Preliminary plans for a proposed Chase Bank branch at the intersection of Atwood and Phenix avenues were heard during a site visit by city officials on June 26, while a set of measures needed to clear the way for the project are on track to be heard by the Planning Commission as early as September.

The property in question includes frontage on Phenix, Atwood and Webber avenues as well as Larch Street. As part of the proposal, Larch Street would be abandoned and existing homes fronting on the street would be razed.

Jason Pezzullo, the city’s planning director, said four or five homes are involved. He said the bank branch’s developer has reached an agreement with owners of each home.

“They’ve all signed agreements that if it goes forward, the houses will be razed,” he said.

That would allow for the creation of a nearly 47,000-square-foot lot fronting on Atwood Avenue. Pezzullo said the planned bank branch would measure roughly 35,000 square feet.

In addition to the abandonment of Larch Street, the project would require an amendment to the future land use map in the city’s Comprehensive Plan to give the site a highway commercial designation. The map currently provides for commercial and residential designations at the location.

The zoning for the parcels involved would also need to be amended to C-3, or general business.

Pezzullo said he anticipates a formal application for the project will be submitted to planning officials in August at the earliest. He noted that the project is not considered a major land development and would be subject to development plan review rather than master plan review.

The three required prerequisite elements – the road abandonment, map amendment and zoning change – will be compiled separately and submitted for the Planning Commission’s consideration and recommendation. All three elements would then be subject to City Council approval.

“Any kind of action … would be contingent on receiving those three things from the City Council,” Pezzullo said.

The June 26 site visit drew some neighbors who expressed opposition to the project, Pezzullo said. Concerns raised include traffic, the effect on property values, the presence of a dumpster at the site and the planned inclusion of two drive-up ATMs at the branch.

Pezzullo said the site visit is the third of its kind that the Planning Commission has conducted this year. He said a direct mailer was sent to all abutters within a 400-foot radius.

The City Council also posted the site visit as a meeting and two members were in attendance.

“It was a good turnout from the neighborhood … This was really done to get everybody on the same page early on,” Pezzullo said.

Ward 5 Councilman Chris Paplauskas, who attended the site visit and represents the area, said he is listening to neighbors’ concerns during the project’s earliest stages. Some form of development at the site in question would be a boon to the area, he said, but more information is needed regarding Chase Bank’s proposal.

“I want responsible economic development,” he said.

Pezzullo said the proposed bank branch is part of a broader expansion into the state on the part of Chase Bank.

“Chase is making a push into this region … They’re going to want to have the best presentations possible,” he said.