Peabody Developments

[stick n move]

“Peabody's Northshore Mall May Add Residences to its Lineup”



“City administrators in Peabody are working hard to address the city's shortage of housing, both affordable and market rate, especially in areas where land and storefronts remain under-utilized or vacant. The Northshore Mall in Peabody is considering adding a mix of retail and commercial spaces to its lineup.”


https://wikirealty.com/discussion/ma/peabodys-northshore-mall-may-add-residences-to-its-lineup/?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social_sharing&utm_campaign=broadcast

 

[jklo]

Kind of like the Novelle at Natick Mall. Can't tell how popular that is, but I could see the appeal.

Too far to walk to the Salem CR stop but wouldn't be terrible from a driving or bus standpoint.

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

Kind of like the Novelle at Natick Mall. Can't tell how popular that is, but I could see the appeal.

Too far to walk to the Salem CR stop but wouldn't be terrible from a driving or bus standpoint.

CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...
CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...
CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...
CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...
CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...

Ram it through on the existing 1¾-mile branch to Peabody Square as the implementation of Urban Rail intra-128 frequencies on the Eastern Route. Short length, small number of bridges/culverts to upgrade, and only 2 platforms (Salem Station side platform + Railroad Ave., Peabody) keeps the costs low and construction timetable short. While the existing 3-track (formerly 4) North St. freight yard adjacent to Salem Station provides an easy-grab layover yard for the service. Institute a shuttle bus from the Mall to the Square for the interim.

Pan Am freight storage for its Peabody local can be re-accommodated 2 ways: (1) repairing some of the out-of-service portion of the South Peabody Branch up to the foot of the Summit Ave. grade crossing and installing a passing siding to runaround the locomotive when they're shoving cars around (also keeps them from constantly tying up the Square grade crossings 3 afternoons a week shunting a few cars at a time back and forth between North St. and Rousselot Gelatin). (2) inserting a new crossover from the Eastern Route south portal incline into Castle Hill Yard (furthest track on Street View link) so they can turn out quickly to park their trains between Boston-Salem trips rather than doing a cumbersome backup move into the yard.

When this easy part is figured out, then start planning Phase II 1.2 miles to the Mall along the former South Middleton Branch ROW (currently owned by Peabody Municipal Light, who have banned any trail use of their ROW but long ago gave endorsement of commuter rail usage). Not a big deal since the largest abutter is Peabody Light's HQ; the most opposition there'd be is on the Mall side of 128 where the layover yard would fit between the residences of Proctor Circle & Essex Green Lane out to the Lowell St./Prospect St. intersection (on-alignment to allow future +1 extension to West Peabody @ I-95/US 1 if ever desired). But since new track with fresh EIS'ing is going to be more expensive than active-track rehab, it's probably best off to split it from 1 moderate-size project into 2 small ones for expediency's sake.


The TOD potential shoots through the frickin' moon if you get Urban Rail to Salem...to the Square...and/or to the Mall. If for no other reason than area buses can run much, much more frequently and begin de-sprawling/re-densifying everything out to Liberty Tree Mall, Danversport, and US 1 in West Peabody. This area's already becoming a hotbed of hospitals and medical offices. Diversify that mix with direct transit frequencies as a catalyst and the whole thing could blow up mega.

 

[tysmith95]

CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...
CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...
CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...
CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...
CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...CR to Peabody...

Ram it through on the existing 1¾-mile branch to Peabody Square as the implementation of Urban Rail intra-128 frequencies on the Eastern Route. Short length, small number of bridges/culverts to upgrade, and only 2 platforms (Salem Station side platform + Railroad Ave., Peabody) keeps the costs low and construction timetable short. While the existing 3-track (formerly 4) North St. freight yard adjacent to Salem Station provides an easy-grab layover yard for the service. Institute a shuttle bus from the Mall to the Square for the interim.

Pan Am freight storage for its Peabody local can be re-accommodated 2 ways: (1) repairing some of the out-of-service portion of the South Peabody Branch up to the foot of the Summit Ave. grade crossing and installing a passing siding to runaround the locomotive when they're shoving cars around (also keeps them from constantly tying up the Square grade crossings 3 afternoons a week shunting a few cars at a time back and forth between North St. and Rousselot Gelatin). (2) inserting a new crossover from the Eastern Route south portal incline into Castle Hill Yard (furthest track on Street View link) so they can turn out quickly to park their trains between Boston-Salem trips rather than doing a cumbersome backup move into the yard.

