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Politics & Government

Ferraro's Hearing Delayed Pending New Design

Restaurant scrapped plans presented in July, will now present before Planning Board on August 18

“Make sure it’s appropriately small,” Robert Newell told an applicant appearing before the Planning Board Monday night. Newell was referring to the size of a delivery sign light proposed for use on the property of ACL Real Estate on 50 Cardinal Drive

He could have been describing the meeting itself.

During a night that was originally scheduled to feature the sequel – and perhaps the conclusion – of the plans to rebuild Ferraro’s, the board instead tackled the comparatively mundane matters of adjusting sign heights and changing building facades. The suspense – and audience – that had packed the same room two weeks earlier was glaringly absent.

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On July 18, the regarding the rebuilding of the storied Italian restaurant and was introduced to the group’s plans to construct a three-story dining establishment on Ferraro’s downtown property. But after two witnesses testified, the hearing was delayed until August 1 in order to allow the board to “clarify [the] new information” that arose during a meeting that became, at times, disorganized and contentious.

Two weeks hasn’t provided much clarification, and Monday night it was revealed that Ferraro’s has decided to scrap the plans it presented to the board on July 18 and reconsider the design of its new building.

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While board chairman Vince Wilt did not speak in great detail about Ferraro’s specific plans, he suggested to Patch after Monday’s meeting that the changes the group planned to make were significant enough that it was no longer practical for them to have the updated designs ready for review by last night. Instead, Ferraro’s submitted its notice to the board that it would need additional time to prepare a new plan. The Ferraro application, PB 11-06(V), will not be heard before the board until a special meeting on August 18, according to an announcement made by Wilt Monday night. 

At the July meeting, Palmiro Ferraro Inc. revealed plans to build a three-story restaurant on Lots 2 and 3 of its property at 14 Elm Street. Its previous one-story restaurant, which had been in operation since 1969, was destroyed in a on May 5. About 60 people attended that meeting. Most appeared to be members or supporters of the Ferraro team, while a vocal minority aggressively questioned the group’s plans. Ferraro’s attorney, Richard Elbert, called two of the group’s three witnesses to testify, including the architect who helped draw up the three-story design. The hearing was delayed after more than two hours of testimony and audience feedback, before Elbert could call his final witness.

Monday night offered the opposite scene, as the board efficiently worked through a small agenda in about 20 minutes before less than a handful of residents in attendance. The one matter heard before the board – ACL Real Estate’s application for the installation of two signs on its property – was approved after light questioning from board members.

But the discussion swirling around the Ferraro property is likely to build until the meeting on August 18, where the next chapter of the legacy of the popular downtown restaurant will become more clear. The turnout at the July meeting and the sentiment reflected in online message boards suggests that the majority of the public supports a quick approval of Ferraro’s plans to rebuild, with many citing the restaurant’s standing as a pillar of the downtown community and the family’s philanthropic history in the town as reasons to usher in the construction of whatever the group desires to build.

In July, Ferraro’s appeared before the board to apply for three variances from the Land Use Ordinance, including matters dealing with off-street parking spaces, sign height requirements and rear-yard setback space. But a set of issues that were largely deemed irrelevant for a planning board meeting perhaps factored into the group’s decision to restart its planning process.  

Several residents questioned the degree to which the designs presented by Ferraro’s would comply with a variety of liquor regulations in the town code. For example, Sec. 4.7 of the town code requires that at least 75 percent of the licensed premises serving liquor be on the ground floor directly accessible from the street. The plans for a three-story restaurant introduced by Ferraro’s included occupancy of up to 272, though the ground floor would fit only 104, according to testimony by its architect.

Additionally, Ferraro’s drew criticism regarding the degree to which a three-story restaurant would fit in with the traditional look and feel of downtown Westfield. One resident questioned the group’s architect over the type of “traditional” décor that would be used for the new restaurant. At last Monday night’s meeting of the Historical Preservation Commission, several of the group’s members expressed disappointment over being left out of Ferraro’s plans on how to design the new version of its storied restaurant, particularly because they said the Ferraro property lies within 200 feet of a historic sight – the firehouse.

It is unclear whether the plans that Ferraro’s is scheduled to introduce on August 18 will address these concerns. 

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