HANSON PLANNING BOARD
Minutes of Public Hearing
1248 & 1258 WHITMAN STREET
JANUARY 3, 2001
Members Present: David Harris, Vice Chairman
Gerard LeBlanc, Clerk
Joan DiLillo, Member
Members Absent: Chairman Philip Lindquist
Gordon Coyle, Member
I. CALL TO ORDER - 8:00 P.M.
A. Vice Chairman David Harris notified all present that the meeting was being tape recorded and filed.
B. Clerk Gerard LeBlanc read the following public hearing notice published in the Hanson Town Crier on December 14 & 21, 2000:
PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE
The Hanson Planning Board will hold a public hearing on Wednesday, January 3, 2001 at 8:00 p.m. in the Hanson Town Hall, 542 Liberty St., Hanson on a definitive subdivision plan showing a 15-lot residential subdivision off Whitman Street. The plan is further identified as Lots 19 and 19C on Assessors’ Map 110. Deed to said property is recorded in the Plymouth District Registry of Deeds, Book 4794, Page 457 and Book 2310, Page 423. The subdivision, entitled 1248 & 1258 Whitman Street, is located in Hanson and is dated October 9, 2000 by Grady Consulting, LLC, 39 Pond View Drive, Kingston, MA 02364. The Plan was submitted by Goscon, Inc., P.O. Box 182, Kingston, MA 02364. A copy of the subdivision plan is available in the Hanson Town Clerk’s office and in the Planning Board office for
review.
Philip R. Lindquist, Chairman, Hanson Planning Board.
Gerard LeBlanc, Clerk
Hanson Town Crier
December 14, 21, 2000
C. Administrative Assistant Barbara Ferguson said that all abutters had been notified of the public hearing by certified mail as required.
II. PRESENTATION OF PLANS FROM APPLICANT/ENGINEER
Engineer Rick Grady told the Board there are currently two houses on the 24 acre site which is located in a Residence AA Zone. The zone will necessitate 175 feet of frontage, 50 foot front and rear setbacks, and 25 foot sideline setbacks on 40,000 square foot lots.
A total of 15 residential lots are proposed for the site which is located off Whitman Street near the Whitman town line. The existing house at 1248 Whitman Street would remain on Lot 1 and the second house would be removed. Fourteen new houses in the $300,000 price range would be constructed. The total cumulative length of the roadway system would be 1,634 feet with approximately 1,200 feet for Litchfield Lane and 400 feet for Irene Circle.
Mr. Grady said minor streets are proposed in accordance with the Hanson Planning Board Rules and Regulations that would result in a roadway pavement width of 20 feet with 18 inch berms and a four foot sidewalk. The sidewalk will be on the side of the roadway that abuts the existing home on Lot 1. The project will have underground utilities, town water and on-site septic systems.
Drainage will be collected through a series of catch basins and manholes and discharged to two separate drainage areas, one at the cul de sac on Litchfield Lane and the other at the cul de sac on Irene Circle which will reduce the rate of stormwater runoff prior to discharge to the wetlands, Mr. Grady said. Copies of Stormwater Management Design Calculations were submitted with the subdivision application and the analysis is available for viewing in the Planning Board office. Mr. Grady said that the calculations for 2, 10, 25 and 100 year storms indicate a slight reduction in runoff from the site through the use of the detention basins. The catch basins and manholes will discharge to sediment forebays where sediment will be removed and then overflow to the
detention basins that will hold the water and discharge it slowly to the rear, he said.
Mr. Grady noted that the roadway and site layout were designed around the area of wetlands to the rear of the site to meet Hanson Conservation Commission requirements regarding “no disturb” areas. He said the Board of Health has been contacted regarding percolation tests. Some successful preliminary soils testing has been done throughout the site, Mr. Grady said, which indicated very gravely soil toward the front with some tighter soils in other areas.
Mr. Grady said that the developer was requesting two waivers from the Hanson Planning Board Rules and Regulations. The first waiver request is from Section 6.5.3 Intersections of Street Sidelines and the second from Section 6.5.6 Dead End Streets.
Mr. Grady said the first waiver was being requested to allow the subdivision of the street intersection with no rounding of the street sideline as the applicant has sufficient space to construct the actual roadway with 30 foot radius curbs at the entrance. An access and utility easement has been proposed over Lot 1 to allow the extension of the proposed sidewalk to the existing street.
There is an existing 40 foot wide strip to the second existing house, he said, and the roadway would be constructed within that strip. The existing homes were constructed before zoning. The zoning was changed from Residence A to Residence AA in the in1960’s which increased the frontage requirements, Mr. Grady said, and as a result almost no houses on the street conform to the current requirements. The house to be retained on Lot 1 has only 148.73 feet of frontage. The proposed roundings, he noted, are entirely within the road layout for Whitman Street and Litchfield Lane and do not encroach on any property.
