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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPLANNINGbrd_09282016Planning Board Minutes September 28, 2016 Present: Tom French, Chairman; Don Cleary, Clerk; Beth Ashman -Collins, Ralph Penney, Michael Feck, Rich LeBlanc Alternates Joe Cerretani and Sharon Friedman Shaun P. Burke, Director of Planning and Development; Jennifer Davis, Administrative Assistant Rick Alves, Town Engineer; Mike Ahern, DPW Special Projects Manager/Subdivision Inspector; Mark Cook, Highway Department Manager ........... ......... ............ ...... . ..... ... .. ...... .......... ..... ..... .. ........ ............ .......... ..... ...... ..................... .................. ....... R 1. Minutes September 14, 2016 p. I last para — "Mr. McClanahan said the applicant knew the lifts wouldn't fit a month ago, before the framing started' p. 2, 3rd para — Mr. French said "the development" was approved p. 3, 51h para - Mr. McClanahan said "three on -street parking spaces are going to be lost..." Motion: To approve as amended (Penney -LeBlanc) All in favor. PASSES 2. Public Hearing notices — Attleboro, Easton, Foxboro, Norton 3. Citizen Planner Training Collaborative Fall 2016 Workshop schedule 4. September 26, 2016 request from John Walsh to set bond amount for Willowdale Estates (Phase 1, Marie Drive) / September 27, 2016 memo from Mike Ahern recommending the bond amount for Willowdale Estates (Phase 1, Marie Drive) be set at $253,503.26 Mr. Ahern said his recommendation is to set the bond based on phases of the subdivision, with the Marie Drive phase being bonded at this time. He said the water, sewer, electric and drainage have been installed throughout the subdivision. Mr. Burke said the Marie Road cul- de-sac can stand alone. When the bond is posted, the developer can start to sell lots on Marie Road; if the other roads are not built, those lots could not be sold individually. Motion: To set the bond amount for the ten (10) lots on Marie Drive in Willowdale Estates at $253,503.26 (Penney -Ashman -Collins) All in favor. PASSES The clerk read the public hearing notice. Mr. Burke distributed a memo describing the three basic issues in the changes to the Subdivision Regulations: 1) changing the names of departments, inspectors and references to by-laws and statutes; 2) changes to the street tree list to remove any tree that has been identified as invasive; and to remove any tree that has been identified as unsuitable for use as a street tree; 3) some of Planning Board September 28, 2016 the changes, such as the use of vertical granite rather than the current sloped granite, lends itself Town's road -to-date with the To to greater durability, brings the Subdivision Regulations up construction standards and are more substantive. The proposed change comes at the request of the Department of Public Works based on their experience with the lack of durability of sloped granite curbing. The Town has moved to SuperPave when rebuilding and doing full -depth reconstruction of public streets. The board discussed adding a requirement to the Residential Compound section for an independent testing company to witness the compaction and paving of residential compound roadways and to submit an as -built, according to Subdivision Regulation Section 4.1.4.4, Residential Compound, and the Mass Highway technical standards for compaction. Mr. Burke suggested an affidavit similar to the one the town requires on a drainage system, indicating it was completed according to the approved plan. Add to 4.1.4.4: "The developer or his agent shall supply proof from a Mass Registered Professional Engineer that the roadway is built in accordance with the approved plan and the paving mix and the compaction shall meet MassDOT technical standards for compaction, certified by a Mass Registered Professional Engineer." Mr. French noted a residential compound has a minimum of two lots and a maximum of six lots. 4.1.4.4 Drainage: "Drainage structures are not required. Grass swales, rain gardens and other low -impact best management practices shall be utilized." Mr. Penney said the board can waive specific regulations when requested by the applicant, and asked how value can be assigned to the sidewalk work when it has been waived. Mr. Burke said 41-81 R allows the board to waive its own regulations when it finds the waiver is in the public interest. As an example, the board waived the for the four lots on Dutton Drive because there is no sidewalk on Winter Street to connect to, so the developer donated the value of the sidewalks to the sidewalk fund; that money was used for sidewalk extensions or improvements downtown. He said he would be concerned about writing that into the regulations because it could be considered linkage. Mr. French said the board considers waiver requests on a case-by-case basis and decides of each waiver is in the best interest of the town. Mr. Burke said each subdivision is unique and it would be hard for the board to make a judgement on waivers until it gets into the public hearing and finds out what the benefits may be. Mr. Ahern suggested adding the amount of the sidewalk fund donation to the decision. Mr. Penney said he is concerned there is nothing specific in the regulations. Mr. French said the board can negotiate with the developer about a donation to the sidewalk fund during the discussions about the waiver requests. Mr. Alves said when he reviews subdivision plans, he looks for some effort and explanation of the benefits to waiver requests. Mr. Penney