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Public Meeting @ 4:30 p.m.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Final
Present: Richard Osnoss, Acting Chair; PersonNameRussell Walton, William Meegan, Mitchell Posin,
Janet Weidner and PersonNameChristina Soulagnet, Administrative Assistant
Absent: PersonNameTim Lasker and John Flender
Call To Order
Chairman Richard Osnoss opened the meeting at 4:30 p.m.
Meeting Minutes
The Board reviewed the meeting minutes of May 27, 2008. Mr. Walton made a motion, Chairman Osnoss seconded and the members voted to approve the meeting minutes as amended.
The Board reviewed the meeting minutes of June 9, 2008. Mr. Meegan made a motion, Mr. Posin seconded and the members voted to approve the meeting minutes as amended.
Master Plan Update
Janet Weidner informed the Board that the draft Master Plan Survey, along with a cover memo, was distributed to all Town Boards and Committees for comments, corrections and suggestions. The Committee hopes to have all feedback no later that July 3, 2008. Once the Board receives all the feedback, the survey will be finalized and prepared for mailing. The Board anticipates the survey to be mailed to voters and property owners of Chilmark in mid to late-July. There was a brief discussion lead by Ms. Weidner concerning the lack of a windmill question in the survey. Mr. Meegan suggested adding the following question to the survey, "Do you feel power for wind energy for residential use should be encouraged or discouraged in Chilmark? Comments." The Board agreed to
include this question in the survey.
Swimming Pool Bylaw Discussion
The Board reviewed the information submitted by the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) for input
in the Master Plan Update. In this material, the ZBA recommended two amendments to the Swimming Pool Bylaw for the Planning Board to consider, which are as follows: 1) Require pool equipment to be placed in an enclosed, sound-insulated shed, and 2) Indicate preference for solar pool water heaters over geo-thermal heating systems. The ZBA also recommended that the newly enacted Heated Swimming Pool Bylaw have specific requirements for placement and setbacks. It was the sense of the Board that any alternative energy equipment would be required to meet the setback requirements within the Chilmark Zoning Bylaws and the applicant would need to follow the Zoning Board of Appeals application process to obtain approval, which includes getting permission from abutters. The Board will consult with the
Building Inspector concerning bylaw language and will consider amending the Zoning Bylaw definition of "Structure" to include alternative energy equipment.
William Graves; (Map 7, placeLot 29)
Marcia Cini, attorney for William Graves, came before the Planning Board for clarification of
Attorney PersonNameThomas Bracken's legal opinion concerning the covenant. Mr. Bracken, in his letter to the Planning Board, stated that the Mass. General Law does not have a provision to rescind an approval of an ANR (Approval Not Required) plan, and since the covenant was placed on the property at the time of an ANR plan, the Planning Board does not have the jurisdiction to rescind such covenant. Ms. Cini commented that the covenant stated "no further subdivision" and that the word "subdivision" refers to a Form C plan; therefore, an ANR plan would not trigger the covenant. The Board believes that the covenant is a legal, binding document, and per the legal advice received from Mr. Bracken, the covenant cannot be rescinded. Ms. Cini asked the Board if she could contact
Mr. Bracken directly to discuss his legal opinion along with the specific language in the covenant. The Board understands that Ms. Cini will contact Mr. Bracken for further discussion.
Wind Turbines
The Planning Board is reviewing information pertaining to wind turbines and is considering amending the Windmill Zoning Bylaw. The Board discussed the findings from the site visits to the two existing wind turbines in Chilmark; Bramhall and Green. It was the sense of the Board that consideration needs to be given to abutters outside a 300-foot radius. The Board discussed ways to accommodate an applicant as well as abutters. Erecting a temporary structure, the same height of a wind turbine, at the proposed site would give abutters time to comment on the impact of such structure. Mr. Meegan stated that there are two major concerns pertaining to wind turbines:
1) visual and 2) noise; noise being the bigger factor. The Board discussed considering an excessive noise threshold amendment to the Zoning Bylaws. Ms. Weidner stated that the Zoning Bylaws have restrictions on residential structures and why wouldn't that apply to wind turbines, too? The Board requested obtaining a wind map of Chilmark, which will identify specific locations in Chilmark that are best for wind turbines. The map concept might be an approach in amending the Windmill Zoning Bylaw.
Rotation of Chairperson
The Board thanked Rich Osnoss for his dedicated service and great leadership as Chair of the Planning Board and welcomed Janet Weidner as the Planning Board Chairperson for the remainder of this fiscal year.
Calendar
The next Planning Board meeting is on July 14, 2008 at @ 4:30 pm.
There was no other business. Mr. Osnoss adjourned at 6:31 p.m.
Minutes respectfully submitted by PersonNameChristina Soulagnet, Administrative Assistant.
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