TOWN OF FARMINGTON
PLANNING BOARD
MEETING MINUTES
Tuesday – March 16, 2010
356 Main Street - Farmington, NH
Members Present: Chairman Paul Parker, Charlie Doke, Glen Demers, Cindy Snowdon, Dave Kestner, Tracy Major and Jim Horgan
Members Absent: Tracy Major
Selectman’s Rep: Charlie King
Town Staff Present: Planning Director, Kathy Menici
Public Present: Matt Emerson, Amanda Haynes, Frank Monteiro, Mike Tierney, Jason Plourde, David Crane and FX Bruton.
Chairman Paul Parker called the meeting to order at 6:07pm and seated Jim Horgan for Tim Moody.
BUSINESS BEFORE THE BOARD:
1. Review Minutes:
· Charlie King moved to accept the minutes of 1/5/10 as amended for a grammatical change, 2nd Jim Horgan. Motion carried with all in favor.
· Jim Horgan moved to accept the minutes of 1/13/10 as written, 2nd Charlie Doke. Motion carried with Tracy Major abstaining.
· Jim Horgan moved to accept the minutes of 1/19/10 as amended, 2nd Charlie Doke. Motion carried with Tracy Major abstaining.
· Charlie King moved to accept the minutes of 1/27/10 as written, 2nd Dave Kestner. Motion carried with Tracy Major and Jim Horgan abstaining.
· Charlie Doke moved to approve the minutes 2/2/10 as amended, 2nd Jim Horgan. Motion carried with Tracy Major and Cindy Snowdon abstaining.
· Charlie King moved to approve the minutes of 3/2/10 as amended, 2nd Jim Horgan. Motion carried with Tracy Major and Dave Kestner abstaining.
2. Election of Officers:
Charlie K. noted that he thinks the Board should postpone this election because we have two members who are up for re-appointment and also there is a recount for the Selectman seats so he or Jim might not be back. Charlie Doke informed the members that Tim Moody, Tracy Major and Glen Demers seats are up for reappointment. Paul will contact Tim Moody and inform him of his expired seat. Charlie King moved to postpone the election of officers till April 6, 2010. 2nd Jim Horgan. Motion carried with all in favor.
3. Review Notice of Decision of June 3, 2008 for Approved Subdivision By: Governor’s Road Realty, LLC (Tax Map R49, Lots 1 & 1-1) To amend the previous Subdivision Approval for date extension.
F.X. Bruton, representative for applicant, explained they would like to extend the approval for 6 months for substantial work to be complete which would be to September 21, 2010 and to all extend the deadline for completion of the roadway and utilities through binder course be extended from December 1, 2010 to June 1, 2011. Part of the Notice of Decision was for the developer to convey the 33.65 acre open space parcel to the Governor’s Forest Homeowners Association and they have done that.
Kathy informed the Board that another condition of approval was for the developer to post surety to the benefit of the Town in the amount of $749, 862.24. On June 3, 2008 the applicant was before the Board to amend the previously approved subdivision plan. Amendments to the plan approved by the Board at this meeting were:
· Rerouting a drainage outflow pipe into detention basin #2;
· Filing of specific documents at the Strafford County Registry of Deeds was extended to March 13, 2009
· A specific amendment to the Homeowners Association By-Law was approved;
· Amendments to the slope stabilization and riprap requirements related to detention basin #2 were approved.
FX Bruton added that they do have all State permits extended until 2015. Charlie K. asked where the developer stands with a surety bond. Kathy M. replied a bond was never posted. Charlie K. followed up by asking if there is a time limit for posting the bond. Mr. Bruton replied that it is their understanding that the bond would be put in place when construction commences. Paul stated he knows the Board can grant a six month extension but questioned if a second extension can be granted. Kathy read RSA 674:39 that said an extension can be granted if substantial work is being completed. Mr. Bruton commented that the developer had many amendments to carry through and your provisions allow for a six month extension. Kathy added that the 3.11 of the Subdivision Regulations says “a six month extension may be granted” and they Board may waive their own requirements. Charlie K questioned if a six month extension is going to be sufficient to get the amount of work done that they have.
