HANSON PLANNING BOARD
Minutes of the Meeting of
December 3, 2003
I. CALL TO ORDER - 7:30 p.m.
Members Present: Gerard LeBlanc, Vice Chairman
David Nagle, Clerk
Joan DiLillo, Member
Gordon Coyle, Member
Members Absent: Philip Lindquist, Chairman
Others Present: Town Planner Noreen O’Toole
Administrative Assistant Barbara Ferguson
II. ACCEPTANCE OF MINUTES
Acceptance of the Minutes of the Meeting of November 19, 2003
Motion to Accept the Minutes of the Meeting of November 19, 2003: Joan DiLillo
Second: David Nagle
Vote: 4-0
Acceptance of the Minutes of the Brookside Estates Public Hearing of November 19, 2003
Motion to Accept the Minutes of the Brookside Estates Public Hearing of November 19, 2003: Gordon Coyle
Second Joan DiLillo
Vote: 4-0
III. APPOINTMENTS
Hemlock Hills
Request to Establish a Bond
Cost Estimate from Merrill Associates
Release of Lots
The Board met with Robert Brady of Southeastern Development Corp. of Hingham and Eugene Pacella of Universal Construction of West Bridgewater to discuss a November 17, 2003 request for the posting of a bond for Hemlock Hills and a release of Lots 2-6 and a November 6, 2003 Construction Completion Estimate from its review engineering firm, Merrill Associates, Inc. of Hanover recommending a bond of $77,160. Board members had generally favorable comments on the site visit they had made to Hemlock Hills since the last meeting. Mr. Brady said that he would be talking to Highway Surveyor Richard Harris to offer his assistance in alleviating any existing drainage problems on Cross Street near the development. After reviewing the Construction Completion
Estimate from Merrill Associates, Vice Chairman Gerard LeBlanc said that he favored adding another 15 percent to the amount of the bond to protect the town if it should ever become the Planning Board’s responsibility to finish the subdivision.
Motion to require a bond of $88,700 for Hemlock Hills: David Nagle
Second: Gordon Coyle
Vote: 4-0
Motion to release Lots 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 in the Hemlock Hills subdivision pending receipt of a bond: David Nagle
Second: Gordon Coyle
Vote: 4-0
III. TOWN PLANNER’S REPORT
Master Plan Committee
Town Planner Noreen O’Toole said that she and Administrative Assistant Barbara Ferguson would be going to Boston on Monday, December 8, 2003 to meet with Carol Thomas of Thomas Planning Services, the consulting firm for the Master Plan.
Hanson Trails Committee
Ms. O’Toole told the Board that Hanson Trails Committee Chairman Philip Clemons had been by the office, but no new meeting dates have been set.
Zoning Bylaw Committee
Ms. O’Toole said that no meetings of the Zoning Bylaw Committee are scheduled.
Old Colony Planning Council Joint Transportation Committee
Ms. O’Toole told the Board that the Old Colony Metropolitan Planning Council Joint Transportation Committee will be meeting on December 11, 2003 at noon. She said that she had been advised by the town’s delegate to OCPC that Depot Village will be receiving a $7 million industrial revenue bond for its project off Phillips Street.
Other Matters
Ms. O’Toole told the Board that she would be attending a department head meeting on Thursday, December 4, 2003 and that she and Chairman Philip Lindquist would be meeting with Jordan Stone on December 15, 2003 at 10 a.m. to discuss a parcel of land owned by his father. She asked the Board members to take another look at a parcel of land on French Street that has come before the Board for an adequate access determination and Board members agreed to revisit the site to determine if access would be more acceptable from another street.
IV. APPOINTMENTS
Brookside Estates
Continued Public Hearing
(See Separate Minutes)
V. OLD BUSINESS
Decision on Edgewood Estates
Sign Certificate of Action
Ms. O’Toole told the Board that she had discovered, while writing the Certificate of Action for Edgewood Estates, that the applicant had neglected to request a waiver to allow the construction of a dead-end roadway greater than 500 feet. She notified Land Planning, Inc. of Hanson, she said, and a written request for a waiver was received seeking approval of a 970 +/- feet long roadway to access seven lots. The public hearing which closed on October 15, 2003, she said, would have to be reopened to consider the waiver request.
