AMHERST — An East Amherst village center building that once housed the long-running Michael’s Billiards could be converted into 12 efficiency apartments for clients of a social service agency serving western Massachusetts.
The Planning Board is in the midst of doing a site plan review for an application from the Northampton-based nonprofit ServiceNet, which also serves Franklin County, for converting 12-20 Belchertown Road into housing and office space for staff members.
Site improvements proposed by the agency include repaving and restriping the existing parking lot, removing a building entrance and installing new pedestrian walkways. Inside, the space used as a restaurant and fitness studio will be turned into the apartments and office.
Planning Director Christine Brestrup said the project is exempt from many zoning regulations since the proposal is for a nonprofit use allowed under state law. The town can only place modest restrictions on what takes place at the property.
“There is a limited number of things you can do to restrict this project,” Brestrup said.
Though no decision was made at the board’s Dec. 7 meeting, with the hearing continuing on Jan. 4 pending Conservation Commission review due to proximity to a stream, planners appeared to largely favor the project.
Board member Janet McGowan wrote in her comments prior to the meeting that the proposal “looks like a strong project to fill in a missing need,” but that it would be appropriate to let those living at the neighboring property, College Inn Apartments at 10 Belchertown Road, know about the new use.
Some of the discussion centered on whether the project will need as much parking as its commercial tenants have and if more green space could be created.
“I think we were unanimous in our feeling that the applicant may not need all these parking spaces and we were thinking it might be less expensive if repaving of the whole site was not necessary,” Planning Board member Bruce Coldham said.
Ryan Nelson, an engineer with R. Levesque Associates of Westfield, said the feeling has been that with those living on site possibly using van drop-offs, maintaining the pavement would be wise.
ServiceNet will be buying the property from a limited liability company managed by Annie and Cari Lo of Hadley. Cari Lo was the last owner of Michael’s Billiards, which closed in 2018.
The most recent tenants of the building were North Hot Pot restaurant, which opened in 2019 and closed in the midst of the pandemic, and The Aerobics and Fitness Studio, which recently relocated to Route 9 in Hadley.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.