asked if Mr. Burke is comfortable with the board negotiating waivers on a site -by -site basis; Mr. Burke said he is, because each site is different. Mr. Penney asked how the courts would view the board in the event the developer did not live up to his agreement to donate to the sidewalk fund; Mr. Burke said the courts have ruled the board Planning Board September 28, 2016 has the ability to waive its own regulations. He noted the board has the ability to negotiate with the developer, but cannot require or exact a donation from the developer. Mr. Penney asked about promoting the sidewalk fund. Mr. Cook said the town has been using the money from the sidewalk fund. 4.10 Low Impact Design, Design Standards, C.: Mr. Cleary suggested the second sentence, beginning with "Applicants are encouraged to design a superelevated roadway...," should be a separate item. 5.2.3 "No paving shall occur between November 15 and April 15 unless allowed by the Planning Board's agent." Mr. Cleary — 5.5.2 require vertical granite curbing at intersection. Mr. French asked about requiring a minimum size for cul-de-sac plantings. Mr. Burke suggested using something like sugar maples, which grow very large, in cul-de-sacs. He said they have been removed from the street tree list, but they may work well in large cul-de-sacs. Mr. Ahern suggested looking at that issue during each plan review process. Mr. Penney asked if the board would be able to consider alternative street trees if a developer had an alternative proposal; Mr. Burke said it would. Mr. French asked if a 2" caliper tree is the right size for a street tree. Mr. Ahern said he thinks 255 caliper measured four feet up is a good size. Motion: To close the public hearing (Penney -Friedman) All in favor. PASSES The board will review the revised Subdivision Regulations before a final vote. Mr. Alves said he is simply looking for the board's comments and level of interest at this time. Planning Board September 28, 2016 Mr. Cook said the right turning lane onto Willow/Spring Streets and the 90 -degree intersection reconfiguration of other will both help to slow traffic, and said the town has done similar reconf intersections. Mr. Alves said Spring and Willow Streets will have 12 -foot travel lanes and School Street will have 11 -foot travel lanes with bike lanes on each side. He said the striping will help slow traffic. Mr. Penney said he would prefer 12 -foot travel lanes on School Street. Mr. Alves said he could also do "sharrows," shared travel/bike lanes, with wider lanes. Ms. Ashman -Collins said there are a lot of bicyclists in that area. Mr. Cook agreed. Mr. Ceretanni said turning left out of Spring Street onto School Street is very difficult and asked if the intersection at Spring Street could be two lanes; Mr. Alves said he doesn't think there is enough land there for two lanes. Mr. Cook said it is difficult for drivers leaving Spring Street to pull onto School Street because drivers coming off Route 140 leave their right -turn blinker on, then keep driving straight; he said putting traffic on School Street into a right -turn only lane would help clarify their direction. Mr. Ahern said the Willowdale developer will install curbing and sidewalk on Willow Street from Lorraine Road to meet up with Rick's plan for new sidewalk on School Street. He noted the Willowdale permit requires the subdivision sidewalk to be completed prior to the grant of occupancy for any new house, which it may be possible, depending on the timing of the Town's work. Mr. Burke said he thinks if that becomes an issue, it could be taken care of as a field change. Mr. Cook said they will have to talk about the timeline for sidewalk construction. Mr. French suggested that based on the volume of traffic on School Street, Mr. Alves may look at making the through lanes 12 feet wide. He said there is a lot of traffic on School Street, and 12 -foot side lanes would give cars enough room to negotiate while protecting bicycle riders from the cars. Mr. Alves said he would look into that, but it would depend on the width further up School Street. He said he does not want to have to relocate any utility poles. Mr. French asked the width of the proposed striped island; Mr. Alves said it is approximately 11 feet wide. Mr. Penney asked about the Road Commissioners; Mr. Alves said he has not been to them yet and he was hoping to get the Planning Board's opinion first. Mr. Burke said the road Commissioners would have to hold a public hearing. [Mr. LeBlanc left the meeting at this time] Planning Board September 28, 2016 Mansfield's downtown as a vibrant, pedestrian -oriented Town Center with a range of attractive and unique shops, services and small businesses. Ms. Ashman -Collins said the IDC has discussed how Mansfield is unique and suggested the bike path is an amenity worth mentioning. Mr. Burke said the Board of Selectmen was scheduled to discuss and hopefully support the Complete Streets policy at its meeting tonight. He said participation in the MassDOT Complete Streets grant program makes the town eligible for up to $40,000 the first year and up $400,000 after that for projects like the one Mr. Alves presented on School Street. Mr. Burke said a grant like that would help encourage pedestrian and bicycle uses downtown. Ms. Friedman distributed materials about cultural districts and said a pedestrian and bicyle uses could be tied into a district. Mr. Cerretani asked what "kind" of town Mansfield is; Ms. Ashman -Collins said she thinks Mansfield is a "railroad" town. Ms. Friedman said