Written by Emily Udy, Preservation Manager

At the heart of preservation is the desire to maintain the defining places of our community so that we can understand our place in the timeline of society.  When we are engaged in preservation we are deciding what we want to survive into the next century, which is an awesome responsibility; one that belongs to us all.  

As we look from past to future it is imperative to address how preservation supports sustainability and resiliency.  These three goals are intrinsically tied together, and in fact, the Preservation movement is indebted to the Sustainability movement for their efforts to preserve our natural environment.  Salem, like any city settled on the seashore, has a history tied to the water, and as a result many of our historic resources will face natural demolition as flood levels change and average daily tides move higher.  ​

What’s Happening:  On Thursday September 7 at 7:00pm at 120 Washington Street in the 3rd Floor conference room the Planning Board is holding a Public Hearing to review a proposed development for 18 Franklin Street (the former Ferris Auto Service property).  The proposal is for 43 condo units in 5 buildings. Click here for the agenda.

Why This Matters: This is the furthest east property in the North River Canal Corridor (NRCC).  It is the first of as many of seven properties near the intersection of North, Commercial and Franklin Streets that will be facing redevelopment in the next few years, and this project will set the expectation of quality to measure the other projects.  As a waterfront development, this project has high visibility from downtown and the North River overpass and it will impact the historic North Salem neighborhood in which it sits. 

Historic Salem Opinion:  Development of this site is guided by the North River Canal Corridor master plan which sets specific goals for this Northeast area of the Corridor.  These include low density housing in the scale of the surrounding neighborhood and improvements to pedestrian access along the North River, along both sides of Franklin Street, to the MBTA lot and at the intersection of North and Franklin Streets. We believe that achieving these goals will create a project that respects the neighborhood character.

What You Can Do: This is the first meeting for city permits for this project, and it is important that community input is heard early during the initial public comment period.  Please consider attending the meeting with us or sending an opinion to the Planning Board by clicking here. Note that there will be a series of Planning Board, Design Review Board, and Conservation Commission meetings going forward to review this project

If this is your first planning board meeting (or you want a refresher) click here to read the guidelines of a Planning Board meeting.