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HomeMy WebLinkAboutmin of planning brd 012407 .. - Planning Board Minutes - January 24, 2007 Present: Tom French, Chair; Fred Armstrong, Clerk; Ken Torman, Dol@'~ Jqtw 8: 30 DeMassi, Frank Holmes Alternate(s): Michael McClanahan, Stan Feck t1A.lJSF iELO Shaun P. Burke, Director of Plannin and Develo ment HAS SAC HU SET T S RECEIVED , pill "'I. 1"''''. .'1"'... 1'\.. '.... '."~'; uFFIGE Motion: To appoint Mr. DeMassi acting chair Torman-McClanahan All in favor. PASSES 1. January 10, 2007 minutes Motion: To approve the January 10, 2007 minutes (Torman-Armstrong) Five in favor. Holmes abstained. PASSES [Mr. French arrived at this time] 2. Variance application - 15 Perkins Avenue Mr. Burke explained the application for a mudroom addition. Mr. Burke said there is no hardship shown and suggested sending the ZBA a negative recommendation. [Mr. Annino arrived at this time] Motion: To send the ZBA a negative recommendation because there is no hardship shown Armstron -Holmes Six in favor. French, Annino abstained. PASSES Mark Baum, KKE Architects, presented the revised plans for the Kohl's building at Mansfield Crossing. He said they have used elements similar to those used on the front r to bread up the building's other three sides. The "gateways" at the main entrance will be pulled away from the building. There will be two colors of split face block, the letters will be in highly polished porcelain tile and there will be a metal band around the top of the entire building. He said this design will be a unique design for Kohl's. Mr. Annino asked about screening the mechanical equipment; Mr. Baum said the equipment would be completely screened by the parapet walls. Mr. Baum explained the landscaping shown on the plans is conceptual. Dr. Torman asked if the landscape design that was approved under the special permit would be used; Mr. Burke said it would be. Mr. Annino said he likes the design, but suggested not using gas lamps at this store. Motion: To approve the Kohl's elevations as presented on the plans dated December 27, 2006 Annino- Torman All in favor. PASSES Mr. Burke noted that any changes to the Zoning By-Law, as well as the fee amendments, would have to go to a public hearing if the board chooses to go forward. r- Mr. French asked if the board members wanted to accept public, or simply have a discussion among the board. Mr. Feck said he thinks the board needs to work out consensus about these issues before opening the discussion up to comment. Planning Board 1 1/26/2007 Residential Facilities for Residents 55 Yean of Age or Older, Section 3.3.10 Mr. Burke explained the board has discussed a number of issues with 55 and over development, including minimum lot size and density. He said there a citizens' petition passed at Town Meeting to change the minimum size from 10 to six acres, and a subsequent petition to reduce it from six to five, which was withdrawn. ) Mr. Burke explained a number of options, from a sliding scale to a simple reduction in the number of units allowed per acre. Mr. Burke said he thinks keeping the formula simple may be the best way to make this change. Dr. Torman said development like this downtown could provide senior housing and said he likes the idea of a scale. Mr. Feck noted that in the zones where this type of development is allowed, there aren't many large parcles of land left. He said he would rather see more 55 and over development than single family homes, because of the amount of service demand that comes with single- family development. Mr. Annino said that would still result in increased density on those smaller pieces ofland. Dr. Torman asked the downside to that; Mr. Annino said they would be traffic and building height. Mr. Annino said even though there aren't many large parcels ofland in the zones where this type of development is allowed, this type of change could result in parcels being combined to make a development work. Mr. Burke said when the minimum land size was decreased at Town Meeting, the density was not decreased. He noted that Heron Crest and the Village at the Point were built at '...., 10 units per acre. He asked if it makes sense to keep that density when dealing with i smaller sites. Mr. Feck said it wouldn't make sense to put that kind of density on a much smaller site. Mr. DeMassi asked about a density requirement based on upland acres. Mr. Burke explained the by-law currently allows "10 units per acre of upland land area." Mr. Holmes noted there could be a 10 acre site with 9 acres of wetland, and 10 units could be built on the one dry acre. Mr. Burke said that is true. Mr. Burke said he reviewed densities in other towns and other states, and didn't find any standard densities. He said Heron Crest works well at the current density, with a significant portion of the site along the Canoe River being