By MARK SARDELLA
WAKEFIELD — A new cafe/bakery will be coming to Greenwood at 1179 Main St., in the same building on the corner of Hanson Street where the postal annex is located. The post office will stay and the café will be located in the other side of the building, which is currently unoccupied.
The owners of the property, Joe and Sarah Torretta, owned D’Amici’s Bakery when it was on New Salem Street and currently own several other food establishments in surrounding towns. The proposed Greenwood eatery would have a different menu and a different name: “Cibo” (pronounced “Cheebo”).
The Torrettas last night received the needed Special Permit and variances from the Zoning Board of Appeals that will allow them to go forward with their plans to open the new establishment. The plans have gone through several hearings before the ZBA as various issues, including parking and signage were worked out.
The Torrettas have said that they would like to start out as a coffee/sandwich shop/bakery open for breakfast and lunch and subsequently open for dinner. They said that the menu would be limited and the only ovens used would be convection ovens.
Representing the Torrettas, attorney Michael McCarthy presented revised plans addressing areas of concern that had come up at previous hearings.
The revised plans showed a reconfigured exit area on Main Street with a proposed crosswalk and bollards. McCarthy also presented renderings that he said showed that rooftop mechanical units would not be visible from the street. The plans also included signage and lighting details.
McCarthy said that the plans also showed the elimination of one parking space as requested to enhance sightlines and safety within the parking lot.
McCarthy also noted that with 18 total parking spaces in the lot, the property was very close to meeting the off-street parking requirement of 18.5 spaces. He pointed out that few other restaurants or businesses on Main Street in the downtown or in Greenwood come close to meeting the required parking. The ZBA typically grants relief from the parking requirements where little or no off-street parking is available.
Joseph Torretta said that the new eatery would open every day at 7 a.m. Closing would be at 8 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, he said, and 10 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
Paul Mellor of 1198 Main St. lives across the street from the proposed eatery and has been speaking against the project at previous hearings. Last night he said that Main Street narrows in this area and has been the site of numerous accidents. He was concerned about additional activity and street parking at the location, especially late at night, noting that his bedroom windows face Main Street. He has also expressed concern over the owners’ plans to seek a beer and wine license.
But board members noted that the proposed hours had been cut back to an earlier closing from the originally proposed 11 p.m. They also noted that Cibo will have more off-street parking than most other restaurants in Greenwood.
McCarthy pointed out that the site was in the business district and has always been a business operation.
The ZBA granted a Special Permit that will allow a drive-up window, a variance for parking and a finding that the continuation of the non-conforming use will not be detrimental to the neighborhood.
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The ZBA also granted relief that will allow builder Paul DiBiase to redevelop a run-down property at 14 Nahant St. and construct two duplex homes on the site.
The board approved DiBiase’s request for a Special Permit to allow a driveway wider than 20 feet and a variance allowing the driveway to serve more than one lot. Another variance addressed frontage and lot width, while still another allowed a reduced rear setback on one of the lots.
The ZBA attached to its decision a list of 11 conditions addressing maintenance of the drainage systems, snow removal, signage, color and types of build materials to be used and parking.
There was a specific prohibition against resident or visitor parking on adjacent properties, especially the abutting business plaza at 602 Main St. In response to concerns over potential illegal parking expressed by the owners of the plaza, a condition requires DiBiase to provide and install “No Parking Tow Zone” signs on the business plaza property.
Approval from the Planning Board for the project is still pending but the ZBA and the Planning Board have been coordinating their respective roles with regard to the project and Planning Board chairman Matthew Lowry was in attendance at last night’s hearing.
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A number of other hearings scheduled for last night were postponed and continued to the board’s March 11 meeting, including a hearing on the operations and maintenance plan for the Brightview Senior Living facility proposed on Crescent Street.
Also continued to March 11 was a hearing on signage for 376-378 Main St., the future site of a Dollar Tree store.
