Minutes of Meeting
October 3, 2013
To: Town Clerk
cc: Members
File
Present: J. Livingstone, M. DePoto, P. Harrington, D. Gill, R. Pendkar
There was a motion to accept the minutes of the September 5th meeting. The motion was seconded and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
GENERAL BUSINESS
Certificate of Compliance: 4 Bogastow Brook Lane – CE159-1038
The Conservation Chairman stated that a letter has been received from the Wetland Scientist working on the project and they are requesting a Certificate of Compliance. Michele Grenier, the previous Conservation Agent, had visited the site and recommended issuing the Certificate of Compliance for this project.
There was a motion to issue the Certificate of Compliance for 4 Bogastow Brook Lane. The motion was seconded and accepted with a vote of 3-0-2; 3 Yes, 0 No, 2 Abstentions.
Certificate of Compliance: 77 Jefferson Road - SE159-901
Mr. Paul DeSimone, a representative of Colonial Engineering, appeared before the Commission for a Certificate of Compliance. Mr. DeSimone stated that the applicant had installed a deck and an addition.
Mike Maglio, Town Engineer, conducted an inspection of the site and recommended the issuance of the Certificate of Compliance.
There was a motion to issue a Certificate of Compliance for 77 Jefferson Road. The motion was seconded and accepted with a vote of 3-0-2; 3 Yes, 0 No, 2 Abstentions.
Minor Buffer Zone Activity: 19 Echo Bridge Road
Mr. Tom O’Rourke, the applicant and homeowner, appeared before the Commission to request the cutting of 9 oak trees in the backyard are within striking distance of falling on the house.
There are 6 trees located in the buffer zone and 3 are outside the 100 ft. buffer zone.
The Commission members will conduct a site walk of the property on Sunday, October 6th at
9 a.m.
Mr. Tom Brunner, an abutter of 21 Echo Bridge Road, appeared before the Commission and raised concerns about the project and some of the previous work performed on the site.
Mr. Brunner informed the Commission members that on April 15, 2008, the previous Conservation Agent, Nick Alfieri, wrote him a letter stating that the owners of 19 Echo Bridge Road will be required to have the wetlands delineated if they wish to propose any future activities that alter the buffer zone on their property.
The Commission Chairman requested a copy of this letter and it will be added to the official record and they will check to determine if there was a delineation done.
The Commission members will conduct the site walk along with the applicant to look at the trees and make a determination.
This matter will be taken up on the Agenda at the next Conservation meeting on October 17th, 2013.
Public Hearing - Notice of Intent – Camp Haiastan – 722 Summer Street - CE159-1053
Mr. Donald Nielsen, Engineer of Guerriere & Halnon, and Mr. David Hamparian, a representative of Camp Haiastan, both appeared before the Commission for the repair of the septic system at the camp. Mr. Nielsen gave the Commission a detailed overview of the plans for this project.
Mr. Nielsen stated that they are not disturbing or filling any resource area. There will be no tree cutting performed during this work. Mr. Nielsen informed the Commission that there will be crushed stone and doubled erosion control with filter mitt and silt fence in the area of the trenching near the stream.
Mr. Nielsen stated that this project is currently under review with the Board of Health; some fact finding with DEP with be done to address the flow capacity relative to treatment and then wait for 2 more weeks before the Commission takes any action on this project until the Board of Health completes its review.
In conducting this work, Mr. Nielsen stated that they will be crossing through the 25 ft. buffer zone. There are 2 stockpile areas depicted on the plans to collect the deposited materials. The trench is 8 ft. wide and 2 ft. deep.
Mr. Nielsen stated that he will appear before the Commission at the next meeting in two weeks.
There was a motion to continue the public hearing for Camp Haiastan until October 17th. The motion was seconded and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
Public Meeting – Request for Determination– NSTAR– Structural Maintenance on ROW 4
Ms. Denise Bertone, a representative of Nstar, and Mr. Brian McDevitt, a representative of Transmission Construction, both appeared before the Commission for the structural maintenance on ROW 4. There are 17 structures proposed under Conservation jurisdiction and there will be guy wires and anchors within the buffer zone only.
Ms. Bertone submitted a map depicting the location of these structures in ROW 4. The ROW has been delineated so that the wetland areas and buffer zones are known.
