Franklin Conservation Commission
Minutes of Meeting
March 5, 2015
To: Town Clerk
cc: Members
File
Present: J. Livingstone, P. Harrington, R. Pendkar, S. Younis, S. McLean, George Russell, Conservation Agent
Mr. George Russell’s Agent’s Report has been appended to the minutes.
Public Hearing – Abbreviated Notice of Resource Area Delineation – 60 Daniels Street – Longobardi - CE159-1083
Jeff Livingstone, Conservation Commission Chairman, recused himself from this public hearing.
The applicant for this project did not appear at tonight’s meeting.
George Russell, Conservation Agent, stated that it is DEP’s policy on ANRAD’s that when there is snow cover, the hearing should be continued until the ground can be seen. He also explained to an abutter that appeared at the meeting the purpose of the ANRAD.
There was a motion made by Steve Younis to continue the public hearing for the ANRAD for 60 Daniels Street until April 9th at 7:15 p.m. The motion was seconded by Scott McLean and accepted with a vote of 4-0-0.
Public Hearing - Notice of Intent - 10 Cotton Tail Lane – Ronca – CE159-1081
The Commission Chairman stated that a letter has been received from the applicant’s representative requesting a continuance of the public hearing until April 9th.
There was a motion made by Paul Harrington to continue the public hearing for 10 Cotton Tail Lane until April 9th at 7:25 p.m. The motion was seconded by Steve Younis and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
Continued – Public Hearing - Amendment – 505 West Central Street - CE159-1009
Mr. Donald Nielsen, Engineer of Guerriere & Halnon, appeared before the Commission for the construction of a Midas service facility.
Mr. Nielsen informed the Commission that he will be filing a Notice of Intent for this project next Tuesday for the March 26th meeting. The issues regarding the differences of addresses and lots will be rectified at this time
Mr. Nielsen stated that for these reasons he is requesting that this public hearing be continued until March 26th.
There was a motion made by Steve Younis to continue the public hearing for an Amendment for 505 West Central Street until March 26th at 7:15 p.m. The motion was seconded by Scott McLean and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
Public Hearing – Amend Rules & Regs for Public Addressing Commission
George Russell, Conservation Agent, informed the Commission members of a regulatory amendment he is proposing. It provides a vehicle for somebody who would like to address the Commission to do so without having an open ended public forum.
Mr. Russell stated that he is currently undertaking a comprehensive review of all the rules and regs, bylaws, packets and forms, etc. These matters will be coming before the Commission at a meeting in early April.
Mr. Russell explained to the members the purpose of this amendment and how it may facilitate matters for the Commission and the public as well.
There was a motion made by Scott McLean to close the hearing on the Commission Rules & Regulations. The motion was seconded by Steve Younis and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
There was a motion made by Scott McLean to accept the new Commission rules and regulations outlined in section 22 with the aforementioned correction and additional language clarifying the difference between this and the appeals process. The motion was seconded by Ravi Pendkar and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
Public Hearing - Notice of intent - 11 Forge Parkway – Eastern Propane - CE159-1082
Steve Younis, Conservation Commission member, recused himself from this public hearing.
Mr. Donald Nielsen, Engineer of Guerriere & Halnon, and Mr. Paul Dion, a representative of Crenshaw Construction, both appeared before the Commission for the construction of a 2,320 sq. ft. addition of a 2-bay garage.
Mr. Nielsen gave the Commission a detailed overview of the plans for this project.
He requested a waiver from the requirement to retain the 25 ft. buffer no disturb , he stated that they have to eliminate the whole access road around the back of the building. The second issue would be to have standard drainage, the site would have to be raised 4-5 ft. in elevation in order to comply with stormwater management regulations.
Mr. Nielsen requested a variance for work in the 50-100 ft. buffer, there are changes needed to manage the truck parking area in order to make the site more compliant with current regulations.
George Russell stated that there were no field inspections to check the wetlands flags due to the snow. There was an existing Notice of Intent on this property which has expired and requested the applicant to review the conditions on this permit. This has not been done as of yet.
Mr. Nielsen is appearing before the Planning Board and would like to determine what their comments are in order to incorporate them with the Commission’s comments.
A Commission member requested that they keep any disturbance outside of the 25 ft. buffer zone. The applicant stated that is impossible.
There was a motion made by Paul Harrington to continue the public hearing for 11 Forge Parkway until the March 26th meeting at 7:25 p.m.. The motion was seconded by Scott McLean and accepted with a vote of 4-0-0.
Public Hearing - Notice of Intent – Nu-Style – 87 Grove Street – Town of Franklin - CE159-1085
Mr. Bryan Taberner, Director of Community Planning & Development, appeared before the Commission for the demolition of Building II at the Nu Style property on Grove Street.
Mr. Taberner gave the Commission members a detailed overview of the plans for this demolition project which will be undertaken by the Town of Franklin. The site is in close proximity to Mine Brook and the building is in a bad state of disrepair and it is also a safety concern. There are also concerns regarding debris during the demolition entering Mine Brook as well as erosion concerns.
Mr. Taberner gave the Commission members a detailed overview of the plans for the project. The project will take approximately 2-3 weeks in duration. There will be a double row of waddles for erosion control. There will also be a floating silt curtain put in the water as an additional method of erosion control. All of the hazardous material located in the building will be removed before the demolition work starts. This will be done according to DEP regulations. The vegetation will be allowed to go back to its natural state.
George Russell, Conservation Agent, stated that he will be visiting the site on a daily basis to ensure that any debris that gets into the stream from the project gets removed. He also recommended that special conditions #20, 21,24,26,33 and 34 be added to the Orders of Conditions when it is issued.
Mr. Ralph DeLuca, an abutter of 15 Old Forge Hill Road, raised a concern regarding the property. There is a lot of debris in the brook at the present time. He questioned if this will be removed from the brook during this work. He was informed that was not a part of the project and only the owner of the brook could undertake this work.
There was a motion made by Ravi Pendkar to close the public hearing for 87 Grove Street. The motion was seconded by Paul Harrington and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
There was a motion made by Ravi Pendkar to approve the Notice of Intent for 87 Grove Street, Nu-Style Building II with the special conditions 20, 21, 24, 26, 33 & 34. The motion was seconded by Steve Younis and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
GENERAL BUSINESS
Discussion: Wetlands Bylaw
George Russell, Conservation Agent, informed the Commission members that there is a very strict limitation on the amount of consultant fees that can be charged and they are based on the amount of the project. The local body may retain a consultant that they deem necessary at the applicant’s expense as long as the fee is reasonable.
There is currently a conflict between what is reasonable for an engineering peer review and what the allowable limits are as stated in the Bylaw. Mr. Russell recommended that the Commission generate a letter to the Town Council recommending this be modified. The exact wording for this letter is enumerated in his Agent’s Report.
There was a motion made by Paul Harrington to vote to recommend to the Town Council new wording for the wetlands bylaw. The motion was seconded by Scott McLean and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
Minutes:
There was a motion made by Paul Harrington to approve the minutes of the January 29th meeting with 1 revision. The motion was seconded by Scott McLean and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
There was a motion made by Ravi Pendkar to approve the minutes of the February 12th meeting. The motion was seconded by Steve Younis and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
Signed Orders of Conditions
Orders of Conditions – Nu-Style – 87 Grove Street – Town of Franklin – CE159-1085
There was a motion made by Ravi Pendkar to adjourn the meeting. The motion was seconded by Steve Younis and accepted with a vote of 5-0-0.
The meeting adjourned at 8:45 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Kathleen Celorier
Conservation Secretary
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