Mansfield has a lot to offer, is a great place to live and a good place for business, but said she thinks the group is having trouble defining its vision for downtown. Mr. Burke suggested starting the workshop next week with a slide that defines downtown. Mr. Penney said he thinks the downtown and the business park are two distinct areas. Ms. Ashman -Collins said IDC established a downtown subcommittee because it feels the same way. Ms. Ashman -Collins suggested adding Downtown Design Guidelines. Mr. Penney suggested adding the new requirement for renderings to be submitted with Site Plan applications. Ms. Friedman said another aspect of downtown is the kind of activities that happen, which are impacted by land use. Ms. Ashman -Collins said there have been discussions lately about outdoor seating and how that can encourage other types of activities. Ms. Friedman said the Mass Cultural Council has planning grants available for $300,000- 400,000, which local Cultural Councils can apply for to help define some of the issues. She said a grant like that could help the town look at opportunities to bring in people and revenue, and to support the economics of the town. Ms. Ashman -Collins said even without a grant, the planning process and resources put out by the Mass Cultural Council could be a valuable resource for Mansfield to use through to help it define its ideas for downtown. Ms. Friedman said downtown Mansfield already has a lot of resources, like MMAS and the National Black Doll Museum, and said the resources of MCC could be used to look into what it would take to build a cultural district. Mr. Feck said the train station parking lots are empty on the weekends and suggested that space could be used for small festival -type activities with food trucks and pop-up stores, which could help enhance a cultural district. Planning Board September 28, 2016 Ms. Friedman said the Mass Cultural Council also has opportunities to help artists rent a space to work and live for a time. Mr. French asked the process for creating a cultural district would be created. Ms. Friedman said there would have to be a plan, and grants are available from the Mass Cultural Council, which would have to approve the district. Mr. Cleary asked what changes would be necessary in the Zoning By -Law to promote a cultural district. Mr. French said a lot of downtown has been redeveloped, but further development will be constrained by what remains available. Mr. Penney said the Wakefield study he distributed identified a lot of demographic information about the surrounding population; Ms. Ashman -Collins said that information can be purchased. Ms. Ashman -Collins asked about the geographic definition of downtown; Mr. Burke said he based the downtown map on the Master Plan, which describes downtown as running from East Street to Pratt Street. Ms. Ashman -Collins said the IDC was a bit more expansive and defined downtown from East Street to the chocolate factory on Oakland Street. Mr. Feck said he likes the broader definition because it would include the TOD area around the train station. Mr. Cleary suggested downtown is really the TOD overlay district plus the Downtown Overlay District. Mr. Feck said allowing mixed-use helps promote downtown activity, by providing opportunities for "live -work -play" activities. Mr. French said that was part of the idea of TOD. Mr. Feck said he thinks there is enough parking downtown, it is simply a question of its location and people's willingness to walk. Mr. Cleary said he thinks some of the problem is with employees parking in front of the business. Mr. Penney said a lot of towns are working on Cultural Districts as a way to bring people downtown. Mr. French said Mansfield already has a lot of visitors with commuters who use the train station. Planning Board September 28, 2016 Mr. Feck suggested looking at zoning articles soon to avoid doing it at the last-minute. Mr. Cerretani asked what can be done to prevent trespassing at the train station. Mr. Burke said the fence in the middle is four feet high; Mr. Feck suggested it could be higher and longer. Mr. Penney said there is new fencing being installed along East Street in Foxboro. Mr. Penney asked about National Lumber parking in its landscaped area; Mr. Burke said the Building Inspector is planning to ask them to move their rental equipment out of the parking area so their employees can park in the lot. Mr. Cleary said he sent Mr. Burke an article about Taunton offering rent rebates for new businesses moving into empty spaces downtown. Mr. Burke said he visited Bristol, Rhode Island over the weekend, which has a lot of outdoor seating. Mr. Feck suggested asking the North Common Estates developer to address Mr. Burke's comments on the revised lighting plan before returning for the parking discussion. Mr. French said he spoke with the attorney for the Chocolate Factory, who said the building was sold in June to a real estate group in Virginia. Attorney Wright said she spoke with Russell Barnaby, who said they are working with their contractor and plan to start preliminary work at the end of the year and be working fully in January 2017. X .......... ....... ...... .. Motion: To adjourn at 9:30 p.m. (Penney- All in favor. PASSES Next Planning Board Meeting: October 5, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. (Workshop with BOS/Fin Com/IDC) Next Regular Planning Board Meeting: October 19, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. 2Y ignature of Clerk Dat of Appro);.vai Planning Board September 28, 2016