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Date: 11/30/2017
EAST LONGMEADOW – Earlier in the month on Nov. 7 the East Longmeadow’s Planning Board had their first round of an open hearing regarding the potential storefront of Adam and Eve, an adult store, coming to the town. On Nov. 21 the Planning Board continued the public hearing on the adult use bylaw. At the meeting, roughly 30 residents attended and were able to ask questions and offer comments following the Planning Boards continued discussion on amending the town’s bylaws to create more restrictions on where in town the store could be located.
The application submitted in October by Adam and Eve owner Scott McGregor proposed the adult store location be at 173 B Shaker Rd. in East Longmeadow. This building is split into two storefronts, with the other business being Planet Vape. For more information on the first public hearing regarding this matter and the original application, go to www.thereminder.com/localnews/eastlongmeadow/sex-positive-store-seeks-location-in-east-longmead/.
While the town of East Longmeadow cannot legally ban an adult store from coming to town, they are able to change their bylaws to restrict where in town the store can be located, and how far an adult store must be from specific sections of town, including town parks, schools, places of worship and residential zones. During the Nov. 7 Planning Board meeting, the Board discussed specific guidelines including keeping a store of this nature at least 1,000 feet away from town parks, schools, places of worship and at least 500 feet from residential zones.
Again, at the Nov. 7 meeting, the Planning Board had not yet drawn up maps to calculate how far the proposed location was from these destinations in town. By the Nov. 21 meeting, Planning Board Chair George Kingston presented the Board with a zoning map that measured out feet from specific districts, which would show the areas in town that would allow for an adult store to set up shop.
Kingston explained to the Planning Board and residents that after drawing up the map, he found that keeping up with the 1,000 feet from parks, schools, and churches offered four corners where Mapleshade, Westwood and North Main streets come together. He noted there was a “fairly substantial block of land there.” Additionally, he mentioned North Main St. from Harkness Avenue, north. Additionally, Kingston said if the town included the industrial zone, there would “be some room” at the end of Baldwin St. Kingston stated these suggested locations did not include the 500 foot setback from residential zones, as the town has a “long linear strip for business, commercial and industrial and it’s very narrow” which is surrounded by residential areas, consequently deeming the 500-foot distance from residential zones not feasible.
“Unfortunately, none of our business zones are a thousand feet wide, they all have residential on both sides, and so the 500-foot setback from residential is not going to work,” Kingston said. “In Greenfield, where they [Adam and Eve] operate now, the setback is 50 feet. Greenfield has a very similar bylaw to the one that we’re considering, the only difference is their setback from residential is 50 feet.”
The Planning Board discussed that several of the members are not comfortable narrowing the school restrictions to 500 feet, and that they believe 1,000 feet is reasonable. An additional member chimed in that he believes the residential setback should be 1,000 feet to match the schools, churches and parks considering, “the same people that go to schools, that go to church and everything else are going to live within that 500 to 1,000 foot distance as well.”
Planning Board Vice Chair Deborah Bushnell asked Kingston if moving the residential setback to 1,000 feet would eliminate all areas in town for the adult store to come to town.
Kingston stated yes, “Almost any kind of setback you have from a residential zone is going to eliminate most every business parcel. Unfortunately, that’s the way it works. Our zoning map is our zoning map and it’s very, very, narrow.”
The board noted that opening the commercial district “doesn’t really gain you anything.” The Planning Board then brought up opening the industrial zone in an effort to keep the residential setback from decreasing.
“The industrial garden park is also possible but this is a retail use, so we would need to think very long and hard about whether we wanted to introduce retail use into the industrial garden park,” Kingston said.
The Planning Board decided that they would continue the open hearing at the next meeting on Dec. 5, and before then they would have a workshop session which would include all of the Board members in an effort to go over the zoning maps together and brainstorm how to keep all of the setbacks.
A Planning Board member commented, “I really feel strongly that this needs to be away from the residential area as well, and if we’re talking 50 feet, as far as I’m concerned that’s not acceptable. I even think 1,000 feet is not enough, but it at least blends in with the other standards.”
The Board then opened the floor to resident comments, where nine residents offered their thoughts on the bylaw changes.
A new East Longmeadow resident, originally from Brooklyn, NY, Jessamy Warner received a resounding applause from fellow residents following her comments questioning why she chose to move to East Logmeadow and how she doesn’t understand how and why an adult store in town would be viable, as she believes this business is more feasible as an online store.
“I lived in close proximity to these types of establishments, and I can tell you, that is why we left New York. For a town that doesn’t have drive-thru’s, doesn’t have a fast food chain, I am totally baffled as to why this would make sense in any world,” Warner continued, “I don’t think this is a business that’s going to service greater needs of this community.”
“Longmeadow, Wilbraham, they’re not having these discussions. They’re [Adult Stores] not going there, they’re not trying to go there. We need to build this town up, we have kids here, we came here for a reason,” resident Barbara Donohue said. “If we let this in then the strip joint goes in down by Milton Bradley, you know, whatever. Lets get the bylaws like Longmeadow, like Wilbraham, like Somers on our books so we don’t have to confront this because this is alarming to probably every parent who’s paid a lot of money to move here.”
Longtime Shaker Rd. resident Gail Morin questioned, “what’s happening to East Longmeadow?”
“I grew up in East Longmeadow, and have lived on Shaker Rd. for 33 years, and have maintained our property to be a nice place and I just feel it’s like tearing East Longmeadow apart, it’s tearing it down, we’re talking about moving because you know, who wants that [an adult store] in their area?” Morin said. “I know we’re talking about bylaws but this person [Adam and Eve owner Scott McGregor] has, owns and drives around South Hadley and areas and parks in the places where he has his stores, the vehicle is wrapped in advertisement that is distasteful, so this is one way of getting around the blackout windows and the signs.”
Resident Mark Suess stated he worked in correctionals for 24 years and has since retired, though he noted that an adult store entering town would attract an undesirable crowd, insinuating that sex offenders would be drawn to East Longmeadow.
“This is a case where if you build it, they will come, these sex offenders, they will come. I’m not saying that everyone that goes in these stores are going to be a sex offender, but if we’re the only ones around that has these types of stores, they will come. We don’t want to draw them to our community,” Suess said.
Following several more comments from residents, the Planning Board decided to continue the hearing on Dec. 5 at 6:45 at the East Longmeadow High School Committee Conference room, which is located at the back of the High School.
Watch the Nov. 21 meeting here: