A three-block stretch of East Milton Avenue from the train station to City Hall would benefit from mixed-use developments, and the city should explore increasing permitted height on some parcels, according to the downtown strategic plan.

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Editor’s note: This is the 12th part in an ongoing series about the 94-page downtown strategic vision plan that was unanimously adopted by the Planning Board during a special meeting on Feb. 8 and presented to City Council on Feb. 14. This post focuses on three of the 14 opportunity sites identified in the report along East Milton Avenue.

The strategic plan identified three “opportunity sites” along East Milton Avenue between the train station and City Hall.

East Milton Avenue properties

There are four lots along East Milton Avenue across from the train station to the corner of Fulton Street that are “visible to visitors and contributes to a gateway into the city,” according to the strategic plan.

Lots 1-4 on Block 311 are currently are occupied by two-story mixed-use buildings. It may benefit from redevelopment and should be considered for a mixed-used development, according to the strategic plan, which also recommends that the city consider increasing the maximum permitted height due to its proximity to the station.

Mangos site and adjacent properties

The property is a former restaurant with a surface parking lot nearly across the street from Train Station Plaza, just south of the intersection of East Milton Avenue and Irving Street.

The site is currently vacant and presents an opportunity for redevelopment that would “enhance the existing gateway created by Train Station Plaza, and the Watt Hotel across the street.”  The plan suggests the city consider expanding the project area to increase street frontage and create a more comprehensive redevelopment of the area.

Redevelopment of this area should consist of mixed-use development with storefronts on the ground floor and either residential, offices, or a combination on upper floors. In 2016, a developer proposed a concept for a five-story, 88-unit apartment complex at the former Mangos site that never panned out.

The properties are already in the CBD-2 Subdistrict, which permits mixed-use development. Maximum building height in this area is 4 stories and 50 feet is permitted for properties less than 20,000 square feet, and 6 stories and 75 feet for larger properties. On its own, the Mangos site is about 20,000 square feet, according to the plan.

The city should “explore increasing permitted height in this area to create balance at this intersection” and explore including a public plaza component in front of the project to “provide symmetry” to Train Station Plaza across the street and increase public space downtown.

Main Street and East Milton Avenue properties

Located across from City Hall Plaza, Block 326 currently is occupied by one- and two-story buildings oriented toward Main Street, with surfacing parking in the rear.  It’s a gateway into downtown for visitors traveling north on Main Street or east and west along East Milton Avenue and would benefit from redevelopment with a mix-used development, according to the strategic plan.

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