donated to the Conservation Commission, but said that is a fairly heavily developed area. Mr. Burke noted Willowdale Golf Course is in the R2 zone, and is a huge amount of land; if that were sold, it could accommodate a huge number of either houses or 55 and over units. Mr. Annino asked if it is reasonable to set a density without backup that certain densities work in other similar communities. He said he is concerned about being arbitrary. Mr. Burke said Chapter 40R uses 4,500 square feet per unit as a standard; currently in the R3 zone, Mansfield allows 7,500 square feet per unit, requiring a 15,000 square foot lot for a '1 Planning Board 2 1/26/2007 duplex. At 10 units per acre, that is 4,300 square feet per unit; 7 units per acre would be - about 4,800 square feet per unit. Mr. Feck asked what the density is on the state's 5-acre minimum. Mr. Burke said it is 10 units per acre. Mr. Holmes asked if the town could make its area requirement smaller than the state standard. Mr. DeMassi said the character of Mansfield has to be considered, as well as the type of building that will be most appropriate. Mr. Feck said 55 and over developments would be clustered together, not scattered. Mr. Annino said the town should be concerned about diversity of housing types, which it does not currently have a lot of. He said some of the existing 55 and over communities can cost more than a single-family house. Mr. Feck said the smaller parcels may allow mOre affordable housing, because in a larger development people expect more amenities, which may drive up the price. Mr. Burke said housing prices are market driven, and builders will build up to the market. Mr. Armstrong said he would be concerned with going below the state's five-acre minimum. Mr. DeMassi said the board had been concerned about the density of 90 units at Heron Crest and said the sliding scale may be the best way to deal with this type of development. He said he didn't have a problem with changing the minimum parcel size to five, but didn't see any reason to go lower than that. Dr. Torman agreed, but said he would be concerned about five being considered arbitrary; Mr. DeMassi said the state has identified five acres, so it must have done research to come up with that number. Dr. r Torman said he was concerned with five acres at the currently allowed density of 10 units per acre. Mr. DeMassi said he would like to see the sliding scale. Mr. French said the 55 and over development by-law was intended to create a village environment, not simply groups of buildings with no connections. Mr. Armstrong said he thinks the idea behind 10 units per acre was for developers to hit the "magic number" and be able to build amenities like pools and community centers. Dr. Torman said neither Heron Crest nor Village at the Pointe has those types of amenities. Mr. Annino said it is true that things like community centers only work with large developments, but said the idea of "community: does not have to involve a structure, it could be a community green. Mr. French said when the 55 and over by-law was developed, the board didn't base the density and lot sizes on a specific study, and chose 10 acres. Mr. Burke said there are two questions: parcel size and density. Dr. Torman said he thinks a sliding scale for density would work the best and make development profitable for the developer. Mr. McClanahan said the board had to be concerned about what is best for the town. As an example, Mr. Burke said five upland acres at five units per acre would allow 25 r units. Mr. Holmes said that would cut the currently allowed density in half, which may Planning Board 3 1/26/2007 not make a development economically feasible. Mr. Peck said Mansfield has been building mostly single-family homes and very few other types of housing, which is part of the reason Mansfield's taxes are high. Dr. Torman asked if it would be feasible to look at other communities' by-laws. ,') Mr. French asked how the board feels about five acres. Mr. Armstrong said he would be comfortable with five acres at a lower density. Mr. Burke noted the inclusionary housing by-law would require affordable units in any development of six or more units. He said he was not supportive of lowering the parcel size from 10 aces to six, and would not support reducing it to five. He said he would be concerned that making the minimum parcel size progressively smaller would result in scattered 55 and over developments on small parcels in single-family neighborhoods, which may not allow the 55 and over developments to have a sense of community. Mr. DeMassi said with a smaller number of units, there will be less sense of community because there will end up being single buildings. Mr. French noted 55-year-old residents are not elderly, and the residents of these type of developments will likely be very active. Mr. French asked Mr. Burke to look