Mr. Bruton replied that in the context of the economy they would certainly be ameable to a longer extension. Kathy stated that the Notice of Decision states that the surety bond is required when construction commences.
Jim Horgan motioned to waive Section 3.11 of the Subdivision Regulations and extend the approval for 6 months beyond the March 21, 2010 to meet the substantial work requirement and extend the deadline for completion of the roadway and utilities through binder course until June 1, 2011, 2nd Charlie King who offered a friendly amendment to add an additional three months to make the new deadline dates to December 21, 2010 and September 1, 2011 respectively. Jim Horgan accepted the friendly amendment to extend the approval for a total of nine months beyond the March 21, 2010 deadline to meet the substantial work requirement and extend the deadline for completion of the roadway and utilities through binder course until September 1, 2011, 2nd Charlie King. Motion
carried with all in favor.
4. Acceptance of Fire Protection Regulations dated 2/26/2010:
Dave Kestner motioned to postpone the acceptance of the Fire Protection Regulations to the April 6, 2010 workshop, 2nd Charlie King. Motion carried with all in favor.
5. Other Business to Come Before the Board:
· Kathy informed the Board that the Board needs to appoint a member to the Cocheco River Local Advisory Committee. The Board discussed that it might be better to wait for a few weeks until all the seats have been appointed. Charlie King motioned to table the appointment to the Cocheco River Local Advisory Committee until the April 6, 2010 workshop, 2nd Charlie King. Motion carried.
· Kathy informed the Board that Geometry Blue Hills, LLC completed and recorded a survey for Thomas and Michelle Huckins.
PUBLIC HEARING 6:47PM
CONTINUED CASES:
· Application for Minor Site Plan Approval By: Arthur Cardinal (Tax Map R31,Lot 017) To allow wood processing on this property in the Industrial Business Zoning District (IB). Parcel is located on Precinct Road.
Kathy informed the Board that she received an email today from Mr. Cardinal requesting an extension because he has been ill.
Jim Horgan motioned to continue this application to April 20, 2010, 2nd Charlie King. Motion carried with all in favor.
NEW CASES:
· Public Service of New Hampshire has requested a public hearing from the Town of Farmington, to allow for the trimming and removal of trees on Poor Farm and River Roads, these roads are designated scenic roads by the town:
Dave Crane, PSNH arborist, explained PSNH is proposing a tree trimming for two (2) scenic roads (River Road and Poor Farm Road). The trees of concern are varied in diameter between five (5) and approximately twenty-four (24) inches. The trees to be removed had various issues ranging from unstable root systems, insect infestation and decay. There are eighteen total trees marked to be removed with the majority of those to be on River Road.
At 7:03pm, Chairman Parker opened the public hearing for public comment. There were no public comments. Cindy commented that she is concerned the residents along the properties of the trees that were identified today may not have recognized their trees were going to be effected in this trimming and by having public hearing tonight is the Board limiting their comments. She suggested continuing this hearing to allow the residents the opportunity to attend the next meeting to make comment now that they know there property is being affected. She then asked how many trees were identified today. Mr. Crane replied that he and Joel Moulton identified nine (9) trees today with five of those being completely dead and two (2) trees that were identified by Joel as hazardous to traffic. Kathy then
asked if PSNH can contact the landowners who will be impacted and give them notice of the next hearing by certified mail. Mr. Crane agreed that PSNH could certainly make this contact but he would appreciate permission to remove the completely dead tree on Poor Farm Road that is a hazard because it is on a PSNH line and they are not sure how long it is going to hold up.
Dave Kestner motioned to continue the public hearing for Public Service of New Hampshire tree maintenance program until April 20, 2010 to have PSNH contact the residents whose trees are being removed by certified mail and allow PSNH to remove the hazardous dead tree on Poor Farm Road and the large dead tree marked with the yellow X on River Road prior to the hearing, 2nd Charlie King. Discussion followed with Jim asking who will be responsible for the clean-up. Mr. Crane replied that PSNH will remove all the brush and typically they leave the logs for the landowner. Motion carried with all in favor.
