Worcester looks to curb new self-storage projects
Photo | Grant Welker
CubeSmart Self Storage on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester
Worcester officials have permitted six self-storage facilities since 2016, and now City Hall wants to slow the momentum.
Peter Dunn, the city's chief development officer, is proposing to the City Council a zoning amendment to allow such facilities by special permits only in most business and industrial zones. Today, they're classified as a more general use, making them easier to win approval, Dunn said in a memo to the council ahead of its meeting Tuesday night.
The city administration is looking to limit the number of new storage facilities, calling their benefits limited. They create few jobs, don't contribute to the vitality of a neighborhood, often replace historic buildings and can have large footprints excluding other uses, Dunn said.
Under the city's proposal, the Zoning Board of Appeals would consider additional factors when considering whether to approve a storage facility, including market demand, site conditions, accessibility and whether historic or architecturally significant buildings would be affected. Storage facilities proposed within commercial districts would also be subject to additional provisions, including limits on size, restrictions on ground-floor uses and requirement that other, more active uses are included.
One planned storage facility, a 71,000-square-foot building at 29-49 James St., is also permitted for retail or office space totaling around 6,000 square feet in an adjacent building.
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