When this easy part is figured out, then start planning Phase II 1.2 miles to the Mall along the former South Middleton Branch ROW (currently owned by Peabody Municipal Light, who have banned any trail use of their ROW but long ago gave endorsement of commuter rail usage). Not a big deal since the largest abutter is Peabody Light's HQ; the most opposition there'd be is on the Mall side of 128 where the layover yard would fit between the residences of Proctor Circle & Essex Green Lane out to the Lowell St./Prospect St. intersection (on-alignment to allow future +1 extension to West Peabody @ I-95/US 1 if ever desired). But since new track with fresh EIS'ing is going to be more expensive than active-track rehab, it's probably best off to split it from 1 moderate-size project into 2 small ones for expediency's sake.


The TOD potential shoots through the frickin' moon if you get Urban Rail to Salem...to the Square...and/or to the Mall. If for no other reason than area buses can run much, much more frequently and begin de-sprawling/re-densifying everything out to Liberty Tree Mall, Danversport, and US 1 in West Peabody. This area's already becoming a hotbed of hospitals and medical offices. Diversify that mix with direct transit frequencies as a catalyst and the whole thing could blow up mega.

One positive to that would be increasing frequencies to Salem, Swampscott, Lynn, and Cheslea.

Currently Salem/Peabody are studying a trolley service from Peabody Square to Salem Station. Sure that would be nice, but providing a one seat ride to Boston would definitively attract more ridership.

It's the type of route that would be perfect for EMUs or DMUs.

F-Line, is there enough space to add a third passing CR track in-between Swampscott and Cheslea? Would make it easier to allow continued express trains while new frequent service is added from Peabody.

 

[Shepard]

What is Peabody like?

 

[tysmith95]

What is Peabody like?

Lots of traffic, middle class, fairly dense.

A good comparison would be Norwood.

At 3100 people per square mile it's denser than Framingham or Norwood, but less dense than Waltham.

The eastern part of Peabody, near Peabody Square, is pretty Urban. Near the highway is your 128 like development, plus route 1. Then you've got a suburban West Peabody.

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

One positive to that would be increasing frequencies to Salem, Swampscott, Lynn, and Cheslea.

Currently Salem/Peabody are studying a trolley service from Peabody Square to Salem Station. Sure that would be nice, but providing a one seat ride to Boston would definitively attract more ridership.

It's the type of route that would be perfect for EMUs or DMUs.

F-Line, is there enough space to add a third passing CR track in-between Swampscott and Cheslea? Would make it easier to allow continued express trains while new frequent service is added from Peabody.

The trolley study is lighting money on fire. They can't use RiverLINE-like DLRV's under time separation. The branch has freights 3 afternoons per week (probably 5 within a few years as Rousselot is expanding).


While a perfect xMU route, it's also one that could get faster starts running push-pull. The upcoming order of 200 bi-levels to replace all the single-levels leaves repurposement options for the 50+ Pullman coaches, which are the only flats not past end-of-life. Keep those and a dozen-plus of the 25 Bombardier cab cars to assemble into 4-car all-flats sets and you've got your Urban Rail starter fleet. Metro North is about to order a complete locomotive replacement for its West-of-Hudson services, freeing up their recent-rehab F40PH-3C (same emissions-controlled engine spec as our ongoing F40 rebuilds) for re-sale as supplemental power. It's old/borrowed, but good enough a starter fleet to span 10 years and outlast the current DMU market downturn.


You don't need any passing tracks...just whacking some speed restrictions and possibly adding crossovers. The mainline has lots of capacity.

 

[stellarfun]

The problem is that people who live in downtown Peabody don't commute to Boston, and don't earn Boston salaries. If one were to extend the line toward the North Shore mall, you end short of it because of Rte 128 and the access road to the mall.

Downtown Peabody is less than desirable from a housing standpoint because the semi-urbanization of South Peabody and West Peabody is sending rainwater runoff into downtown Peabody with disturbing frequency.

This is Peabody Square, at the railroad spur to South Peabody, the photographer positioned near City Hall and the Central Fire Station, and looking east toward Salem.

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

The problem is that people who live in downtown Peabody don't commute to Boston, and don't earn Boston salaries. If one were to extend the line toward the North Shore mall, you end short of it because of Rte 128 and the access road to the mall.

Downtown Peabody is less than desirable from a housing standpoint because the semi-urbanization of South Peabody and West Peabody is sending rainwater runoff into downtown Peabody with disturbing frequency.

This is Peabody Square, at the railroad spur to South Peabody, the photographer positioned near City Hall and the Central Fire Station, and looking east toward Salem.

