Local Landmark - Joe Wong's Chinese Restaurant - To Be Rebuilt [with video]
Joe Wong's Chinese Restaurant, formerly located at the Four Corners, a large family restaurant offering 'good food cheap', is being resurrected on the same site in more upscale form.
The former restaurant was something of a local landmark, attracting diners from a wide area at a time when there were many fewer dining options available. In particular the 'Scorpion Bowl' a sweet but potent rum-based punch served with straws for four people is fondly remembered by a dedicated segment of the local population.
The former restaurant was demolished several years ago to make way for an expanded intersection with traffic lights at the Four Corners. At that time Mr. Wong planned a larger commercial complex for the site. But, the economic downturn caused him to revisit the plan, resulting in a more modest proposal.
The original plan was approved for a 17,000 sq. ft. build out that has since been reduced to the current proposal for less than 7,000 sq. ft. of building.
Representatives for Joe Wong and Nam Hang LLC outlined their proposal to the Planning Board reflecting the change from the first plan submitted. Jesse Johnson, an engineer with David Ross Associates, pointed out to the Board that the first plan included four different commercial users and had received approval from town boards. The new proposal is for the Chinese restaurant and one other building only.
Planner Scott Wilson said he felt that this was generally a far superior plan for the site than what has been submitted before. Colleague Carolyn Perkins said she appreciated the fact that the Nam Hang team took the Planning Board's comments and incorporated them into the plan. Member Russ Burke termed the submission a "vast Improvement" noting that the buildings were now closer to the street.
The team's architect Jonathan Crocker described a one-story restaurant based on traditional New England style, with gabled roofs and clapboards, and a screen for the heating and ventilation systems. There will also be an outdoor patio.
Johnson explained that the building will be set back 11 feet from the right-of-way; that parking was moved from the side to the back of the building and that the sewer was moved out from under paved surface. The restaurant will hold 102 seats and the anticipated coffee shop a potential 20 seats.
He addressed the issue of the municipal sewer that was approved at Spring Town Meeting, and said, "We will have to look at the timing.
This is planned to be built right now." The Mass. Department of Transportation will re-approve the permit for the cuts, and the drainage will be Low Impact Development (LID) toward the back of the site, and there will be three rain gardens for recharge of storm water.
The town's Peer Review Engineer Tim McGivern from Nitsch Engineering asked about amount of plantings that were planned for the site, efforts to minimize cut through traffic, hours of operation and delivery times, location of snow storage; bicycle and pedestrian access adequacy and a list of any chemicals planned for use as the site is in a Water Resource Protection District.
Chairman George Barringer echoed his Board's approval of the changes to the plan. He recommended and the Board voted to continue the public hearing to July 9 at 8:30 p.m.
