HIGHLAND AVENUE CORRIDOR STUDY MEETING 1- October 28, 2020Highland Avenue Corridor Study
Community Meeting 1
October 28, 2020
Salem, MA
Meeting Agenda
1.Introductions (City)
2.Project Goals & Overview (Sasaki)
3.Community Poll (All)
4. Market Overview (Landwise)
5. Summary (City)
6.Discussion, with Miro Boards (All)
INTRODUCTIONS
Paul Schlapobersky
AIA, LEED AP
Associate Principal
Urban Designer &
Architect, Project
Manager
Tyler Patrick
AICP
Principal, Planner
Diane Athaide
Urban Designer
Jon Trementozzi
Principal
Brian Gridley
Strategic Planner
Gwendolyn Sands
Planner
SUSTAINABILITY
PLANNERSARCHITECTS CIVIL
ENGINEERS
PLANNERS
GRAPHIC
DESIGNERS
DATA
ANALYSTSURBAN
DESIGNERS
LANDSCAPE
ARCHITECTS
INTERIOR
DESIGNERS
Landwise is an advisory firm helping cities to maximize the quality, utility, and value of their land assets through expertise in planning, economics, and asset positioning.
PROJECT GOALS & OVERVIEW
City’s Goals for The Corridor Study
•Stakeholder dialogue on the future of the Corridor
•A community vision for the Corridor
•Representation of vision by consultant team
•Final report of the study
What are the key issues confronting the Corridor?
What do you think is the right character for the Corridor?
How can the Corridor evolve to meet Salem’s future?
Questions / Discussion Points
Project Scope & Schedule
Corridor Visit
Sept 2020 Oct Nov Dec
Corridor Framework & Development Scenarios
Action Plan & Final Report
Concept Deliverables
Working Group
Meeting 2
Community
Meeting 2
•Development Framework
•Land Use Program
Scenarios
•Selection of Preferred Scenarios
•Development of Preferred
Scenarios
•Draft Report
•Final Report
•Kick-off Meeting
•Establish project goals
•Corridor Visit
•Data Collection
•Base Materials Mapping
•Opportunities &
Constraints
•Market Scan
•Development Program
Scenarios
Working Group
Meeting 1
Existing Conditions Analysis & Market Scan
Community
Meeting 1
Jan 2021
Today
Prior Studies
Corridor Tour, 9.14.20
Study Area
Study Area
The Corridor
Existing Corridor
1
2
3
2 3
1
Walmart Dunkin Donuts 400 Highland
1
3
2
2 3
1
Puleo’s North East Animal Shelter
3
Cinema World site
Existing Corridor
1
2
2
1
Home Depot Car 5 Used Car Dealership
Existing Corridor
Tropical Products
1
2
2
1
Market Basket
3
DaVita clinic
3
Existing Corridor
1
2
2
1
New England Veterinarian Clinic Salem High School
Existing Corridor
Neighborhoods
Highland Ave
Witchcraft Heights
Castle Hill
South
Salem
Vinnin Square
LYNN
Context
Walmart
Puleo’s Dairy
Northeast
Animal Shelter
Home Depot
Market Basket
Target
Shaws
Salem High School
Tropical Products
DaVita Salem NE Dialysis
Highland Ave with
divider (1.6 miles)
Highland Avenue
Bus Route
Bus stops
Bus Route
Ecological
Constraints
Wetlands
Wetland Buffer Zone (100’ )
Ponds/Streams
Pond/Streams Buffer Zone (100’)
Zoning
Business highway (B2)
Business Park Development (BPD)
Residential One Family (R1)
Residential Multi family (R3)
Industrial (I)
Residential Conservation (RC)
Walmart
Puleo’s Dairy
Northeast
Animal Shelter
Home Depot
Market Basket
Target
Shaws
Salem High School
Tropical Products
DaVita Salem NE Dialysis
Parcels
Parcels under consideration
44
Highland -
Walmart
Cinemaworld
US Biological
120 Swampscott Rd
15 Robinson Rd
Puleo Realty
346, 358
Highland Ave
342 Highland Ave
Transfer Station
Trader’s Way
Development
Tropical Products
DaVita Salem NE Dialysis
Overlook Acres
Projects in permitting
1 Dipietro &3 Swampscott
Projects underway
Overlap of
Parcels &
Ecological
Constraints
Wetlands
Wetland Buffer Zone
Ponds/Streams
Pond/Streams Buffer Zone
Parcels under consideration
Projects in permitting
Projects underway
44
Highland -
Walmart
Cinemaworld
US Biological
120 Swampscott Rd
15 Robinson Rd
Puleo Realty
346, 358
Highland Ave
342 Highland Ave
Transfer Station
Trader’s Way
Development
Tropical Products
DaVita Salem NE Dialysis
Overlook Acres
1 Dipietro &3 Swampscott
What is right for Highland Avenue?