Mr. McDevitt gave the Commission an overview of the work to be performed and how it will be done. Some photos of the work to be done were submitted by the applicant. The work will take 3 hours for the installation of each structure.
There was a motion to issue a Negative Determination for Nstar. The motion was seconded and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
Public Meeting – Request for Determination– New England Power Company – Electric Utility Maintenance on Upper Union & Mount Streets ROW
Ms. Andrea Kendall, representing New England Power Company, appeared before the Commission for electric utility maintenance on Upper Union & Mount Streets ROW.
Ms. Kendall gave the Commission members a detailed overview of the plans for the project. The project will provide the necessary upgrades to facilitate the new power that will be generated from the nearby Kearsarge solar farm on Upper Union Street.
There are 47 utility poles that will be replaced during this work; not all of the poles are located in Conservation jurisdiction. There are 12 poles located in the buffer zone. There is a river located at the junction of Upper Union and Summer Streets.
Ms. Kendall stated that there an existing utility pole located within the 25 ft. buffer zone. There will be no excavation done for the removal of any of the utility poles. Erosion controls will be installed in all of the work areas. There is a stream and wetland on the north side of Mount Street and there will be a pole replaced there in the buffer zone.
There will be 7 poles replaced on Upper Union Street in proximity to the Kearsarge project in the buffer zone, which is all disturbed areas.
A Commission member requested that any invasive species be removed on the site found during the progress of the work.
Ms. Kendall submitted some photos of the project site for the Commission’s review.
Mr. Bryan Taberner, Director of Community Development for the Town of Franklin, appeared at tonight’s hearing and raised a question regarding this project. When you are near the Kearsarge project, will there be any impact on the existing site plan like moving fences or any changes to the Orders of Conditions from Conservation during this work. Ms. Kendall stated that there was communication between New England Power and the applicant for the Kearsarge project. He questioned are there additional poles to be installed along the property within the fence line related to this project? Ms. Kendall stated that she is not aware of this being an issue.
There was a motion to issue a Negative Determination for New England Power Company. The motion was seconded and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
Discussion: 656 King Street
Ms. Debbie Murphy of 17 Forest Street, an abutter to the Emeritus project at 656 King Street, appeared before the Commission to state her concerns regarding the effect the work is having on her backyard.
Ms. Murphy gave the Commission a detailed summary of what has transpired on this matter to date as there are some new Commission members who have not been present during any previous meetings when this matter was discussed.
The Commission Chairman stated to Ms. Murphy that the issues are not being addressed.
Mr. Bryan Taberner, Director of Community Development for the Town of Franklin, stated that several Town officials have visited the site. The Commission should only be dealing with issues regarding the Orders of Conditions and the water flowing directly onto the Murphy’s property. What do you specifically want the Commission to do?
The Commission Chairman stated that the number of inspections that were to be done according to the Orders of Conditions have not been done. Some comments were received from the site inspector for Wegman Companies with some notes in the margins addressing specific actions or activities that were taken to address these actions. There are no photos or dates attesting that this has been done and he provided Ms. Murphy with a copy of this document. This is, therefore, not a legal document.
The Commission Chairman stated that he would like the representatives for the Wegman Companies in New York to appear before the Commission at the next Conservation meeting to determine what is going on with this site.
Mr. Taberner will consult with Vine Associates, consultants for the site on behalf of the Town, and report back to the Commission at the next meeting.
Comments:
Mr. Bryan Taberner provided the Commission with an update on hiring a new Conservation Agent. The interview process is currently underway and there are 5 candidates being interviewed. The plan is to have an Agent chosen by the end of October and should be in place shortly after that time.
Signed Determinations of Applicability & Certificates of Compliance
Certificate of Compliance – 77 Jefferson Road – Woodcock - SE159-901
Certificate of Compliance – 4 Bogastow Brook Lane – Walsh - CE159-1038
Determnation of Applicability – New England Power – ROW of Upper Union & Mount Streets
Determnation of Applicability – Nstar Electric – ROW 4
There was a motion to adjourn the meeting. The motion was seconded and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
The meeting adjourned at 9:00 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Kathleen Celorier
Conservation Secretary
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