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HomeMy WebLinkAboutmin of planning brd 2/17/1999I PLANNING BOARD MINUTES ' February 17,1999 Present: H. Thomas French, Jr., Chairman; Marydee Flynn, Clerk; Mark Cook: Bernard J. Dolan; Scott A. Frank; and Kenneth H. Torman. The meeting was called to order at 7:30 p.m. Correspondence ➢ Minutes of February 3, 1999 Mrs. Flynn asked that page 5 of the minutes regarding her question about a request for a zoning change on East Street reflect that Mr. Burke stated he has communicated the Board's concerns to Mr. DeGirolamo. Motion: To approve as amended (Torman- Flynn) 4 -1 with Mr. Dolan not present and Mr. Frank abstaining PASSES ZBA Applications: 1. Application of Charles H. Boehm and Eileen A. Hussey -Boehm for a Variance from Section 4.2.1 of the Zoning By -law - Sideyard Setback — to build a two -car garage at 45 Frederic Lane in an R -I Zone Motion: To send a negative recommendation to the Zoning Board of Appeals because the applicant presents no evidence of a hardship as required by Chapter 40A (Frank- Flynn) 5 -0 with Mr. Dolan not present PASSES 2. Application of Linda Souza of 21 Linden Street for a Variance from Section 4.2.1 of the Zoning By -law — Sideyard Setback — to allow a platform/walkway at 46 -48 King Street in an R -3 Zone Motion: To send a positive recommendation to the Zoning Board of Appeals because there is a hardship to both the owner and the tenants if the owner is not allowed to do the work. (Frank - Flynn) 5 -0 with Mr. Dolan not present PASSES 3. Application of Krishna and Vimala Murthy for a Variance from Section 3.8.1 of the Zoning By -law — Detached Accessory Structure — to construct a 2 car garage at 470 Franklin Street 1.7 feet from the side property line in an R -1 Zone Motion: To send a negative recommendation to the Zoning Board of Appeals because the applicant has not provided evidence to demonstrate that there is no hardship being created on their neighbor and the applicant states that the Variance is necessary because of the unique topography of the lot, but provides no topographical information to support this statement. The Planning Board also notes that the plan provided shows other zoning violations on the property. (Frank- Flynn) 5 -0 with Mr. Dolan not present PASSES I Meeting of February 17, 1999 47 Chauncy Street Continued Public Hearing Robert Luchette presented a rendering of the proposed building for Meineke Muffler. Paul Folkman advised the board that he received a copy of the revised draft decision and suggested he and the board go through the conditions. • Condition 1 — no problem • Condition 2 — Mr. Folkman stated the Town Engineer has no problem with the revised drainage, but has a problem with providing the assurance the Planning Board is requesting. Mr. Folkman said discussion is continuing, but he does not want to be tied to an off -site problem that he can't solve as a condition of the permit. Jay Zola noted that their site has been acting as a detention basin for the area, amounting to private property solving a public problem. He said now that the private property owner wants to develop his land, it shouldn't be their responsibility to take care of the public problem in order to do so. Board members agreed that the problem was not immediately resolvable. • Condition 3 — no problem • Condition 4 — no problem • Condition 5 — Dr. Tonnan suggested that the "should" in the second sentence be changed to "shall." • Condition 6 — no problem • Condition 7 — no problem • Condition 8 — Mr. Folkman said they would like to have the ability to work on Saturday afternoons and suggested they be allowed to work from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Saturdays. Board members agreed to the change. • Condition 9 — no problem • Condition 10 —no problem • Condition 11— no problem • Condition 12 — Mr. Folkman noted the issuance of an occupancy certificate comes under the jurisdiction of the Building Inspector and that the Fire Department and all the various Building Inspectors are currently required to sign off prior to the issuance of an occupancy certificate. A foundation as- built will be required by the Building Department in order to obtain an occupancy certificate. Mr. French said that because of the amount of drainage work being done on this site, he believes it is important that the Planning Department and Town Engineer have as -built plans showing all the pipes under the parking lot and Crocker Street. Mr. Zola noted the finish course of paving would not be done until after occupancy in order to provide sufficient time for settling, particularly with the amount of peat on the site. He further stated that this would result in a change in the final as- built. Mr. Folkman suggested the problem could be solved by providing a certified plan showing the water lines, sewer lines, and foundation. This will be discussed further. Cleaning all new catchbasins and drains and the existing drain under Chauncy 2 Meeting of February 17, 1999 Street was also discussed and should be further reviewed. • Condition 13 — no problem • Condition 14 — the intention of the condition was discussed, with the suggestion that "substantially" be changed to "intentionally." Following discussion it was agreed to leave as is. • Condition 15 — deleting "authorized" was discussed. Following discussion, it was agreed to leave as is. • Condition 16 — Mr. Folkman noted he has had a problem with this condition in other towns in the past. Following discussion, it was agreed to leave as is. • Condition 17 — a), b), and d) were agreed to. The board agreed to delete "c)" • Condition 18 — "on site" revised to "in the site field office located at 50 Crocker Street — Spaulding Court." • Condition 19 — Mr. Folklnan said the condition was too broad. The suggestion was made to change the first sentence to "No activity shall take place on abutting properties" or delete it altogether. Board members asked that Mr. Burke review this condition and render an opinion. • Condition 20 — no problem • Condition 21— no problem Board members suggested adding Condition 22 to read, "The proposed Meineke Muffler building will be a ribbed split concrete block of earth toned colors with a peaked roof and asphalt shingles or corrugated roofing as shown on the rendering provided. The cupola shown on the plan is optional." Mr. Folkman noted that the permit should reflect that the apartment building is a two - story 5,400 sq.ft. building containing eight -units with a foundation footprint of 2,700 sq.ft. and a jour bay auto repair facility..." Mrs. Flynn questioned whether the decision should say "rooming house" or "apartment building." The difference between the two was discussed, with Mrs. Flynn noting that an apartment building is required to have 600 sq.ft. of interior floor area per unit. She asked that Mr. Burke review this. Motion: To continue the Public Hearing to March 3, 1999 at 7:45 p.m. (Frank - Flynn) 6 -0 PASSES Arormd the Table Mrs. Flynn stated that, in reviewing the draft decision for the 47 Chauncy Street Special Permit, she noted the hearing had been continued ten times. She expressed concern that this discourages public participation and suggested the board consider adopting a policy regarding the number of times a hearing may be continued. Board members discussed the issue, noting that the need to continue a hearing is not always the fault of the developer. It was suggested that perhaps if an application is incomplete, it should be denied and not continued. Mr. Frank said he thought some of the conditions in the draft special permit decision 3 Meeting of February 17, 1999 were excellent and asked where they came from. Mr. French advised the board that he took a couple of projects he had worked on and incorporated some of the conditions of those permits. *He said he will bring in the rest of them sometime. Mrs. Flynn noted the board had discussed eliminating "rooming houses" from the allowed uses at one point. The issue was further discussed and will be reviewed in the future. Mr. Dolan asked about the board's policy on attendance, noting that when responsibility to serve on a board is accepted, attendance at meetings should be a top priority. ** Adjournment Motion: To adjourn at 9:10 p.m. (Torman- Dolan) 6 -0 PASSES Signatur of Clerk Date or Approval Next Meeting: March 3,1999 * Mrs. Flynn suggested that the new conditions should be added to our boiler -plate language for special permits. ** Some members expressed concern for the need for compassion when there are extenuating circumstances when a member is late or has to miss occasional meetings. 4 Meeting of February 17, 1999