at other towns with five acres and a sliding scale. Site Plan Review By-Law Mr. Burke said this by-law has been on several Town Meeting warrants. He said the) point would be to go from a recommendation by the Planning Board to approval of site plan by the Planning Board. Mr. Burke said the board had wanted to meet with the Board of Selectmen before Town Meeting, which never happened, so the Planning Board decided to withdraw it. Mr. Feck said this seems like the same as special permit review. Mr. French said a special permit requires a public hearing and a super-majority of the board, which site plan would not. Mr. French explained site plans are very often incomplete, and this amendment is designed to avoid that. Mr. Feck said this would result in more than one meeting with multiple changes. He suggested if the problem is with the submission rules, those should be changed. Mr. French noted the site plan by-law does not require the board to consider the benefits and detriments question. Mr. DeMassi said he would be just as happy with a change to the submission requirements to make sure everything the board needs to review the plans properly is included with the submission, or the board will not review the plans. Mr. French said there are also issues with the board making recommendations to the Building Inspector, and the Building Inspector not being able to enforce those recommendations. Mr. Holmes said the Building Inspector's position is that if the plan meets the building code, he has to approve it. Mr. Armstrong said that is his frustration with site plan review because the board spends a lot of time on it, and the some of the recommendations cannot be enforced. " Planning Board 4 1/2612007 Mr. Armstrong said he understands there may be a sense that this is a Planning Board ( power grab, intended to reduce the Building Inspector's authority. He said it would in fact enhance that authority because it would give him something to enforce. Mr. Burke asked if the board wants to meet with the Board of Selectmen before deciding whether to submit this on the warrant. The board said it would like to do that. Drive-Through By-Law Mr. Burke explained the draft proposal is from SRPEDD, and said Mansfield does not need to adopt the whole by-law. He said Mansfield's biggest issue is really one of queuing, so he presented the board with a draft by-law amendment dealing with that issue. Mr. Burke said things like landscaping and pedestrian access are already covered in other parts of the Zoning By-Law. He said places like Dunkin Donuts are becoming more like fast food restaurants because they have started serving more than coffee, and said the Building Inspector has told him he will deal with that type of use as fast food. Mr. Armstrong asked about "bailout" lanes for drive-throughs; Mr. Burke noted the draft includes provision for a bailout lane. Mr. Holmes suggested the loading lane and bail out lanes should be separate lanes. Mr. Holmes asked about whether bank and pharmacy drive-up windows need all of the items required for fast food aInes. Mr. Burke said 4.4.4.18 would be added as part of the Parking section, so would apply to any drive-through. Mr. DeMassi said he would like to r have this apply to all drive-through windows. Mr. Armstrong suggested adding language to address drive-through uses that do not use an order board, like a bank or an ATM. The board agreed it wants the by-law to cover more than just fast food, but that a non-fast food use may not need as many stacking spaces. Mr. Burke suggested adding something like what the parking by-law includes, where the board can decide how many spaces are necessary for a certain type of use. Subdivision and Special Permit Filing Fee Amendments Mr. Burke said the board discussed revising these fees several months ago. The fees were last changed in 2002; the proposed increase is 16%. Mr. Burke presented the board with a 2006 SRPEDD survey of other communities in the area. He said Mansfield charges more than many other towns, but also provides a greater level of service because many towns without a town engineer and charge an additional plan review fee. In- house review also makes the process go faster than sending plans out to consultants. Mr. Burke explained the fees go into the general fund. He suggested the fees are appropriate for the level of service the applicant receives. Mr. DeMassi said for the lower cost services, like Form A plans, Mansfield is in the top third of the communities in the SRPEDD survey. For the higher cost services, Mansfield is in the top two thirds of communities. He also noted there are a lot of services that other communities charge for that we charge nothing for and asked if the fees are r enough. Mr. Burke said he thinks the town is covering the services it provides; he said Planning Board 5 1/26/2007 there are sometimes sites that require