Burlington Board of Health Approves Coffee Restaurant Permit at Contaminated Turnpike Site

BURLINGTON -- April 8, 2025, Burlington Board of Health unanimously approves restaurant permit at a contaminated Middlesex Turnpike site and reorganizes its leadership. The board voted 5-0 to grant a special permit to Crackt Kitchen Coffee to construct and operate a 2,500-square-foot restaurant at Zero Middlesex Turnpike, a parcel within an active MCP groundwater remediation area that has been under cleanup since the 1980s. Environmental engineer Christine Mathis told the board construction would not disturb contaminated soils, which are confined to groundwater at depth, and that stormwater infrastructure was already in place from the adjacent Lifetime Living project. The permit carries 15 conditions, including a mandatory vapor barrier, Licensed Site Professional reporting, and a requirement to notify the board of any site or environmental changes. In a separate 5-0 vote, the board elected Gail DeMauri as its new chair and Mary Beth Welch as vice chair, with outgoing chair Dr. Ed Weiner noting that both he and DeMauri had just been re-elected to the board for three more years.