Pedestrian Automobile
Experience at Ground Level –Sense of Place
Belmar, Lakewood CO Mosaic, Fairfax VA
?
TodayFuture?
Today
What is right for Highland Avenue?
Commercial /
Institutional
Residential
Program, Uses –Sense of Place
Stonebridge at Potomac Town Center, Woodbridge, VA Westbrook, BC, Canada
?
Future?
What is right for Highland Avenue?
Overall Function, and Look and Feel
Daybreak, UT Azalea, South Gate, CA
Local Regional
?
Today Future?
COMMUNITY TEXT / ONLINE POLL
How to access the poll
Two options to join:
1.Go to PollEv.com/sasakipolls
2.Text the word SASAKIPOLLS
to this number: 22333
22333
SASAKIPOLLS
MARKET OVERVIEW
Salem Highland Avenue Market Scan Fall 2020
Source: 2015 Census LEHD OnTheMap
Note that employment nodes are
aggregated at the Census Block level;
points do not represent specific buildings.
NSMC Salem
Source: 2015 Census LEHD OnTheMap
Note that employment nodes are
aggregated at the Census Block level;
points do not represent specific buildings.
McDonald’s, Londi’s, Taco
Bell, Burger King, IHOP
Existing Conditions
Future Conditions
-Medical employment clustered around the NSMC Salem Hospital is the primary driver of economic activity along the
corridor
-Big box retailers continue to draw significant activity along the corridor and these users appear to be healthy relative to
national trends
-The corridor features a number of chain restaurant options but lacks options for independent and ethnic categories
-The corridor is made up primarily of middle-income households and it is experiencing positive household growth and
meaningful growth in income levels
-Recent expansion in the NSMC Salem Hospital cluster and the closing of a hospital facility in Lynn indicate that future
growth in the medical space is likely to occur.
-Retail and restaurant uses are likely to continue to face headwinds from the Covid-19 disruption and the rise of e-
commerce and so expansion of these uses will be challenging in the near term.
-The growth in advanced manufacturing, logistics, warehousing uses is likely to continue so sites that are well suited
for these uses may have an advantage
-The need for affordable/workforce housing is likely to remain strong in the Salem area due to the lack of supply
LOCAL ECONOMIC CONTEXT TAKEAWAYS
SUBSECTOR DEVELOPMENT POTENTIAL
-In the industrial category the sub sectors of fulfillment centers and
warehouse are leading the way
-Medical office is very strong and has only been moderately impacted by
Covid-19 disruptions
-Within multifamily the strongest subsector is moderate-income apartments.
-While the office sector has been hit hard, the suburban office sector has
actually improved, and there may be some build-to -suit opportunities within
the Salem market.
-All retail subsectors continue to struggle, and it is likely some of the existing
vacant space will convert to other uses over time.
