Planning Board meeting minutes for Thursday February 12, 2015
Members present: Stephen Enoch, co-chair, Maggie Leonard, co-chair, Tom Sawyer.
Public present: three Select Board members; Kenn Basler, Scott Jenssen, and Wayne Burkhart; the Town Clerk, Emily Johnson; Jeff Purvis; Bettina Schwartz; Chris Tryon from Berkshire GeoTechnology; three gentlemen from Hume Lake Camp, Andy Conli, Dustin Collins, and John Foster; and Dr. Patricia Salamon (sitting-in with the Planning Board to see if she is interested in joining the board).
Just prior to the opening of the Planning Board meeting at 7:05 there was a quickie meeting of the Select Board (posted) to appoint Scott Jenssen as a member, and Kenn Basler as an associate member, of the Planning Board. The Planning Board has had difficulty convening a quorum and there are time sensitive matters pending. Wayne Burkhart made a motion to appoint the two to the Planning Board, which was seconded by Leonard and unanimously approved. Basler and Jenssen were sworn-in and agreed to help the Planning Board until the town elections in May.
The meeting opened at 7:12. Planning Board members present: Stephen Enoch, co-chair; Tom Sawyer; Maggie Leonard, co-chair (acting clerk for the meeting); Alan Salamon, on the phone; and the newly sworn-in Scott Jenssen and Kenn Basler.
Chris Tryon from Berkshire GeoTechnology gave a presentation on the Hume Lake Camp plans to construct a 7500 square-foot maintenance building on Chestnut Hill Road to house equipment for the camp property. Tryon explained that the building will be one level and will have a flat roof. He reviewed the design for the drainage structures on the plan and noted that there will be, at minimum a 200’ buffer between the abutter, Jeff Purvis, and the building. (The zoning bylaws require at least a 200’ buffer between institutional buildings and abutters.) John Foster said that Hume would be willing to plant some Arbor Vitae or other fast-growing tree to ameliorate the sight line from the Purvis property. Hume had already done some logging and clearing before they knew about the 200’ buffer zone and the woodland between
Purvis and the proposed building was thinned.
Leonard asked about lights on the building and light pollution at night. John Foster said that all lights would be facing downward and that the building would be minimally lit at night if at all. Foster said that there are no planned lights for the driveway. Sawyer asked if there was a master plan to show what the overall plan is for the property? Foster said there was not. Basler said it would be a good idea to have a master plan and that it would help the town and the neighbors.
Leonard asked if there would be any fuel storage at the maintenance building and Foster said that there would not be. Enoch asked if there would be salt and sand storage and was told no.
Alan Salamon (on the phone) asked that the Planning Board retain an expert consultant to review the Hume Lake Camp plans to make sure they are adequate. Salamon made a motion to that effect and was seconded by Sawyer. Discussion ensued. Salamon noted that he is not a professional engineer and has no idea if the plans presented are adequate. He added that he believes in would be in the best interests of the town to hire an engineer to review the plans. Jenssen (a building contractor) said that he was satisfied with the plans for the drainage systems. Sawyer (an engineer) said that he reviews various plans in his work and said that these look good. Leonard said that the building is sited far back from the road, in the woods and well away from the abutter. Enoch said that the project was fairly simple and he did not think in required a
consultant. Enoch asked if there was a written plan for the maintenance of the drainage structures? A vote was taken and the motion to hire an expert consultant failed, 5—1.
Jeff Purvis, the abutter to the proposed building, asked if the town would plow further down Chestnut Hill Road to the driveway of the maintenance building. He was hoping that the town plow turn-around would be located further down the road from his property.
In the site plan review submitted Hume requested several waivers:
- Waiver from presenting a utility plan. Tryon explained that the utility plan would be completed when National Grid brings power to the site. The board voted to approve the waiver. Hume has said the following with regard to lighting: there is no plan to illuminate the exterior of the building; if they do install lighting the exterior lights will be downward facing and will be on a timer.
- Waiver from the requirement to provide a color rendering of an architectural plan. The board voted to approve the waiver. Hume has agreed that the building will be “earth tones” to blend in with the landscape as much as possible.
- Waiver from the requirement of a landscaping plan. The building is sited about 200’ back from the road in a dense woodland. Hume agreed to plant trees to provide adequate screening of the building from the abutter.
The Planning Board voted unanimously to approve the Site Plan as submitted. Kenn Basler, a Select Board member and now on the Planning Board as an associate, said that the Town and Hume need to begin a discussion that includes the neighbors on Cronk Rd. and Chestnut Hill so that people have a sense of what the plan is for the camp.
Leonard said that a letter of approval would be sent to John Foster at Hume and the Building Commissioner Don Torrico.
The board reviewed the ADU zoning bylaw and the email from the Building Commissioner regarding the language. The board agreed to have no change in the language at this point and noted that the designation Accessory Dwelling Unit was used in other local zoning bylaws. The board agreed to hold a public hearing on Thursday March 12th for the zoning bylaw proposal.
The board reviewed an application for a special permit for Sloane of 16 Point Road. The lot is non-conforming as to size and frontage. The existing dwelling meets all setback requirements. The plan is to raze the existing dwelling and construct a larger dwelling that will also meet all the setback requirements. The building will be higher which is why the applicants need a special permit. The board agreed that someone needs to do a site visit to see if the increase in height will adversely affect the neighborhood. The board looked at Google maps and it did not look as if the height increase would affect anyone behind them because it didn’t look like there are any houses behind them.
Respectfully submitted,
Maggie Leonard, co-chair
Monterey Planning Board
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