Halifax Planning Board orders Starbucks developer to fix ADA sidewalk violations

Planning Board · Meeting of February 5, 2026

Halifax planners unanimously ordered the developer behind the new Starbucks complex at 314 Plymouth Street to submit a written remediation plan before any occupancy permit is considered. The February 5 Planning Board meeting, attended by Chair Tom Milius, member Amy Troop, and member Burt Gaynor by Zoom, acted on a January 26, 2026, letter from review engineer Patrick Brennan of PGB Engineering documenting sidewalk cross slopes as high as 4.8 percent against a 2.0 percent ADA maximum, and a same-day letter from Highway Supervisor Steve Haywood reporting that a detectable warning panel was ripped out by a town snowblower because it was secured only with minimal epoxy. The board's unanimous motion requires Leeds Realty Group to respond to both letters with a plan addressing all ADA and state requirements, drainage, and lighting, on a fixed completion schedule, with the chair authorized to sign the letter.

Milius said he told Leeds representative Reed Blockberger that the board makes no guarantees on a temporary certificate of occupancy: "I find it difficult for me to deal with because you have had all this time."

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Source: the Planning Board meeting of February 5, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.