more attention than others. Mr. McClanahan asked if sites like that should be charged extra for those additional inspections. Mr. Burke said '-'\. he didn't think that is necessary, and said charging those extra fees may end up costing ) the town more in processing. Mr. Feck said a 16% increase is a big jump all at once. Mr. Burke said the Planning Department isn't making any money with these fees; this increase would simply be to cover the department's expenses. He said he feels development has to pay its own way, and said the rate of development changes every year. Mr. DeMassi said he would like to get some feedback from the Finance Committee on the validity of the model used to generate the numbers. Mr. Burke said the Finance Cominittee asks departments to review their fees every year. Mr. DeMassi asked if the board could just set a yearly increase. Mr. Burke said each increase is a change to the Subdivision Regulations and requires a public hearing. Master Plan Update Mr. Burke asked the board if it wanted to put a request for funding on the Annual Town Meeting warrant. He said the cost would probably be $60-80,000. Dr. Torman asked if that could be a Capital Improvements request. Mr. Burke said some departments have included studies in their capital requests, but have not been very successful. Dr. Torman said he is concerned that by the time a Master Plan is complete, it is nearly obsolete. Mr. Burke said that could be said about almost any planning document. Dr. Torman asked if the idea of a Master Plan is still valid, considering the changes in '} development. Mr. Burke said it is valid because the type of development has changed so much, with more retail and downtown development. He said many of the items of concern in the 1996 Master Plan have been addressed and thinks thinking about new issues would be useful. In addition, the Commonwealth requires cities and towns to . update its Master Plan regularly. Dr. Torman said if the board decides to go forward with this revision, getting funding at Town Meeting may be hard because a lot of people don't understand what a Master Plan is. He said there would have to be some consensus building before Town Meeting. Mr. Annino said the board needs documents like the Master Plan to help make its decisions. Dr. Torman said the board doesn't often use that document. Mr. Burke said the board does use the Master Plan all the time because so many zoning changes come out of that document, like the inclusionary housing and wireless communication by-laws Design Awards Mr. Annino has suggested an annual award for good design. Mr. DeMassi said he likes Heron Crest. Dr. Torman said Marco Crugnale has worked very well with the board on all of his projects. The board members will send suggestions to Mr. Burke. Mr. Annino asked how Foxboro could have approved the mall on Route 1 near the ~ Planning Board 6 1/26/2007 - stadium in only six months, considering the size of the development and its impacts. Mr. Burke said he was told the developer gave the town everything it wanted; he said he heard the F oxboro Board of Selectmen is considering appealing the Planning Board's decision. Mr. Feck said he thought Mr. Kraft's team was probably very well prepared. Mr. Feck said he saw a new Kohl's store in Fort Myers, Florida, and thought it was very nice. He said he also ate at a Famous Dave's BBQ and showed the board some photographs. Mr. DeMassi said since the new parking lot at Arnold's Gymnastics Academy was paved, there has been a puddle in Oakland Street. Mr. Burke said there has been a lot of interest in the parcels across School Street from Mansfield Crossing. Mr. Burke said Capital Improvements would begin soon and the board will need two representatives to that committee. Karl Clemmey said the Planning Board in Foxboro did not make the final decision on the Route 1 mall, the board of Selectmen did. Mr. Clemmey said there should be more people on the Master Plan committee than just r the members of the Planning Board. He said there is a lot of money available for Master Plans. Mr. Clemmey said the board should work on the Smart Growth Overlay District. He said it allows mixed uses, business, and retail. He said the land on School Street across the street from Mansfield Crossing is going to be two fast food restaurants. Mr. Clemmey said the Board of Selectmen is going to start meeting every Wednesday and said they can't run the town by meeting every other week. Mr. Clemmey said Lakeville just adopted the Smart Growth Overlay District. Mr. Clemmey suggested the 55 and over uses be allowed in business and industrial zones. Mr. Bill Clemmey said the TOD isn't moving forward and has lost its momentum. r- Motion: To adjourn at 10:25 p.m. (Torman-McClanahan) All in favor. PASSES Next meeting: :7:;Y' February 7, 2007 at~~O i: f ~ Date of Approval Planning Board 7 1/26/2007 >') -, ~ I I