The second waiver was being requested, Mr. Grady said, to allow the construction of two streets with a maximum dead end length of 1,213 feet and a cumulative dead end length of 1,634 feet. The board’s requirements of 500 feet, he said, would not allow full development of the property. He noted approval of the waiver would be consistent with other similar projects in the area.
III. QUESTIONS FROM ABUTTERS
Member Joan DiLillo then read the list of abutters certified by the Hanson, Rockland and Whitman Boards of Assessors with those present given the opportunity to make comments or ask questions.
Neighboring Communities
Hanover Planning Board - No Comment
Halifax Planning Board - No Comment
Pembroke Planning Board - No Comment
Whitman Planning Board - No Comment
East Bridgewater Planning Board - No Comment
Hanson Abutters
Graham & Irene Litchfield - Not Present
Dennis & Janet Litchfield - Not Present
Mark & Susanne Eaton - Not Present
Douglas Ficks & L. A. Gillespie - Not Present
David & Dawn Weber - Not Present
William & Deborah Dyer - Not Present
Richard & Theresa Faenza - Not Present
Wayne & Jane Sylvia - Not Present
Robert & Patricia Charbonnier - Mr. Charbonnier asked how long ago original percolation tests were done and on what lots they were done. Mr. Grady said the tests were done in October of 1999. There is sketch, he said, and a copy could be made available upon request.
Thomas & Jean Butler - Arrived Late - No Comment
Russell & Elizabeth Stone - Mrs. Stone questioned the location of a catch basin and was told it would be behind Mr. Charbonnier’s house and the home of Martha and Salan Ea. At the request of Vice Chairman Harris, Mr. Grady, advised that at the rear of the Charbonnier’s rear property line the ground elevation is approximately 140. The area where the retention basin is proposed is approximately 30 feet lower at elevation 110. The wetland area at the rear of the property is at elevation 90. The property slopes close to 50 feet from front to back, he said, and the same drainage patterns will be maintained. The catch basin, he said, is between 240 and 250 feet behind the Charbonnier property line.
Brian and Tracy Constantino - Not Present
Robert & Janice Lifrieri - Not Present
Thomas & Linda Burke - Mrs. Burke, whose property abuts the proposed subdivision roadway, asked which side of the roadway would have the sidewalk and was told it would be on the opposite side from her property. The rounding, she was told, would not affect her property. She also asked if many trees would be taken down and was told some would have to come down. She was assured that the developer would consider some type of privacy screening to compensate for the loss of trees.
Sheila Niksa - Not Present
Martha & Salan Ea - Not Present
Kevin & Nancy O’Brien - Not Present
James & Gail Hobbs - Arrived Late - No Comment
David & Linda Shepherd - Not Present
Stephen & AnnMargaret O’Toole - Not Present
Louis & Gloria Borghesani - Not Present
Patrick Darcy - Not Present
William & Theresa Ann O’Brien - Mrs. O’Brien asked whether the abutting Rye Hill Estates subdivision was taken into consideration when retention areas were designed. The drainage for the property is well divided, she was told, which will prevent run off to any abutting property or vice versa. Mr. Grady said that he had reviewed the plan for that subdivision in the Planning Board office. Town Planner Noreen O’Toole said that Rye Hill is in the process of being redesigned based on conservation issues. She said the Planning Board would like the two subdivisions to be connected for safety reasons if they are both approved. Mrs. O’Brien then asked if an traffic study was being considered to assess the impact. Ms. O’Toole said traffic is the reason the Board likes
subdivisions connected and requires roundings for site distances.
Albert & Florence Miller - Not Present
Scott & Patricia Griffin - Not Present
Joseph Engrassia & Amy Lawlor - Not Present
Mary & Richard Raymond - Not Present
William Brooks - Mr. Brooks said that he would like to see plans for the entrance off Whitman Street to see how it is going to be done. He also said he would be interested in the results from former percolation tests, and Noreen O’Toole advised him they could be obtained from the Board of Health. Mr. Grady said he would stake the property bounds so that Mr. Brooks could visually see exactly where the road is going to go.
Sinaci Bekir - Not Present
Rockland Abutters
Kenneth Crosby (Also Whitman) - He questioned the number of catch basins emptying into the detention system that would effect his property and was told there were five. Mr. Grady said that the subdivision would be discharging at a level that was about 13 feet lower than Mr. Crosby’s property. There would be no drainage flow towards his property Mr. Grady said.
