Jan. 12, 2021—The Planning Board critiqued and advised on a renovation proposal from Formulatrix during a site plan review for expansion of its facility at 5-7 Deangelo Drive.
Formulatrix is a Bedford-based biotech company working with technologies like protein crystallization and liquid handling. The facility at 5-7 Deangelo Drive is one of two buildings Formulatrix operates in Bedford; the other is at 10 Deangelo Drive.
The plans for the building will be a “gut renovation,” as architect John Wilde put it. However, the footprint of the building will not increase by much, with small additions planned for the front and right side. Parking and landscaped areas will be redone as well.
In response to comments from the Board of Health and the Department of Public Works, civil engineer Steve Sawyer confirmed that soil tests provided no cause for concern. Sawyer also addressed an issue with the plan for remapping parking.
Planning Board Member Shawn Hanegan noted that the site appeared to connect to the Minuteman Bikeway and the plans presented seemed to show the access blocked by parking.
Presenters for Formulatrix made it clear that there was no bike path access due to a tree and shrub line that separates the trail from the property. They are, however, interested in creating access to the path from their property.
Planning Board member Amy Lloyd lamented the need to remove mature oak trees from the front of the lot but agreed that they would need to be cut to make space for the renovations.
Lloyd also expressed concern at rain gardens marked on the plan, saying they would likely turn into “weed-filled depressions in the ground, that tend to collect blown garbage and sand.” Additionally, she noticed that snow storage was not marked on the current plans.
The Planning Board will look over a revised proposal from Formulatrix at their session on Jan. 26.
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