TOWN OF FARMINGTON
PLANNING BOARD
MEETING MINUTES
Tuesday – April 7, 2009
356 Main Street - Farmington, NH
Members Present: Chairman Paul Parker, Charlie Doke, David Kestner and Tim Moody
Members Excused: Cindy Snowdon
Selectman’s Rep: Charlie King
Staff Present: Daniel Merhalski, Director of Planning and Community Development
Public Present: Randy Orvis, Gail Ellis, Chris Berry, and Randy Toussaint
Acting Chairman Paul Parker called the meeting to order at 6:11 pm.
Business Before the Board
- Review and approve meeting minutes of 3-3-09 and 3-17-09
- Charlie King motioned to accept the minutes of 3-3-09 as written, 2nd Charlie Doke. Motion carried with Tim Moody abstaining.
- Charlie King motioned to accept the minutes of 3-17-09 as written, 2nd Charlie Doke. Discussion followed in which Paul stated he thought the waiver requests were accepted with a motion for the Ellis subdivision. Dave reminded Paul they were not because the waivers were presented at the meeting and the Board requested comments on them from the road agent. Motion carried with Tim Moody abstaining.
- Charlie Doke nominated Paul Parker for Chairman, 2nd Charlie King. Motion carried.
- Paul Parker nominated Dave Kestner for Vice-Chairman, 2nd Charlie King. Discussion followed in which Dave said he would accept the position but wanted to remind the Board that there may be some meetings he is unable to attend due to his work schedule. Motion carried.
- Charlie King nominated Charlie Doke for Secretary, 2nd Dave Kestner. Motion carried.
Paul welcomed new member Tim Moody to the Board.
- Dan stated that in regards to the secretary position, if the Board would like the Planning Department to continue the duties of filing approved minutes, writing the Notices of Decision, posting notices and mailings then they should take action to appoint the Planning Department to carry out these duties. He further stated that the Board needs to appoint Brandy Sanger as recording secretary to the Board if that is what they choose. Charlie King said that if this is the case, then the Rules and Procedures Manual should be amended and asked Dan if he had proposed language to make the proposed changes to the policies and procedures. Dan said no, but that he could draft something for the next Workshop Meeting in May. Charlie King motioned to place the Planning Board’s Rules and Procedures on the workshop agenda
to consider changes to the secretary duties to as it has been being done and any other proposed changes on April 21, 2nd Charlie Doke. Motion carried.
Dave Kestner motioned for the Clerk as noted in section of D to be Brandy Sanger as the recording secretary and the Planning Department to continue with the mailings, etc to follow status quo, 2nd Charlie King. Motion carried
- Other Business to Come Before The Board
Paul informed the members that the OEP Planning and Zoning Spring Conference is scheduled for May 2, 2009 in Manchester. Dan stated that he is planning to attend and that he was intending on having a workshop session on the materials presented at the conference when he got back.
Charlie King motioned for a short recess until 6:30pm, 2nd Dave Kestner. Motion carried at 6:27pm.
Public Hearing at 6:38pm
Continued Cases:
- Continuation of Site Plan Review Application from 1-6-2009; By Mrs. Stamatia Miminas (Tax Map U05, Lot #182); Located @ 498 Main Street; for the proposed renovation of the top two floors over Farmington Town Pizza; converting into two units; each unit to be comprised of 2 bedrooms and full bath on the 2nd floor; 1st floor comprised of ½ bath, kitchen, living room and dining room. Property is located in the (VC) Village Center Zoning District.
Dan informed the Board that the applicant has requested a waiver from NHDES from the sewer moratorium and Mr. Roberts of NHDES sent her a letter of denial. Mr. Roberts told Dan that these types of requests usually come from the municipalities and therefore Dan has forwarded a letter to DES asking if there is anything the town can do for Mrs. Miminas in light of the newly approved wastewater treatment plant. Dan further stated that the LP tank location has not been confirmed yet, the lease for the off-site parking spaces needs to be submitted to the Planning Department and the easement from the abutter is also not in place, however the applicant has requested a continuation to May 5, 2009. Dan then stated that the Town Attorney, Walter Mitchell, stated that the Board can grant the approval of the
Site Plan Permit, but that the applicant would have to follow the Code Enforcement Officers requirements and acknowledge that she won’t get a CO or a sewer hook-up until the moratorium is lifted. Charlie added that Dennis Roseberry did say he had some concerns with moving ahead with the application and that he asked Dennis to put his concerns in writing and forward them to the Board. Charlie King motioned to continue the site plan review for Mrs. Stamatia Miminas (Tax Map U05, Lot #182) to May 5, 2009, 2nd Dave Kestner. Motion carried.
