Planning Board
Tuesday/August 17, 2004
Members Present: Barbara Freeman (Chair), William Weiler (Vice Chair), Al Bachelder, David Thayer, Peter Fichter (Alternate Ex-Officio), Ron Williams, Travis Dezotell (Alternate), Lacy Cluff (Alternate) and Ken McWilliams (UVLSRPC)
Barbara Freeman called the meeting to order at 6:05 p.m.
The meeting minutes from July 20, 2004 were reviewed and corrections were made. A motion was made to accept the minutes as corrected. Seconded. All were in favor.
Mrs. Freeman said that she wanted to go over some items that she had received. She said that Lake Sunapee Bank was offering free checking accounts to all Town employees and volunteers. She mentioned that Irving Oil was offering a special price on home heating oil to all Town employees and volunteers. She told the Board that if they had any questions on either of these offers to contact the Town Office.
Mrs. Freeman said that the Upper Valley Lake Sunapee Regional Planning Commission was having a meeting tomorrow night. She said that Mr. Bachelder had given up his position as commissioner. She said that anyone interested in assuming that position should attend the meeting tomorrow night.
Mrs. Freeman mentioned that Linda Powell was going to start a Town Newsletter. Anyone in who was interested in contributing to it could contact her.
Mrs. Freeman said that Paul LaCasse, Code Enforcement Officer, was concerned about not having enough fees to cover all items in the building regulations. She said that Mr. LaCasse had submitted material to her. Mrs. Cluff was going to make copies and distribute them to the Board members so it could be discussed at the next work session.
Case 2004-018: Public Hearing - Town of Newbury - Subdivision Regulations.
Notice is hereby given that the Newbury Planning Board will conduct a public hearing on Tuesday, August 17, 2004 at 6:15 p.m. in the Newbury Town Office Building, 937 Route 103, Newbury, N.H., to receive public input and vote on amendments to the Newbury Subdivision Regulations proposed by the Planning Board.
Copies of the proposed amendments are available for public review at the Town Office Building and Public Library during regular business hours.
Mrs. Freeman read the above public notice.
Mr. Weiler recommended suspending the hearing until someone from the public was present.
Mrs. Freeman agreed.
Mrs. Freeman said that she had received a letter from the Department of Transportation stating that Outspoken was looking to get a Drive permit. She asked if any of the Board members knew anything about it. None of the Board members had any information, so Mrs. Freeman said that she would look into it.
Mrs. Freeman said that on September 7, 2004 the Board was going to have a public hearing on the Mt. Sunapee Master Plan.
Mr. Bachelder asked what the purpose of that hearing was.
Mrs. Freeman said that it gives the Board and public the opportunity to voice any concerns because it has not been approved yet. However, by law, they do not have to make any changes based on the Board or public’s concerns.
Case: 2004-019: Conceptual Review - George & Linda West - Bed & Breakfast
Mrs. Freeman announced the above case and explained that a Conceptual Review was very informal, however, it was important to give as much information as possible. She said that the Board would give them an idea of their reception to the project, however, nothing was definite.
Linda and George West introduced themselves and said that they were looking to purchase the house that was next to the stone barn on Route 103A. The stone barn property was subdivided earlier this year, separating that house from it.
Mrs. West said that they hoped to purchase it soon and would like to open a four bedroom Bed & Breakfast by January. She said that there was an addition off of the main house that had three bedrooms that would be used for their living quarters. She said that they would like to add two more bathrooms. She said that she knew that they would have to have adequate fire escapes.
Mrs. Freeman said that they would need to make sure that the septic was adequate too.
Mr. West said that they had a professional come look at the septic, but that they were unable to locate the leach field.
Mr. Williams said that some older tanks did not have leach fields.
Mrs. Freeman said that the regulations require a letter from a professional saying that the septic was adequate for the intended use.
Mrs. West said that they were well aware that it may need considerable work or to be replaced.
Mr. McWilliams said that they would need a Special Exception from the Zoning Board in addition to coming before the Planning Board for Site Plan Review.
Mr. West said that he believed that the previous owner had gone before the ZBA for a Special Exception in the past, but it was never resolved. He said that he had the date June 19, 1995 written down.
