Self-storage facility planned for cleared lot on Valley Road. What to know.
MIDDLETOWN — A new storage facility — similar to the one at 909 Aquidneck Ave. — could be built on Valley Road.
The owners of Middletown Self Storage are proposing to construct a 17,000-square-foot building on a vacant lot just north of the police station and to the south of a plaza that houses Eye Vision Health Center.
A concept review of the project went before the Planning Board on Sept. 14 and, outside of commenting on the building’s appearance, its members generally agreed this was a good use of the property.
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Michael Russell of LDEC Engineering told the Planning Board the property is just over 1.5 acres and slopes down away from Valley Road. The building will have two stories when viewed from the street and a third, bottom-level story toward the back.
The building, situated in a general business district and traffic sensitive zone, will require a special-use permit from Zoning Board of Review, as well as state permitting from the state Department of Environmental Management and the state Department of Transportation.
Russell told the Planning Board those agencies are backlogged, “so it’s going to be some time before we’re back before you.” He said the presented proposal is a “look from 20,000 feet” and called it a "work in progress.”
Longtime Planning Board member Art Weber said he would “generally support it,” and the only negative feedback came in regards to the building itself, notably the colors.
“Personally, I think the building looks ugly,” board member Betty Jane Owen said. “Normally I’m not quite so blunt.”
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Board Chair Paul Croce said he’d like the building to look a little more “New England-y,” and it was pointed out there are residential properties in the immediate area.
This article originally appeared on Newport Daily News: Middletown Self Storage plans new facility on Valley Road
