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Date: 5/9/2023
CHICOPEE – The Chicopee City Council unanimously approved with restrictions a special permit for a proposed Tesla electric vehicle dealership and service center on Burnett Road.
The item was presented to the City Council during its May 2 meeting, after being approved by the Zoning Committee on April 26.
The approvals followed various adjustments made by the applicant, Scannell Properties, after listening to residents’ concerns such as increased traffic.
Ward 7 City Councilor William Courchesne said the restrictions are that the exit and entrance points be moved to the traffic light on New Lombard Road and Burnett Road.
There will only be 310 parking spaces, a 37,000-square-foot building maximum, a 20-bay maximum and six off-network charging stations, as well as properly stored batteries.
Ward 6 City Councilor Derek Dobosz thanked the Zoning Subcommittee and City Council for assisting him on this issue in his district.
“I know Burnett Road residents — they’re always cautious with a Burnett Road development and rightfully so … We have a lot of traffic problems there,” he said.
Dobosz shared that the applicant came forward with a proposal, listened to the residents and the City Council, and then came back with a proposal that was nearly half as small.
“I want to thank the applicant for being willing to work with us,” he said.
He continued, “I want to let the constituents know, I don’t think we would get a better deal than this. I think it’s a win-win — we get the development for the taxpayer, and I think this is probably the most reasonable development we can ask for at this location.”
Ward 9 City Councilor Mary Beth Pniak-Costello said, “This business is a major change for the city of Chicopee because you’re bringing in modern transportation technology that we do not have and a lot of cities and towns in our area also don’t have.”
Courchesne went on to thank Tesla for listening to the residents. “We didn’t make these restrictions except for the last one,” he said. All the conditions the applicant imposed upon themselves, such as the entrance.
Scannell Properties said they would consider Johnny Cake Hollow Road as a potential entrance if feasible.
Courchesne said he will follow up with Tesla throughout the process to make sure they stick to their word.
“Based on the fact that they came to us with these restrictions, I feel confident that they’re going to abide by that handshake deal if you will,” Courchesne said.
He explained that the 310 parking spaces were reduced from 480, and the 20-bay maximum was reduced from 48 — which reduced the building’s square footage.
“The charging stations are off network which means nobody will find them on an app of charger vehicles,” Courchesne said. He noted that this will decrease the levels of traffic.
“If we’re going to help the burden of a taxpayer, we need to bring in businesses and large businesses,” he said. “I won’t say we’ll have reduced taxes, but we need to cut down on how much they go up and we can only do that with businesses.”
Ward 3 City Councilor Delmarina López said Tesla has shown that they would like to partner with the city in a way that many applicants do not.
“It’s not often that we have applicants come to us with revised plans based on the input from the community they’re entering so that is them extending the olive branch and I’m always happy to see that,” she shared.