[B]URLINGTON — As the mayor and the developer behind the Town Center redevelopment near a final deal, the city approved an agreement with the project’s construction firm laying out how their work can impact surrounding streets.
It’s still unclear precisely when the developer will be able to begin demolishing half of the existing mall to make way for the mixed-use project, which is expected to include housing, office and commercial space in three towers covering the entire city block from Bank to Cherry and Pine to St. Paul streets.
The agreement approved Monday, known as an encumbrance permit, will allow PC Construction to block portions of the public right of way for construction activities, including up to 34 parking spaces, and sets out how traffic will flow around the project. Some of those parking spaces will be blocked to create space for bus parking that will need to be relocated.
Sinex will pay the city between $120,000 and $200,000 to cover lost meter revenue.
While the encumbrance permit takes effect Sept. 1, demolition and construction won’t begin until a final development agreement is approved by the City Council.
“I would hope we wouldn’t be very much behind (the approval of the encumbrance permit), but it won’t be Sept. 1,” said Town Center owner, Don Sinex, referring to when construction will begin.
“I think we’re talking weeks, certainly my hope is we’re talking weeks,” said Mayor Miro Weinberger.
Both men said they’ve made progress toward a final deal to present to the City Council, with negotiations picking up steam in the weeks since Sinex reached a legal settlement with project opponents. Weinberger said he’s committed to giving the public two weeks to review the final agreement before seeking a City Council vote.
Weinberger said the city has held two meetings with business owners adjacent to the project to keep them informed about the construction impacts, with the most recent on July 20.
The encumbrance permit approved Monday night covers the impacts of construction on the public right of way for the next three years, its expected duration.
For the first year, the southern portion of Cherry Street from Pine to St. Paul streets will be blocked off, including the sidewalk, parking and part of the street. Parking on the north side will be eliminated to allow two-way traffic to continue — a total of 15 parking spaces.
During the same period, the agreement leaves several options for how to handle the impacted portion of Bank Street. There are 13 parking spaces on the north side of the street that will be blocked.
The agreement gives Sinex the option to lease 13 parking spaces at the city’s Lakeview Garage, instead of paying estimated meter fees for the lost street parking. In that scenario, the city would likely provide vouchers for those spaces to Bank Street businesses that could be distributed to their customers — a response to concerns business owners raised about the loss of parking.
City Council President Jane Knodell, P-Central District, asked during Monday’s Board of Finance meeting why the agreement left that decision to Sinex, and was told by public works officials that city chose not to take position on which option Sinex pursues.
A third option is to keep the on-street parking on the north side of Bank Street by making it a one-way though the construction area. That option would require approval by the Public Works Commission but not the City Council, according to a summary of the agreement provided by public works officials.
The construction will also displace several bus parking spaces on Cherry Street used by Green Mountain Transit. Those spaces will be relocated to Pine Street between Cherry and Pearl streets, blocking three parking spaces there, and Pearl Street in front of what used to be the Pearl Street Diner, blocking another three spaces.
Construction hours will be Monday through Friday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Saturday 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. There will be no construction on Sundays. The construction permit also allows four 24-hour construction days per month, with notice required. Those periods are needed to allow for the completion of time sensitive activities such as pouring concrete.
For more information, including how the encumbrance permit allows construction to interfere with public right of way in the final two years of construction, click here to view a Department of Public Work’s memo to city councilors.