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TOWN OF HINGHAM
Board of Appeals

NOTICE OF DECISION
SPECIAL PERMIT

IN THE MATTER OF:

Applicant: Physex, LLC Agent: Scott Golding, Esq.
Michael J. Silva, Manager Drohan Tocchio & Morgan, P.C.
6 Grove Street 175 Derby St., Suite 30
Norwell, MA 02061 Hingham, MA 02043

Co-Applicant/ FoxRock Recreation Park, LLC
Owner: 100 Newport Avenue Extension
Quincy, MA 02171

Property: 150 Recreation Park Dr., Suite 1, Hingham, MA 02043

Deed Reference: Plymouth County Registry of Deeds, Book 46554, Page 105 & 122

Plan References: “Layout Plan,” prepared by Crocker Design Group, LLC, 11 Three Ring Road, Scituate, MA, dated August 20, 2018

SUMMARY OF PROCEEDINGS

This matter came before the Board of Appeals (the “Board”) on the application of Physex, LLC & FoxRock Recreation Park, LLC (collectively, the “Applicant”) for a Special Permit A2 under § III-A, 4.12A of the Zoning By-Law (the “By-Law”) and such other relief as necessary to allow for the operation of a health club at 150 Recreation Park Drive, Suite 1, in the Industrial Park and South Hingham Development Overlay District.

In connection with this request, the Applicant simultaneously filed an application for Site Plan Approval under § I-G and § I-I of the By-Law with the Planning Board. The Planning Board separately reviewed the application and issued a conditional Site Plan Approval on October 16, 2018. The Planning Board also heard and approved a related application for a Special Permit A3/Parking Determination.

The Board opened a duly noticed public hearing on the application on September 25, 2018, during which it granted, without receipt of testimony, a written request to continue the proceedings. The hearing reopened on October 16, 2016. All sessions took place at Hingham Town Hall, 210 Central Street, before a panel consisting of regular members Robyn S. Maguire, Chair, and Joseph M. Fisher, and associate member Mario Romania, Jr. Attorney Scott Golding, Drohan Tocchio & Morgan, P.C., appeared to present the application. At the conclusion of the hearing, the Board voted unanimously to grant the requested Special Permit A2 allowing for the operation of a health club on the Property, with conditions as set forth below.

Throughout its deliberations, the Board has been mindful of the statements of the Applicant and the comments of the general public, all as made or received at the public meeting.

BACKGROUND

The subject property consists of 4 acres of land located at the end of Recreation Park Drive. The site is improved by an existing 5-unit industrial condominium building with a gross floor area of 43,816 SF. The proposed plan would locate a health club, together with related offices, storage and accessory uses, in a 5,000 SF tenant space within the existing building.

The proposed work includes an interior fit out. Minimal exterior work, consisting of minor improvements to the parking lot, is required to accommodate the use. The Applicant has proposed to 1.) construct 6 new employee parking spaces to the rear of the building and 2.) eliminate 1 existing space at the front of the unit to accommodate handicapped accessibility requirements.

The Applicant represented that the maximum persons, including both customers and employees, using the facility at capacity is expected to be 24 persons. The proposed use would operate weekdays from 6am - 8pm and weekends from 6am – 5pm. Anticipated “peak” hours of operation, which cluster in the early morning and late afternoon/early evening, are not anticipated to overlap entirely with other users in the building.

As noted above in the Procedural History, the Planning Board voted to conditionally grant both Site Plan Approval and a Special Permit A3 relative to the operation of the Applicant’s proposed use.
With the application, the Board also received a “Septic Capacity Analysis” to demonstrate that the proposed use will not exceed the design flow of the existing onsite wastewater treatment system.

During the course of the hearing, no abutters or members of the public spoke in favor or in opposition to the application.

FINDINGS

Based on the information submitted with the application and presented during the hearings, and the discussion and deliberation of the Board during the hearing, the Board made the following findings under § I-F, 2:

1. Use of the property is in harmony with the general purpose and intent of the Zoning By-Law. The proposed use is in harmony with the general purposes of the By-Law. A health club is an allowed use by special permit in the Industrial Park District. Moreover, the proposed use will not adversely affect the health, safety or welfare of any prospective occupants, neighbors or the Town.

2. The proposed use complies with the purposes and standards of the relevant specific sections of the By-Law. The proposed use promotes the purpose and objectives of the South Hingham Development Overlay District in that it utilizes existing infrastructure, including non-residential roadways, encourages a business mix that maintains economic vitality in the District, and will have no traffic impact on residential neighborhoods.

3. The specific site is an appropriate location for the proposed use and is compatible with the characteristics of the surrounding area. The property is an appropriate location for the proposed use as the building currently supports other complementary uses, including another health club and a manufacturer. The property is also located on the east side of Route 3, removed from any residential neighborhoods, and will have no impact on the surrounding industrial and commercial businesses.

4. The use as developed and operated will create positive impacts or the potential adverse impacts will be mitigated. There will be no adverse impacts in connection with the proposed health club use of an existing tenant space. There will be no expansion or exterior renovations resulting from the location, with the exception of minor parking improvements, which will support any additional parking demand generated by the use.

5. There will be no nuisance or serious hazard to vehicles or pedestrians. The property’s current ingress and egress, as well as onsite circulation through the site, function well and will not be updated in connection with the project.

6. Adequate and appropriate facilities exist or will be provided for the proper operation of the proposed use. The proposed project will not result in an increased demand for utilities, and no further municipal or private support facilities are required.

7. The proposal meets accepted design standards and criteria for the functional design of facilities, structures, stormwater management, and site construction. The proposed improvements meet accepted design standards.

DECISION

Upon a motion made by Joseph M. Fisher and seconded by Mario Romania, Jr., the Board voted unanimously to GRANT a Special Permit A2 under § III-A, 4.12A of the By-Law to locate a health club within an existing 5,000 SF space at 150 Recreation Park Drive, Suite 1, in the Industrial Park District and South Hingham Development Overlay District, subject to the following conditions:

1. The proposed work shall be completed and the health club use shall be operated in a manner consistent with the approved plans and the representations made at the hearings before the Board.
2. In accordance with the provisions of the Hingham Zoning By-Law, the conditions imposed in the Planning Board Site Plan Approval, as filed on October 16, 2018, are binding conditions to this decision of the Zoning Board of Appeals.

This decision shall not take effect until a copy of the decision bearing the certification of the Town Clerk, that twenty (20) days have elapsed since the decision has been filed in the office of the Town Clerk and no appeal has been filed, or that if such appeal has been filed, that it has been dismissed or denied, is recorded with the Plymouth Registry of Deeds and/or the Plymouth County Land Court Registry, and indexed in the grantor index under the name of the record owner or is recorded and noted on the owner’s certificate of title.

For The Board of Appeals,


__________________________________
Joseph M. Fisher
November 1, 2018