Motion to reopen the public hearing on Edgewood Estates: David Nagle
Second: Joan DiLillo
Vote: 4-0
Motion to grant a waiver from Section 6.5.6 (Dead End Streets) of the Hanson Planning Board Rules and Regulations Governing The Subdivision Of Land: David Nagle
Second: Joan DiLillo
Vote: 4-0
Motion to close the public hearing on Edgewood Estates: David Nagle
Second: Joan DiLillo
Vote: 4-0
Motion to sign the Certificate of Action for Edgewood Estates: Joan DiLillo
Second: David Nagle
Vote: 4-0
VI. APPOINTMENTS
Holland & Knight
Arbor House Limited Partnership
Hanson Gardens Limited Partnership
The Board met with Attorney Kenneth Hoffman of Holland & Knight LLP of Boston and Paul Ferreira of Baran Partners of Boston to discuss an October 10, 2003 letter relative to the special permit for Arbor House Associates Limited Partnership and a November 25, 2003 letter relative to Hanson Gardens Limited Partnership. In both letters Mr. Hoffman suggests that nine of the nineteen conditions in the special permits issued by the Board on March 5, 2003 are not applicable to the projects and are complicating the process of finalizing the financing. Board member Gordon Coyle recused himself from the discussion and left the room.
Attorney Hoffman said that he has discussed the situation with Jean McKnight of Kopelman & Paige, town counsel, and that she agrees that the developer is in an impossible position. He suggested that the Board issue a written clarification of the specific conditions to resolve the situation with a copy sent to the Building Inspector.
The first condition with which Attorney Hoffman took exception was Condition No. 2 which requires that final easement plans be recorded before any building permit can be issued. He suggested that the condition be satisfied prior to the issuance of an occupancy permit rather than a building permit.
Town Planner Noreen O’Toole said that the Board’s primary concern was with the 50 foot wide access easement shown on the Form A/ANR Plan approved on November 19, 2003 which coincides with the December 16, 2002 plans approved by the Planning Board in conjunction with the granting of the special permits for the two projects. All town meeting votes related to the sale of land, she noted, refer to a Plan of Land dated September 11, 2001 with no reference to an easement. The process by which the town grants the easement, she said, is being researched by town counsel.
Attorney Hoffman told the Board that he was seeking a clarification of the term “additional parking” in Condition No. 5. Condition No. 1, Attorney Hoffman said, is not applicable to the project as the developer is executing a Land Development Agreement with the town. Conditions No. 7, 8, and 9 cannot be met prior to the issuance of a building permit, Attorney Hoffman said. These conditions, he said, are more applicable to subdivision developments.
Board member David Nagle suggested one way to address the additional parking questions would be for the developer to agree to provide up to16 additional parking spaces for Hanson Gardens and up to12 for Arbor House within 60 days of completion of the projects if it is determined by the Planning Board that they are needed and to submit a plan showing the location of proposed additional parking areas for the Board’s approval.
Attorney Hoffman said that he was requesting a clarification that the Land Development Agreement with the town will satisfy condition No. 1 which requires a signed covenant prior to the endorsement of the plans. Conditions 7, 8, and 9 are timing issues, he said. They do not allow the issuance of a building permit until underground infrastructure, roadways, and stormwater management work has been completed. He recommended that the word building permit be changed to occupancy permit.
Condition No. 10, relates to deeds, condominium documents and related ownership documents. Attorney Hoffman said these are not practical to complete until the project is nearing completion. He recommended that the words occupancy permit be substituted for building permit.
Condition No. 11, he said, is not applicable since no subdivision is contemplated. Ms. O’Toole said that this condition would be met through a review process utilizing a consulting engineer hired by the Board but paid by the developer through an escrow account. The final signoff, she said, would indicate that the project meets the conditions of the special permit governed within the Land Development Agreement.
Condition No. 19, regarding a bond is not applicable, Attorney Hoffman said, because it is addressed in the Land Development Agreement. The Land Development Agreement, he said, provides for a $40,000 note and a mortgage which would allow the town to reclaim the property if the terms of the agreement are not met. David Nagle asked that Town Planner Noreen O’Toole check with town counsel to determine whether the terms of the Land Development Agreement adequately address the issue of bonding the project if it is not completed.
Board members told Attorney Hoffman that, if he drafted a document with verbiage addressing his proposed clarifications, they would be willing to discuss it when a full board was present. In the interim, Ms. O’Toole said that she would find out if there is a method for altering the conditions of an existing special permit. She noted that no request to alter the conditions of either special permit was made by the developer during the 20-day appeal period.
StoneBridge Commons
Continued Public Hearing
(See Separate Minutes)
VII. ADJOURNMENT
Motion to Adjourn: Joan DiLillo
Second: Gordon Coyle
Vote: 4-0
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