At 7:18pm, Charlie King motioned for a short recess, 2nd Dave Kestner. Motion carried with all in favor.
At 7:28pm the Board reconvened.
· Application for Site Plan Review Approval By: Hillside Enrichment, LLC / Amanda Haynes (Tax Map R31, Lot 026): To allow for property to be used as a Licensed daycare and a home residence, in the Commercial Industrial Business Overlay (CIBO) Zoning District. Parcel is located at 6 Main Street.
Amanda Haynes, Hillside Enrichment, LLC owner, explained her and her partner, Matthew Emerson, would like to relocate their current Home Child Care Licensed business from Lone Star Ave to the previous Farm Town BBQ site. They were granted a Special Exception by the Zoning Board of Adjustment. Paul asked if any conditions were attached to their approval and Kathy explained the only condition was that if the space is vacated by Hillside Enrichment than any other occupant of the apartment must be the owner of the business.
Paul asked how many children the facility will serve and Ms. Haynes replied their license is for twelve (12) children between the ages of six (6) weeks and six (6) years. He then asked if they are proposing any fence and Ms. Haynes explained they would be erecting a fence no taller than six (6) feet and would meet the requirements of the State Child Care Licensing Bureau of 45 sq. feet per child and would be in the backyard toward Honey Dew Donuts.
Cindy asked why there is no map with the application and this led to a discussion in which Kathy stated there is a question as to whether or not this application needs to come before the Planning Board because there is no proposed structure change or change to the parking lot. Dennis is looking for clarification from the Board on Section 1.02D to see if the application requires Board review because he was not comfortable making this decision. Charlie K. stated that it was the Board’s intent to have permitted uses that do not involve structure changes greater than 1000 square feet reviewed by staff and if the Board was to continue with this application then a written request for waivers would be required.
Matt Emerson, co-business owner, informed the Board that the NH Child Care Licensing Bureau would dictate the size and placement of the play yard fence. Paul asked if they own the building and Ms. Haynes replied that they do not but they have a one year lease with the option to extend.
Charlie K. went back to state that this change of use could be reviewed by the Site Plan Review Committee. Cindy disagreed stating she feels this is a big enough change that it should require Planning Board review. Paul polled the other members and the consensus was that the application would fall under Site Plan Committee Review and does not need to come before the Board. Jim Horgan motioned to continue the hearing for Hillside Enrichment, LLC/Amanda Haynes (Tax Map R31, Lot 017) to the Site Plan Review Committee to Thursday, March 18, 2010 at 2pm, 2nd Tracy Major. Charlie King offered a friendly amendment that the Site Plan Review Committee should address the child safety concerns of some of the members of this board. Jim Horgan and Tracy Major
both accepted the amendment. Discussion followed in which Kathy noted her concern with the amendment is that the NH Child Care Licensing Bureau will dictate the fencing which is what the members are concerned about. Motion carried with all in favor.
· Application for Site Plan Review Approval By: Irving Oil Corporation (Tax Map R20, Lots 33 & 34): To allow for redevelopment of existing retail motor fuel outlet and Voluntary Merger of lots 33 and 34. Property located in the Commercial Business (CB) Zoning District at 449 NH Route 11.
Frank Monteiro, of MHF Design, reviewed the layout of the proposed site and explained that after the conceptual design review meeting they had with the Board last month PSNH made some changes to the design to accommodate the Board’s recommendations. First, they relocated the underground tanks as suggested to the back side of the site and relocated the handicapped parking to the front of the building. PSNH also removed the tree along Rte. 153 to increase the visibility as suggested.
Jason Plourde, Traffic Consultant from Greeman-Pederson, Inc,, explained that PSNH would like to close the driveway closest to the signal and modify the second driveway on Rte. 153. He looked at the accident history of the area and as a result is looking at split phasing the routes off Rte. 153 and Meetinghouse Hill Road (the State has already approved this). PSNH would also like to shorten the median on Rte. 11 to promote more room for stacking. Based on the data provided by the State PSNH has concluded that a 2-way left turn lane would be appropriate. Deceleration lanes were also discussed at the previous conceptual meeting but NHDOT felt this would not be appropriate because by opening the pavement for such a lane would actually encourage increased speeds. All the traffic design proposals
have been reviewed and approved by NHDOT (New Hampshire Department of Transportation).