- Continuation of Application for a Major Subdivision from 3-17-2009 by: Gail Ellis (Tax Map R22, Lot 7-3 and 10) for construction of twenty-five (25) residential lots and supporting roadway and infrastructure improvements: Property is located on Ten Rod Road and Poor Farm Road, located in the (AR) Agricultural Residential Zoning District.
Chris Berry of Berry Survey and Engineering presented. Paul noted that the traffic surveys were received by the Board tonight and the drainage calculations were in their packets. Mr. Berry stated that he revised the wetland crossings as the Board previously requested. He also provided some additional easements as requested by town staff, the cistern construction information, and a traffic impact analysis. Mr. Berry stated that he also spoke with the road agent about the waivers and he didn’t have any issues at the time and will forward his comments to the Board by April 17. Mr. Berry then added that he addressed Mr. Toussaint’s concerns with some 6 foot arborvitaes at the project’s entrance to provide screening.
Charlie King asked why the proposed entrance is so close to the abutting parcel instead of following the current entrance. Mr. Berry replied that it was created this way to provide the appropriate upland area on Lot 10-18. Charlie K. then asked if there is a ditch line on the northerly side and Mr. Berry replied no, not at that point because this is a high area.
Dave commented that it appears the sidewalk comes in very close to the property line and that there is a swale on the north side of the sidewalk area. He asked how close the sidewalk is to the property line. Mr. Berry replied the sidewalks are proposed at 2 ½ feet from the boundary line. Dave commented that it seems likely the plow will pile snow on the abutter’s property when cleaning the sidewalks and Mr. Berry replied that he felt the sidewalks would not be maintained during the winter months. Dave reminded him that the sidewalk regulations require year round maintenance. Mr. Berry suggested moving the sidewalk to the opposite side of the street. Lastly, Dave commented that he noticed the amount of guardrails decreased and Mr. Berry explained that he was able to change the
grade to intentionally limit the guardrails.
Tim asked what the impact to the wetlands will be. Mr. Berry replied that the roadway has swale lines and that the lots have been designed to drain towards the street and hence the run-off will be treated by the swales. They are proposing a 6700 square foot wetland impact and they are applying for state wetland permits that are highly scrutinized. Tim asked if the water from all sides of the house will be directed to the swales and Mr. Berry said no, that the run-off from the back of the house would be shared on the back of the lots.
Paul asked what permits the applicant still needs to apply for and Mr. Berry replied they still need to apply for their sub-service permit and the wetlands permit. Paul reminded the applicant that at the last meeting they discussed possibly creating a by-pass lane on the main road. Mr. Berry said that after completing the traffic study and meeting with the road agent he does not feel the area requires a by-pass lane, especially since there are two utility poles present. However, they are proposing signage on pole 168 to say “Slow, Cars Turning Ahead.”
Charlie K. commented that he feels the sidewalks are too close in proximity to Mr. Toussaint’s property. Mr. Berry stated that he would like to propose moving the sidewalks to the opposite side of the road. Charlie stated that it wouldn’t create a continuous sidewalk. Mr. Berry asked how far away from the stone wall would be acceptable for a sidewalk. The Board was in agreement that 10 feet would be sufficient.
Mr. Berry stated that he did contact the School Department and they do not recommend a bus shelter because they feel they are not used and attract bad behavior. Gail Ellis commented that she doesn’t care either way. The Board would like Dan to investigate the school’s comments on the shelter through the State Education Board, other towns Planners and/or SRPC.
Paul opened the Public Hearing. Randy Toussaint, abutter, expressed his concern that the arborvitaes the applicant is intending to plant for screening will take up to 20 years to fill in and make an appropriate screen. He suggested the applicant consider planting more trees. Mr. Berry replied that the intent was not to provide a complete green screen and they feel what they have proposed is an adequate buffer. The Board was in consensus that they were glad the applicant is working to address the abutter’s concerns and hope they will continue to work together on the project.
Charlie K. questioned if the drainage calculations should undergo peer review to ensure that Mr. Berry’s assumptions on the way the water will flow are reasonable. Dan replied that he is not qualified to review the drainage calculations or the traffic analysis and it would b appropriate to have both of them reviewed. Mr. Berry commented that the state will review the drainage study with the Alteration of Terrain application. Dan noted that if the Board can be provided with the state’s response for the May meeting and if the Board is satisfied their concerns were addressed, DES is certainly qualified to review the calculations. The Board was in consensus that the state review of the drainage calculations would probably be acceptable if it addressed all the Board’s concerns but that
the traffic impact study for safety should be reviewed by the Town’s contracted engineer, FST. FST will review the safety aspects of the traffic analysis for internal and external roads and the intersections as well as the roadway construction for a cross-section. Paul asked Gail Ellis if she is amendable to this request and she said yes. Charlie King motioned to request 3rd party review by FST as clearly scoped out by Dan for basic cross-section road construction, internal and external traffic safety and intersection safety, 2nd Charlie Doke. Motion carried. Chris asked Dan not to forward the materials to FST until he submits an updated plan.
