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MAPC awards grant to Peabody, Salem for connector study
Peabody and Salem last week were awarded a state grant to begin a study on making improvements along the main corridor that connects the two communities.
The Metropolitan Area Planning Council awarded the cities a $20,000 grant to begin the evaluation and planning for the best use of the corridor along Main and Boston streets, said Nathan Jones, Peabody city planner.
“This dovetails nicely with the city’s independent ongoing evaluation of pedestrian and bike safety in the downtown,” said Jones.
This is the first time the two cities will work together to study the highly traveled route between Boston Street in Salem and Main Street in Peabody leading into downtown, said Sam Cleaves, MAPC senior regional planner. Students from Salem State College’s Planning Department will assist MAPC with research and collecting information from residents and business owners along the corridor.
The goal of the project is to provide zoning consistency along the route, identify the best use for vacant parcels, enhance signage and provide for pedestrian and traffic safety in the corridor, said Jones.
Peabody has been considering rezoning the downtown area for a mixed-use, with first floor retail and second floor housing above. The City Council recently entertained zoning the downtown for medical use as well.
For Salem, this is the first step in examining a cohesive plan with Peabody in possibly rezoning the area along the corridor, said Jason Silva, chief administrative aide to the mayor.
“We want to take a look at land use and economic opportunities along the corridor,” said Silva. “We don’t want to do that in a vacuum, but rather in collaboration with Peabody so that we don’t limit what they want to do and they don’t limit what we want to do.”
The communities and MAPC will hold a public meeting from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 29 at the Peabody Institute Library, 82 Main St. MAPC encourages public input on the project and is the process of posting a blog page on its web site for public comment. For updates on the project, visit www.mapc.org/subregions/nstf/salem-peabody-corridor.
Peabody, Salem and MAPC will present their finding in December 2010.
MAPC is a state agency that offers technical support to communities who want to jointly provide services that are cost-effective and efficient. The agency selects communities for the grant that show the best promise in meeting this goal.
The Metropolitan Area Planning Council awarded the cities a $20,000 grant to begin the evaluation and planning for the best use of the corridor along Main and Boston streets, said Nathan Jones, Peabody city planner.
“This dovetails nicely with the city’s independent ongoing evaluation of pedestrian and bike safety in the downtown,” said Jones.
This is the first time the two cities will work together to study the highly traveled route between Boston Street in Salem and Main Street in Peabody leading into downtown, said Sam Cleaves, MAPC senior regional planner. Students from Salem State College’s Planning Department will assist MAPC with research and collecting information from residents and business owners along the corridor.
The goal of the project is to provide zoning consistency along the route, identify the best use for vacant parcels, enhance signage and provide for pedestrian and traffic safety in the corridor, said Jones.
Peabody has been considering rezoning the downtown area for a mixed-use, with first floor retail and second floor housing above. The City Council recently entertained zoning the downtown for medical use as well.
For Salem, this is the first step in examining a cohesive plan with Peabody in possibly rezoning the area along the corridor, said Jason Silva, chief administrative aide to the mayor.
“We want to take a look at land use and economic opportunities along the corridor,” said Silva. “We don’t want to do that in a vacuum, but rather in collaboration with Peabody so that we don’t limit what they want to do and they don’t limit what we want to do.”
The communities and MAPC will hold a public meeting from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 29 at the Peabody Institute Library, 82 Main St. MAPC encourages public input on the project and is the process of posting a blog page on its web site for public comment. For updates on the project, visit www.mapc.org/subregions/nstf/salem-peabody-corridor.
Peabody, Salem and MAPC will present their finding in December 2010.
MAPC is a state agency that offers technical support to communities who want to jointly provide services that are cost-effective and efficient. The agency selects communities for the grant that show the best promise in meeting this goal.
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