ATHOL – Residents will have the chance to learn about a possible new use for the closed parking garage at a meeting scheduled for this evening.

The Board of Planning and Community Development (BPCD) will hold a public hearing at 7:10 p.m. on Wednesday to discuss the site plan submitted by developer K. William Krikorian. The meeting will take place in Room 21 at Town Hall. Krikorian wants to construct a mixed-use building consisting of 43 housing units, as well as commercial space, fronting on South Street. The structure would be built on the site of the long-closed downtown parking garage.

In April, the Zoning Board of Appeals approved a trio of variances which allowed the project to move forward. One variance allows the new building to be 54 feet in height, four feet higher than allowed under Athol’s zoning bylaws. The board also approved a variance allowing the building to consist of five stories, rather than four, as detailed in the regulations.

In addition, the ZBA gave Krikorian permission to construct three housing units on the first floor, though zoning bylaws state that the first floor must consist solely of commercial/business space. The three units, he told the board, will be at the rear of the building, behind the retail space and therefore not noticeable from the street.

David Small, chair of the BPCD, said several issues are likely to come up at tonight’s hearing.

“I know parking and traffic flow are on a lot of people’s minds,” he said, “how it’s all going to actually work. That’s part of it. And there are some things that are still being looked at. They’ve made some changes in the original design. I know there was some discussion about how many units will be market rate and how many are going to be affordable. We need to make sure all those things are lined up.”

Small said, most people believe the development would be a good thing for downtown Athol.

“It’s really just analyzing the details to make sure everything is acceptable,” he said. “That’s the Planning Board’s role. It’s not really to judge the validity of an idea or a project. It’s just ensuring that whatever is being presented to us meets all of the specifications.”

Krikorian purchased the parking garage property from the Economic Development and Industrial Corporation (EDIC) for $10,000 in November 2022, five months after the Annual Town Meeting approved transferring ownership from the town to the EDIC. This was after it was learned that rebuilding the deteriorating parking structure would cost upward of $1.2 million, while razing would cost approximately $200,000.

The estimated cost of the new development is $12-$15 million. It would be the largest privately-funded development in downtown Athol in many decades.

Greg Vine can be reached at gvineadn@gmail.com.

]]>