Seekonk Planning Board weighs Stone Ridge subdivision as Walker Street residents cite traffic dangers

SEEKONK -- October 13, 2015, Seekonk Planning Board hears sharp opposition to proposed 11-lot Stone Ridge subdivision on Walker Street. Attorney Eric Bransky, representing applicant Steve Najis, told the board Tuesday that the 8.5-acre parcel off Walker Street, to be served by two new hammerhead-terminated roads, Stone Ridge Drive and Brady Lane, with homes starting at $500,000 and a minimum of 2,500 square feet, meets all zoning and subdivision standards, and offered to fund a traffic study of the Newman Avenue-Walker Street intersection as a condition of approval. At least six residents spoke in opposition, with Ross McKendrick of 32 Walker Street calling the intersection "not designed to be a safe intersection" and Dave Bowden of 170 Walker Street warning that a state speed study would likely raise, not lower, the posted limit. Town Planner John Orban noted that the 90-day statutory decision deadline falls on November 24, 2015, and member Michael Burke raised the possibility of requiring a social and environmental impact study under Section 5.6.2-6.1 of the town's subdivision regulations. The board recessed to allow residents to examine the plan; no vote on the application was recorded before the broadcast ended.