Andrew & Louise McCarthy - Mrs. McCarthy said that all of the drainage would be flowing towards her farm in Rockland. All the water from that lot, she said, will end up in her back pasture where she raises crops. She said there is inadequate drainage on Beech Street. The trailer park and new subdivision off Beech Street in Rockland also impact her property, she said. Her son, Christopher Looney, said that the extension of Litchfield Lane beyond the 500 feet allowed will seriously impact his mother’s property. Mr. Grady said, although a developer is not required to make a situation better, the drainage calculations for this project indicate an approximate five percent reduction in runoff.
Robert & Kathleen Looney - Mrs. Looney predicted that her property and that of the McCarthys will be inundated if there is any further runoff. The situation is complicated by the fact, she said, that the soil is all clay. She noted that the drainage on Beech Street is inadequate to carry away existing water let alone any new runoff. If the new development is approved, she said, the property will become a swamp and be totally undevelopable. The property is located on the split, the Looneys said, between the Taunton and North River Watersheds. They asked that the Board not approve the waiver that would allow a road that is more than 500 feet in length.
Whitman Abutters
George & Janice Shanks (Also Hanson) - Not Present
Ray & Phyllis Smith (Also Hanson) - Not Present
Stephen & Joanne Langenfeld (Also Hanson) - Not Present
Barbara Lyons - Not Present
IV. Questions from the public
Philip Clemons, Chairman of the Hanson Trails Committee, asked how old the house is that is scheduled to be demolished and if there are any pertaining bylaws. Mr. Grady said that the house was probably built in the early 1970’s. Board members said there is no bylaw regarding the removal of existing buildings. Mr. Grady said the only requirement would be a permit from the Building Inspector. Mr. Clemons also asked whether the development would cause any parcels to become landlocked and, if so, could there be pedestrian easements to potential back land. Mr. Grady said there are none proposed, and he did not see any parcels abutting this project in which the public should have much interest.
V. Questions/Comments from other Town Boards/Departments
Police Department - A November 20, 2000 letter from Chief Russell King indicated no problems regarding public safety issues.
Water Department - A. December 27, 2000 letter from Water Superintendent Edward Reed indicated where the water main should be located, said an easement should be shown to the proposed Rye Hill Estates subdivision, stated plans should show water service to each lot, and requested an as-built plan be submitted on disk for the department’s GIS system.
Fire Department - According to Administrative Assistant Barbara Ferguson, Fire Chief Peter Huska stated he had no comments on the plan in a December 28, 2000 telephone conversation.
VI. Questions from Planning Board members
Vice Chairman David Harris noted written questions from Chairman Philip Lindquist regarding the width of the sidewalk and grass strip, the width of the road, curbing, and an analysis of the site distance where the entrance meets Brook Street. Mr. Grady said the street had been designed as a 20 foot minor street rather than a 26 foot local street to reduce the amount of runoff. Ms. O’Toole said that in the past the Board has required a local rather than a minor street when 500 foot street length waivers were requested. Mr. Harris said he would defer discussion on his comments until the chairman returns.
Gerard LeBlanc said he would like to see some plantings incorporated into the plan on the Burke side of the roadway for screening. He stressed that he would like to see the roadway staked so it would be clear where it will be going, and Mr. Grady said he would give the Planning Board office a call so that anyone who is interested could take a look at it. Mr. LeBlanc said he would like to see the grades beyond the subdivision so the impact on Rockland could be determined. The Rockland abutters asked that the runoff be recalculated if the roadway is to be 26 rather than 20 feet. Mr. Grady further explained his first waiver request for rounding.
VII. Comments from Board’s Engineer
Vice Chairman David Harris read a six-page December 5, 2000 review of the subdivision by Michael Perrault of P.M.P. Associates that offers three zoning comments, notes 22 items that should be addressed, and also offers a stormwater management analysis. Mr. Perrault recommended that the plans be revised along with the stormwater management design calculations. The revisions should reflect the Planning Board’s determination regarding the classification of the two streets and their feeling regarding the length of the dead end, Mr. Perrault said. A copy of the P.M.P. Associates letter is available in the 1248 & 1258 Whitman Street file in the Planning Board office.
VII. Findings
The Board concluded that the hearing should be continued to allow the developer time to incorporate into the plans revisions outlined in the P.M.P. Associates letter of December 5, 2000. The Rockland abutters asked if the Board would give consideration to allowing a 20 foot road from the start of Irene Circle to the cul de sac at the end of Litchfield Lane to reduce runoff.
Motion to continue the hearing to February 7, 2000 at 8 p.m.: Gerard LeBlanc
Second: Joan DiLillo
Vote: 3-0
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