Watertown Planning Board Recommends Approval of Clarendon Street Self-Storage Project

Planning Board · Meeting of August 12, 2026

Watertown Planning Board recommends approval of a five-story self-storage facility and a Target drive-up expansion at its August 12 meeting. The board voted unanimously to recommend conditional approval to the Zoning Board of Appeals for Storage and Distribution Group's proposed 150,000-square-foot, 1,282-unit self-storage building and a 10,000-square-foot ambulance facility at 59 Clarendon Street, also addressed as 60 to 80 Coolidge Avenue. The project, which would replace roughly 41,000 square feet of 1960s industrial buildings, would capture the entire 100-year stormwater event on site and add 28,000 square feet of landscaping to a nearly fully impervious lot.

Transportation engineer Ashlyn Magala of VHB said the facility would generate similar or fewer vehicle trips than the current industrial use, and crash data showed zero incidents at the Coolidge Avenue driveway over five years. The board added conditions requiring soft white halo-lit signage and facade lighting, emergency-only access from Clarendon Street in perpetuity, and trash removal limited to 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Planning Director Gideon Schreiber noted the project is the first in Watertown to trigger the town's 2023 commercial linkage fee ordinance, which applies to new construction over 30,000 square feet.

The board also voted unanimously to recommend approval of Target's 12-stall drive-up pickup expansion at 550 Arsenal Street, noting board discussion of employee pedestrian safety around backing vehicles.

In the full story:

• Background and stakes
• The question before the body
• Substantive content
• The deliberation
• Procedural steps and outcome
• Implications and what is next
• The complete report — 2,844 words

Source: the Planning Board meeting of August 12, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.