How's mics work? Yeah. You can go
Gonna do a quick mic check while we're setting up.
We're ready. Yeah. This one.
That's why we do a need to log. We do a check.
We need some tech support. Oh, wait a minute.
These two? Yes. These two. Okay. Think Actually, other side.
Yeah. This one. I don't have. I know. JV.
Oh, yeah. There we go. Alright. Wonderful.
Tell me when I'm ready. I'll meet you up. Alright. Good afternoon. We will call this meeting of the city plan commission to order.
Today is Tuesday, 10/21/2025. It is 04:46PM. Let's start off with a roll call starting with Noel.
Charlotte Lipsched. Viv McKenna. Sharon Garner, legal counsel.
Going on, manager of our DVD staff.
And I'm Michael Gadsdaco, chair. We have the minutes from the 09/16/2025 meeting have been circulated prior to this meeting. Hope you hopefully, you all have had a chance to review them. Right now, we'll take edits, suggestions, or, if none, an motion for approval of the minutes as drafted.
Item number six, I was I recused myself, but it's not noted.
That was the lady by Westminster. No. The other one. Oh, okay. At the end of the meeting, the last one.
Alright. Yep. I'll note that.
Okay. Alright. Lovely. We will With that, anyone else have any other comments or a motion to approve
motion to approve as modified.
Alright. We have a motion. We have a second. I'll second. Alright.
All in favor of approving as modified, say aye. Aye. All opposed? Any abstentions? The minutes passed.
to you, Bob. Director's report. Okay.
As you see on the agenda tonight, we have some, we have a proposed ordinance for, design standards, and, this is the first item that is what we call phase two of the zoning changes following adoption of the comprehensive plan. You can look forward to additional proposals in the coming months. We're working on some changes related to amendments to state law that happened. We've got to update our development review regulations based on state law. We have potentially some some language, for updates on student housing.
So there's a there's a bunch of different things that that we're working on in parallel. So, just be ready for that to come your way.
Sounds good. We are we are ready for all of those exciting updates. Now, we will start with our agenda at this time, but there has been a request to hear the agenda item number two first and agenda item number one second. So we are going to start with, agenda item number two, which
case number 25Dash060MA. It's 434 Mount Pleasant Ave. The applicant is the city of Providence, and this is a major land development project.
Okay. And as the development team make their way up to the mic, Cheryon, can you give a brief introduction for this? Sure.
Commissioners, this is a request that you combine master and preliminary plan approval for the construction of the southern wing of the Mount Pleasant High School. So the southern wing of the building will be demolished and Alright. Thank you. So the southern wing of the building will be demolished, and the applicant will, in its place, will be creating an addition that will be set a little bit back from the front of the building. In in that addition, they will be providing an auditorium with classroom space as well as a gymnasium that will connect to the central portion of the building.
So this amounts to approximately 41,700 square feet of new space. And there as as we said, they are requesting to combine master and preliminary plan approval and also requesting a waiver from submission of state approvals at the preliminary plan stage. And with their presentation, they also will be talking about the design of the building, traffic, landscaping, and other things that you typically hear about during the land development presentation.
Question question to the team. Are you do you do you plan to project your own images onto the screen, or would you like me to bring up the presentation that you submitted?
And one other note to make sure, the microphone is on and everyone who is speaking speaks into it. We're not only, talking to everyone in this room. We're talking in the virtual room, on the interwebs as well.
K. Thank thank you, miss, thank you, mister chair, members of the commission. My name is Christopher Menahan with West Group Law. We're here tonight, on behalf of the city of Providence for, a a major, LDP for the Mount Pleasant High School. So as as you'll see, the school is now referred to, as, MPECA, so Mount Pleasant Early College and Career Academy.
So this is Mount Mount Pleasant High School at 434 Mount Pleasant Ave. The the site is is zoned public space. So this is a, by right project, of a, say, public school within that zone. And, as as will be shown and discussed, this is a partial demo and a partial rebuild. So, the existing south wing, will be taken down, and a new, four story wing will go up in its place.
And there will be a lot of changes, to the rest of the building, both interior and exterior. So so tonight, as was mentioned, the city is seeking, to to combine the master plan and the prelim plan stages and to have both approved and also, also seeking a waiver of certain state approvals and city approvals. So specifically, DPW, RIDEM, Narragansett Bay Commission, and the CR, CRMC. And so those, will be delivered at the the permitting stage. And then lastly, that, final plan be delegated to staff.
So I'm joined tonight by, Joseph Desanti of of Downs Construction and Robert Santos of Perkins Leesman on architecture, Matthew Collins of PAR on engineering, and Julie Allen of Agostini Baking Construction.
it I'll turn it over to the team.
Just one point of clarification before you proceed. Is the request, to delay, submission of state approvals until the final plan or till permitting? Because, in my staff report, it talks about final plan, and that's our normal course of business.
