BRATTLEBORO — On April 20, the Brattleboro Development Review Board will consider an application by the Brooks House developers to close the Harmony Lot/High Street driveway to vehicles.
I write in an effort to call attention to this ill-conceived plan.
First, some background. It seems undeniable that the Harmony Lot High Street driveway was designed and built to allow vehicles to pass. Since I moved to Brattleboro 33 years ago, this driveway has always been used by vehicles, and it seems likely the driveway has always been used this way since it was built.
After the fire, the Brooks House developers proposed closing the driveway, but town officials objected. The developers then submitted a site plan that kept the driveway open, and the plan was approved.
During the Brooks House redevelopment, the town supported the developers in many ways, including a tax-stabilization agreement, financial supports, and a land swap in the Harmony Lot. It was clear throughout that the driveway would be kept open to vehicles.
It therefore has been very troubling that, since completion of work on the Brooks House, the developers have blocked the Harmony Lot High Street driveway with sawhorses, which seems clearly to violate their zoning permit.
Weeks and months passed before the developers received notice of a zoning violation in response, and only then did they apply for a permit to close the driveway to vehicles.
I think closing the Harmony Lot High Street driveway to vehicles is not in the best interests of the town.
Downtown merchants operate on a thin margin. Direct, easy access from High Street for vehicles coming from the north and west seems critically important to drawing people into businesses surrounding the Harmony Lot.
Diverting vehicles from this driveway interferes with the circulation and flow of traffic downtown, increases congestion on both Main and Elliot Streets, and can discourage people from patronizing Harmony Lot merchants.
Whatever device is used to block vehicles from the driveway will communicate to potential customers that we are “Closed for Business.” Choking off the Harmony Lot's northern entrance to vehicles seems to me to be a really bad idea.
Some people doubtless will say the Harmony Lot High Street driveway should be closed to vehicles because the developers propose to add landscaping in this area. Significant green space can still be added to the site of the former Frankie's restaurant once that building is demolished, however, while still keeping the High Street driveway open to vehicles.
The idea that the driveway should be reserved for pedestrians also falls flat. A sidewalk already makes this access point safer for pedestrians. The number of people who walk through the Harmony Lot/High Street driveway pales in comparison to the number of vehicles that drive through there.
The seasonal nature of use of the proposed new green space also means the driveway would be closed to vehicles for naught during a solid part of the year.
My plan was to raise these concerns in person on April 20 with the Development Review Board, but a scheduling conflict prevents me from attending. This letter, therefore, seeks to get people involved and to raise public awareness of this issue in advance of that meeting.