Source: ULI Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2021
Land Use Market
Strength
Site
Suitability
Economic/
Tax
Impact
Low Level of
Competition
Low Level of
Traffic
Impact
TOTAL
Residential *** ** * *** ***12
Medical Office *** *** *** * **12
Office * ** *** ** **10
Industrial / Light
Manufacturing *** ** ** ** *10
Retail/Restaurant * *** *** * *9
HIGHLAND AVENUE LAND USE MATRIX -SUMMARY
*= Low Score **= Medium Score ***= High Score
Market Strength –Landwise judgment of how healthy the market is for the given use in the Boston Metro and along the corridor
Site Suitability –How appropriate the use is for a typical site located along the corridor factoring in zoning, market requirements, visibility,site
needs
Economic/Tax Impact-The ability for the use to create jobs and generate a net positive fiscal impact
Low Level of Competition –The level of competition in the local market/submarket for the specific use
Traffic Impact –The amount of traffic that will be generated from the target use
CASE STUDIES
Century Bank Headquarters
400 Mystic Ave., Medford
o Class A Office Building
o Year Built: 2005
o Building Space: 88,000 square feet,
5 stories
o Lot Size: 4.87 acres
o FAR: 0.42
o Parking Ratio: 3.0 / 1,000 SF
o Traffic Count: 22,000 VPD (2018)
A new 5-story 50,000 square foot building was built
adjacent to the existing 3-story building. This
building is located on Mystic Ave. in Medford, a
similar corridor that is highly trafficked with a
variety of uses.
OFFICE MEDICAL OFFICE
Route 3A Medical Office Complex
221 Boston Rd., Billerica
o Year Built: 2019 (renovated)
o Building Space: 12,500 square feet,
2 stories
o Lot Size: 1.64 acres
o FAR:0.17
o Parking Ratio: 5.5 / 1,000 SF
o Traffic Count: 32,000 VPD (2018)
This medical office building has 6 separate
suites that can be combined for larger spaces
if needed. It underwent extensive renovations
in 2019, including an entire new façade). It is
located on Route 3A in Billerica, a similar
corridor with almost identical traffic counts to
Highland Ave. (35,000 VPD).
LIGHT MFG / IND
Salem Glass
3 Technology Way, Salem
o Year Built: 2002
o Building Space: 64,000 square feet
o Lot Size: 4.4 acres
o FAR:0.33
o Parking Ratio: 1.3 / 1,000 SF
One of the most successful companies on
Technology Way. Their success has inspired
other similar companies to move, creating an
industrial cluster at Technology Way.
RETAIL
370 Highland Ave, Salem
o Year Built:2018
o Building Space: 7,200 square feet
o Lot Size: 1-acre lot
(this building shares a lot with the
neighboring Puleo’s Dairy building.
The 1-acre is an estimate of the land
that St. Jean’s sits on)
o FAR: 0.17
o Parking Ratio: 5.5 / 1,000 SF
o Traffic Count: 35,000 VPD (2020)
St. Jean’s Credit Union
Built by Groom Construction (a Salem-based
company).
CASE STUDY: MIXED-USE
Station Landing
Medford
Route 16
o Year Built: 2008
o Building Details: 2 6-story buildings & 1 7-story
building, 460 one, two, and three-bedroom units
o Lot Size: 6.7 acres
o Traffic Count:68,000 VPD (2019)
50/55 and 75SL make up the apartments at Station Landing.
50/55 Station Landing feature 292 luxury units with 67,000 SF
of first-floor retail space and associated underground parking
in two six-story buildings. 75SL features 168 loft-style
apartments and 8,600 SF restaurant space and is a LEED-
certified apartment community. Station Landing also includes
over 20 restaurants and retailers, a Boston Sports Club, an AC
Hotel by Marriott and a dual-branded 152-key
TownePlace/Fairfield Inn. There is direct access to the MBTA at
the Wellington station.
Potentially
introduce
walkable
moments
Potentially
introduce
walkable
moments
Mixed
Res. &
Retail
SUMMARY
Questions / Discussion Points
What are the key issues confronting the Corridor?
What do you think is the right character for the Corridor?
How can the Corridor evolve to meet Salem’s future?
DISCUSSION (With “Miro” Boards)
For Additional Questions & Comments,
please contact:
Amanda Chiancola, Senior Planner
City of Salem
achiancola@salem.com
Thank You