Mrs. Freeman said that unless they can prove that it was approved by the ZBA, they would need the Special Exception. She said that for Site Plan Review, the Board required parking, traffic flow, etc., but it would make sense to have that all prepared when they went before the ZBA for the Special Exception.
Mr. West said that it was his understanding that they would need a minimum of six parking spaces.
Mr. McWilliams said that that would be correct if they were going to have four rooms, one for each guest room and two for the owner’s quarters.
Mr. West had some questions regarding fire safety and the need for sprinkler systems.
Mrs. Freeman recommended that he talk to Paul LaCasse, Code Enforcement Officer.
Mr. West said that they were planning on serving a full breakfast and had taken the food safety course in Massachusetts. The State of New Hampshire said that they would not have to re-take the course. He asked if the Board had any problems with that.
Mrs. Freeman said that that was regulated by the State, not the Town. However, if they were going to install a commercial stove they may want to talk to the Fire Chief.
Mr. McWilliams recommended that they talk to D.O.T. regarding an access permit because Route 103A was a State Road.
Case 2004-018: Public Hearing - Town of Newbury - Subdivision Regulations.
Mrs. Freeman asked if any member of the public was present to discuss the Subdivision Regulations.
Suzanne Levine said that she stopped by just to see what the changes were going to be.
She was handed a copy to review and had no comments or concerns.
With no other public comments, a motion was made to accept the Subdivision Regulations. Seconded. All were in favor.
Case: 2003-004: Final Hearing - William & Joan Schroeder - Extension on a Permit to Excavate - Map 43 Lot 151-284
Notice is hereby given that the Planning Board will receive a request for an extension on a Permit to Excavate from William & Joan Schroeder for the removal of approximately 20,000 cubic yards of material from their property on Sutton Road in South Newbury, Map 43 Lot 151-284, Tuesday, August 17, 2004, at 7:00 p.m. in the Town Office Building at 937 Route 103 in Newbury, NH.
Copies of the plan are available for public review at the Town Office Building during regular business hours.
Mrs. Freeman read the above public notice and explained that Mr. Schroeder was seeking an extension on his permit because the Town was doing construction on his road and not allowing large trucks to pass over it.
Mrs. Freeman asked what time frame he was looking at.
Mr. Schroeder said that it was originally supposed to expire on December 31, 2004 and he would like a one year extension to December 31, 2005. He said that he would be removing less than originally planned too. He was originally going to remove 20,000 cubic yards and now it was going to be about 10,000 cubic yards.
Mrs. Freeman asked for any questions from the Board.
With no questions from the Board or public, a motion was made to approve the extension for one year. Seconded. All were in favor.
Before starting the next hearing, Mrs. Freeman addressed a letter that had been sent to the Planning Board from Jay Gamble, Mt. Sunapee Resort, requesting an extension on the start date of Parking Lot # 4.
Mrs. Freeman told him that he would not need an extension because the clock did not start ticking until he had submitted all State approvals and the Board still had not received them all.
Case: 2004-017: Final Hearing - Mt. Sunapee - Site Plan Review - Alpine Warming Hut.
Notice is hereby given that the Planning Board will receive submission of an application for Site Plan Review from Jay Gamble as the agent for Mount Sunapee Resort located at Mount Sunapee State Park for construction of an Alpine Warming Hut and associated site work on Tuesday, August 17, 2003, at 7:15 p.m. in the Town Office Building at 937 Route 103 in Newbury, NH. If the application is accepted as complete, a public hearing on the application will commence at the same meeting.
Copies of the plan are available for public review at the Town Office Building during regular business hours.
Mrs. Freeman read the above public notice.
The Board reviewed the application for completeness.
Mrs. Freeman noted that there was no perimeter boundary survey because of its location.
Mr. Weiler made a motion to waive the perimeter boundary survey requirement. Seconded. All were in favor.
Mrs. Freeman asked if the existing yurt was staying or if it was going to be removed.
Mr. Gamble said that it was going to be removed and that it stated that in the narrative.
Mrs. Freeman asked about the lighting.
Sheldon Pennoyer, O’Neil, Pennoyer Architects, said that the lighting was going to be located in the soffit of the porch. He said that they were 7 inch round lights that faced downward and would only hold a bulb up to 75 watts.