The Board asked Mr. Berry if it would be possible to see correspondence from the state regarding the drainage calculations and Mr. Berry replied yes. Charlie K. noted that the Board is still awaiting easements for the bus shelter, drainage, cistern and driveways, a bond estimate and the Homeowner’s Association documentation. Mr. Berry asked if the bond estimate is required and Dan explained that a performance bond is not required if the applicant is going to complete the entire road and infrastructure prior to Building Permits being issued, but that unless the entire infrastructure is completed, a bond, or portion of a bond for the incomplete portions of the infrastructure, would be needed. Dan noted that the lighting of the driveways and mailboxes still need to be addressed as well.
Paul stated he is concerned with the shared driveway for Lot 10-9. Mr. Berry replied that he can move the driveway along the lot line and split it down the middle of the lots. The Board agreed this was a better design. Paul then noted that Lot 10-12 and a number of other lots have a large amount of wetlands on them which are not useable for construction. Charlie K. replied that these lots do have developable land though. The Board was concerned that people will believe they have a certain size parcel and then find out that only 1/3 or ½ of the lot is useable. Dan commented that every lot meets the requirements within the subdivision regulations and Zoning Ordinance and the Planning Board does not have jurisdiction to have the lots changed if they meet all of these requirements.
Dave Kestner motioned to continue the subdivision application by Gail Ellis (Tax Map R22, Lots 7-3 and 10) to May 5, 2009, 2nd Charlie Doke. Motion carried.
Dave Kestner motioned for a short recess at 8:58pm, 2nd Charlie King. Motion carried.
The Board reconvened at 9:08pm. Charlie King motioned to extend the meeting to 9:30pm, 2nd Dave Kestner. Motion carried.
New Cases:
- Application for Rear Lot Subdivision by: Alonzo W. Henderson Jr. (Tax Map R-57, Lot 1) to Create a Rear Lot Subdivision of the existing approximately 9.34 acre parcel into two (2) parcels of approximately 3.00 acres and 6.34 acres for the property on Hornetown Road in the Agricultural Residential (AR) District.
Randy Orvis presented the application on behalf of the applicant. Mr. Orvis explained the application is for a Rear Lot Subdivision with a shared driveway. The existing house will be on a 3 acre lot. He explained that he contacted the Fire Department regarding the turning radius for the shared driveway and the application meets the recommendation of the Fire Chief.
Dan stated that the TRC meeting brought up the following items; 1. the location of all proposed easement (utilities and access) is needed with wording to be reviewed, as well as, foliage lines, 2. electric and telephone line locations are needed on the plan, 3. a Statement of Conditions of Land being suitable for residential development is needed, and 4. a written statement from the tax collector stating the property owner is current with all taxes and there are no liens on the property is needed on the plan. Mr. Orvis pointed out the location of the utilities and recognized the need for the easements and agreed to amend the final plat.
Paul asked if the Fire Department made recommendations for a turn around for their apparatus and Mr. Orvis replied no. Charlie stated he would like the easements reviewed by Town Counsel. Mr. Orvis replied that he cannot create an easement until the property is sold. Charlie K. then noted that he would like the Building Permit tied to construction of the front section of the driveway per the plan and the Certificate of Occupancy tied to the completion (based on the plan) of the project. He would also like to see a written approval of the plan by the Fire Chief and the E-911 signage tied to the Certificate of Occupancy.
Dave asked if there is a culvert on the existing driveway entrance. Dan replied that he visited the site and there is no culvert. Dave suggested a culvert be installed to eliminate drainage issues and further suggested Mr. Orvis contact the Road Agent for the appropriate sizing of the culvert. Mr. Orvis replied that he would do that.
Dave noted that an easement for the well-head radius is needed and Mr. Orvis explained that one is not needed. Dan agreed with Mr. Orvis but stated that the location of the utilities and easements need to be included on the plan.
At 9:37pm, Charlie King motioned to extend the meeting until 10pm, 2nd Paul Parker. Motion carried with Dave Kestner opposed.
Charlie K. stated that there should be a note on the plan that there will be no further subdivision of the lots. Dan stated that he would add that note to the Notice of Decision. Charlie King motioned to approve the rear lot subdivision for Alonzo W. Henderson Jr. (Tax Map R-57, Lot 1) based on the conditions of approval discussed tonight and the Draft Notice of Decision, 2nd Charlie Doke. Motion carried.
Charlie King motioned to adjourn, 2nd Dave Kestner. Motion carried with all in favor.
Meeting adjourned at 9:52pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Brandy Sanger
Recording Secretary
___________________________ _________________
Paul Parker, Chairman Date
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