Charlie asked for Mr. Plourde to explain the signaling changes and the summary of the interpretations they made of the bulk of the accidents and their causes. Mr. Plourde replied that they were given data on 15 angled accidents in which five were from violations. He then explained that right now the signal has the north and south bond approaches moving at the same time but they are suggesting having separate signal times so that both directions are moving separately and no one is trying to beat the light. Paul asked what the increase in signal time would be and Mr. Plourde replied they are not changing the overall signal time and the signal will be on a sensor.
Cindy asked if by changing the access on Rte. 11 are you potentially affecting the traffic going into the New England Furniture. Mr. Plourde replied the traffic would not be affected to the other business because they are proposing a turn-off lane so that traffic will not pile up. Tracy asked if the double left turn lane in the center of the road is there to promote business or for safety. Mr. Plourde replied that they suggested the lane for the safety of their customers. Cindy asked if the Board can send a memo with their concerns of this double turning lane to NHDOT so they can relook at the safety. Paul replied that the design will be reviewed by the Town engineers and the Board should probably wait until their comments come back.
Charlie King motioned to accept the application by Irving Oil Corporation (Tax Map R20, Lots 33 & 34) as substantially complete, 2nd Jim Horgan. Discussion followed in which Kathy reminded the Board that there are some waivers PSNH needs to request but have not done so yet. Kathy explained that on sheet L-2 of the plan the existing locations plan does not depict the two existing driveways. Frank Monteiro pointed out where they were depicted on the plan. Charlie K. asked Kathy if the Planning Board should wait on accepting the application as substantially complete until the waiver requests are complete and Kathy suggested the Board waive Sections 10, 18 and 44 for the purpose of acceptance, which will allow the hearing to continue.
Charlie King motioned to amend his motion to temporarily accept the waivers from Section 10, 18 and 44 for the purpose of acceptance only and to open the public hearing, Jim Horgan accepted the amendment. Motion carried with all in favor.
At 9:16pm, Charlie Doke motioned to continue the meeting until 10pm, 2nd Jim Horgan. Motion carried with all in favor.
Kathy outlined the scope of services for the peer review by the Town’s engineer, FST. They will have six tasks;
1. A site visit to observe existing conditions in the field,
2. Will evaluate the suitability of the site access/egress locations with respect to sight distance requirements, conflicts with adjacent driveways, pedestrian and vehicular access and on-site traffic circulation.
3. Will perform a peer review of the submitted traffic impact study (dated March 2007) and supplemental traffic evaluation (dated February 26, 2010) for completeness and conformity.
4. Prepare a Technical Memorandum of findings and recommendations on the Traffic.
5. Conduct a peer review of the submitted Stormwater Management Report and accompanying plans dated January 19, 2010.
6. Prepare a Technical Memorandum of findings and recommendations on the Drainage Review.
Charlie K. commented he is concerned about the water management on the site and Kathy explained that FST will ensure that all stormwater will be equal to or less than what is on site now and that contaminants will not leave the site. The total cost of FST’s estimate is $5,570.00. Mike Tierney expressed that he was a little concerned with the estimate but he was not going to challenge it.
Dave Kestner motioned to forward the Irving Oil Corporation application to FST for peer review, 2nd Jim Horgan. Motion carried with Charlie King opposed.
Paul opened the hearing for public comment. Since there was no comment he closed the public hearing.
Dave Kestner motioned to continue the hearing for Irving Oil Corporation to April 20, 2010, 2nd Jim Horgan. Motion carried.
At 9:42pm, Charlie Doke motioned to adjourn, 2nd Cindy Jim Horgan. Motion carried.
Respectfully Submitted,
Brandy Sanger
Recording Secretary
___________________________ _________________
Paul Parker, Chairman Date
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