Mrs. Freeman said that that description needed to be in the plans in the future but because it was now going to be part of the minutes, the verbal description would suffice.
Mr. Weiler asked if there were any permits that he would need.
Mr. Gamble said that he just needed to come for Site Plan Review and then get a building permit.
A motion was made to accept the application as complete. Seconded. All were in favor.
Mrs. Freeman noted that the sign off sheets from the required departments were included in the application and that no one had any issues with the project. She asked Mr. Gamble to give a presentation.
Mr. Gamble presented the plans to the Board and stated that this project was part of the annual plan. He explained that they would like to replace that existing yurt that was used by the Alpine Racing Program and school programs with a 32 by 56 foot building. He explained that the interior would only have tables. It was going to be like a club house for the racing program. He said that the building would have only seating and storage.
Mr. Gamble said that the International Building Code required that the structure be no more than 500' from plumbing. He said that it was 400' from the Sunapee Lodge and 350' from the Spruce Lodge. He said that there were no steep slopes. He explained that they would preserve a group of spruce trees behind the building, but there would only be grass for landscaping around the building.
Mr. Gamble said that Nicole Kesselring from Bruno and Associates did the erosion control plans. He said that they were going to use silt fencing and fabric would be used where they disturbed the slope.
Mr. Gamble said that the floor would simply be a cement slab.
Mrs. Freeman asked if he was going to have any drainage.
Mr. Gamble said that they may want to consider that.
Mr. McWilliams asked if there was a retaining wall behind the building.
Mr. Gamble said that there was and it was there to allow for the path and protect the root systems.
Mrs. Freeman asked if the building was going to have a sign.
Mr. Gamble said that it would have a small sign next to the door because they did not want it to look welcoming to the public because it was only for the ski program.
Mrs. Freeman asked about the drains.
Nicole Kesselring, Bruno and Associates, showed where the piping and drains were located.
Mr. Williams had a concern about the snow building up on the windows because the windows on the east side of the building went all the way to the ground.
Mr. Pennoyer said that there was a three foot overhang, so snow build up should not be a problem.
Mr. McWilliams asked what their schedule was.
Mr. Gamble said that if they got an approval tonight, he would like to get the building permit tomorrow. He said they would like to start the removal of the yurt next week and have the new building complete around thanksgiving. They would like to start using the building by the first week in December.
With no other questions from the Board, Mrs. Freeman opened the hearing to public comment.
Joe Torro, president of ski club, said that he was in favor of this project.
With no further comments from the public, Mrs. Freeman closed the hearing to public comment and the Board went into deliberation.
Mr. Bachelder said that he though it was going to be good to get rid of the temporary structure, the yurt.
A motion was made to approve the plan. Seconded. All were in favor.
Case: 2004-006: Continuation of Final Hearing - Angel Hawk - Major Subdivision - Sutton & Nelson Hill Road - Map 48 Lot 599-442.
Notice is hereby given that the Planning Board will receive submission of an application from Angel Hawk, LLC for a final hearing for a Major Subdivision off Sutton Road and Nelson Hill Road, Tax Map 48 Lot # 599-442, on Tuesday, May 18, 2004 at 7:30 p.m. in the Town Office Building at 937 Route 103 in Newbury, N.H. If the application is accepted as complete, a public hearing on the accepted application will commence at the same meeting.
Copies of the plan are available for public review at the Town Office Building during regular business hours.
Mrs. Freeman read the above public notice. She explained that the application had been accepted as complete at a previous meeting and this was the second time that the hearing had been continued.
Robert Stewart from RCS Designs introduced himself as the authorized agent for Angel Hawk. He explained that at the last meeting they discussed the legal documents. He asked Susan Hankin-Birke to address them.
Ms. Hankin-Birke submitted a packet of legal documents (please see file) and explained that there was a document that addressed each paragraph in the regulations. She explained that they had submitted a covenant restricting lot sales rather than posting security. She said that the covenant did not include lots13-21, except lot 16, because they would not be accessed by the new road. She also submitted the basic format for the deed.
Mr. McWilliams asked if all of the lots were going to be responsible for the maintenance of the new road.
