked Vice-Chair Jordan Ulery, who seemed skeptical whether the parking layout had enough room to accommodate larger fire engines. “What are you attempting to get into the lower stories?”
Hudock was unsure what the distance was but conceded that the developer may need to adjust the layout. Due to the early stage of design work, there was no solid plan for what businesses might go into the lower units. Nearby resident Don Dumont, who was involved in the project, stated they were open to suggestions from town officials and residents.
“Would you be open to ensuring certain design standards are met when putting the plan together?” asked Board member Victor Oates. “I am a huge supporter and fan of building out mixed-use. My concern is how it’s done.”
Currently, there are no formal mixed-use standards for Hudson, meaning few definitive guidelines regarding factors such as design and aesthetics.
“If I had to throw a few things out there, the only thing I can think of is some sort of retail space that would maybe be set up as a split-mall,” said Dumont. “If you look on there, it also calls for a couple of drive-throughs, maybe a coffee shop or a taco shop, something like that.”
Oates questioned whether any drive-throughs should be allowed, worrying it would add to traffic. Dumont promised to do his best to stick with “what the town of Hudson is looking for,” including open space with walking trails.
Board member James Crowley worried the application was “overly ambitious,” and needed to account for nearby wetland boundaries, flooding concerns, lingering issues like asbestos on the property, and density.
“The Board has talked about how high-density housing is coming to Hudson, but that shouldn’t mean warehousing people at the lowest cost. There needs to be a quality of living,” Crowley argued. “I don’t see anything for recreation for tots. I don’t even see a basketball hoop for teenagers. Things like that are what I’m looking for.”
Hudock assured the Board that environmental concerns, including the site’s apparent location on a floodplain, were already being taken into account.
“Would your plan be to sell these units? Or would you be renting them out?” asked Board member Tim Lyko.
Dumont claimed the idea was to lease the space out, not sell it. There was no set size for how large the individual apartments would be.
As the project did not involve a formal site design, no vote was taken, and there was no public input.