The Mall extension was studied in the 2004 North Shore Transit Improvements study and includes diagrams of all scope-of-work. They would bridge 128 with a 2-track span to stop right at the Mall, and the layover yard would be on the South Middleton Branch ROW on the west side of the 128 overpass. Only undecided left open to interpretation is whether the Mall platform was going to curve into the complex for proximity or stay bolted to the ROW for easier land acquisition and easier future extension if needed (in which case driveway/path improvements would help knit the Mall + Lahey into the further-separated platform. If I had to guess, staying on-ROW is the more lickety-split way of getting it done despite less favorable # of footsteps to the platform.


Flood mitigation to the active branch east of the Square is part of the proposed culvert upgrades for the extension.


EDIT:

Here are the renders from the North Shore Transit Improvements Study. Note that the Danversport option depicted as a build Alternative is no longer in-play, as Danvers has since opted for a rail trail on the Danvers Branch.
Salem Station to Peabody Square: https://cdn.mbta.com/uploadedFiles/...t_Improvements/Figure_3_9_Peabody_11x17_1.pdf
Peabody Square to North Shore Mall: https://cdn.mbta.com/uploadedFiles/...t_Improvements/Figure_3_9_Peabody_11x17_2.pdf

As previously described, they just sort of shot a placeholder on those Mall platforms that curve way into the parking lot. They've got a better shot staying on-ROW and improving the driveway access, because it doesn't look today like there's an unbroken trajectory in.

 

[tysmith95]

^ROW looks like it's already taken in Peabody Square. That would need some eminent domain to work past Peabody Square (for the routing to the North Shore Mall).

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

^ROW looks like it's already taken in Peabody Square. That would need some eminent domain to work past Peabody Square (for the routing to the North Shore Mall).

It's not actually taken. The Danvers Branch is still intact and connected to the Peabody Branch at the switch for serving the last freight customer off Willard St. before the river, and freights did rumble through the Dunkies parking lot to cross Central St. It was even end-to-end double-track at one point, though for such a short branch you'd really only need passing sidings at extant North St. Yard in Salem and before the North Shore Mall stop crossing the 128 overpass to hit an Urban Rail frequency target.

The ROW for the South Middleton Branch where it split off from the Danvers Branch is traced by the Peabody Municipal Light power lines (the wires up top with the "Chinese star" brackets) that start behind the Roast Beef restaurant in the Square. Everything that's on the straight line traced by those telephone poles is built on a power company easement that's revokable. So that means the Square station siting most easily goes on the rear parking strip of the Railroad Ave. municipal lot, and bisects the middle of the other lot spanning Sawyer St.-Crownshield St. (probably with the Sawyer grade crossing closed). They're muni lots for a reason; the power company is city-owned.

 

[stellarfun]

The ROW is still there. However, after crossing 128 on the mall side, where I assume a viaduct would carry tracks up to the mall station, Lahey decided a clinic wasn't enough, and expanded. I believe all these buildings are medical-related.

https://goo.gl/maps/CimTQT5kA51HwRHs8

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

The ROW is still there. However, after crossing 128 on the mall side, where I assume a viaduct would carry tracks up to the mall station, Lahey decided a clinic wasn't enough, and expanded. I believe all these buildings are medical-related.

https://goo.gl/maps/CimTQT5kA51HwRHs8

As I said, I'm not sure those platform options depicted on the linked renders were any more than dart throws to begin with. The paths all obstructions on them in 2005, too. One of them even required two 128 bridges, which was nuts. And all had nearly impossible curves. It was never going to happen that way.

Most likely you'll get. . .

• A platform on the ROW itself just off the 128 overpass facing the back of the Lahey Lab.
• Layover yard as depicted by the official render: on the ROW terminating at the Prospect/Lowell Sts. intersection. Built with no more than 3-4 tracks owing to the very short-distance schedule, so should fit slim-profile on the ROW.
• Access road extension of Essex Center Dr. to Essex Green Ln. Note how both roads rump out with cuts for exactly this sort of connection.
• Independence Greenway trail reworked next to the layover yard. And possibly with a trail berth built onto the 128 overpass so it can cross the highway to Northshore Rd. and have future options for extending to the Square along the north side (opposite ROW) of Proctor Brook.
• Negotiations with Lahey to barter some parking close to the station in exchange for garage-building fun bux.
• Wayfinding improvements along Essex Center to the Mall, negotiations with the Mall about running a quickie van shuttle in a circuit around the mall and to/from the station.

Not only is all that doable, it's almost certainly cheaper than attempting any variation of one of those curved dart-throws into the gut of the Mall.