Ms. Hankin-Birke said that only the lots that would be served by that road would be responsible for the maintenance of it.
Mrs. Freeman asked why she changed the language of the indemnification from what was written in the regulations.
Ms. Hankin-Birke reviewed the plans and said that she had put the word “damages” in because she thought that the purpose of the indemnification was for the construction period, not ongoing maintenance.
Mr. McWilliams said that Ms. Hankin-Birke was correct.
Mr. Williams mentioned that in paragraph two of the covenant restricting lot sales she was missing lot 16 which was also going to be served by the new road.
Mrs. Freeman asked if the Board needed a copy of the easement.
Mr. Stewart said that they needed to put it on the plan.
Ms. Hankin-Birke said that if they put the easement on the plan, the attorney would pick it up when he/she drew up the deed.
Lou Caron, consulting engineer from L.C. Engineering, asked what sort of security the Town would have if there was a problem with erosion control, i.e.; the project was abandoned and the site needed to be secured.
Ms. Hankin-Birke said that she believed that the regulations expressed that as a choice.
Mrs. Freeman said that that was different. This security would be in case the project was abandoned and the area needed to be stabilized.
Ms. Hankin-Birke asked if the money would be released upon completion of the road.
Mrs. Freeman said that it would.
Mr. Caron said that it would generally be released at the same time that they release the covenant restricting lot sales.
Ms. Hankin-Birke asked if that would be a condition of the approval.
Mrs. Freeman said that it would.
Mrs. Freeman asked if the fire protection was going to be public.
Mr. Stewart said that it was and that he would submit those plans once a final location was chosen.
Mrs. Freeman asked if the cistern needed to be accepted by the Town at Town meeting.
Mr. Caron said that it did not need to be accepted by the Town like the road.
Mrs. Freeman said that she thought that all the legal documents were complete.
The Board agreed.
Mrs. Freeman said that the following items were still outstanding:
1. Fire Protection
2. Show easement to lot 16 on plan.
3. Permits and approvals.
Mrs. Freeman said that she would like to move on to Lou Caron’s report dated August 17, 2004 (please see attached).
Mr. Caron distributed his report to the Board members and went over each item on his report point by point. He emphasized that these were just his recommendations and the Board may not feel that they all needed to be addressed.
The Board agreed with each of Mr. Caron’s points and wanted the applicant to address them.
Mrs. Freeman said that the applicant needed to submit a written extension if they wanted the hearing continued beyond 60 days.
Ms. Hankin-Birke said that she would submit the request in writing tomorrow.
The Board agreed to the extension.
Mr. McWilliams said that they would need to submit their subdivision plans to the Town of Sutton as well because part of lot 13 was in Sutton.
Mr. Stewart did not understand why the subdivision would need to be approved in Sutton because only a small portion of lot 13 was located in Sutton.
Mr. McWilliams recommended that he look at the RSA’s and talk to the Town of Sutton.
Mrs. Freeman opened the hearing to public comment.
Jeff Bates, abutter, asked if the Board realized that the drainage from Province Road drained into Ring Brook and how this project may effect that.
Mr. Caron said that in looking at this project, there was no large increase in the change in the characteristic of the land to create peak run-off problems. He said that the brook could handle a little more volume over time and that there would be no measurable effect on the brook.
Mrs. Freeman asked Mr. Bates if there was an existing drainage issue.
Mr. Bates said that he was just concerned from an environmental standpoint during construction.
Mrs. Freeman told Mr. Bates that Mr. Caron was working for the Town, not the applicant, and that he would continue to monitor the plans as they changed.
Mr. Caron said that it was his job to make observations and report them to the appropriate parties.
Sue McNamera, an abutter, said that she was still concerned about the common land. She felt that it should be more than just wetlands, it should be usable land.
Mr. Stewart said that they were still discussing the common land because both the Selectmen and the Planning Board had the same concern.
Marcie McNamera, an abutter, said that Province Road had historical significance dating back to the French and Indian War and felt that it should be preserved. She was also concerned about the curve in the road and the site distances.
Mrs. Freeman said that the engineer agreed with her and was requesting all driveway designs.
With no other questions from the public or Board, a motion was made to continue the hearing on September 21, 2004 at 8:00 pm. Seconded. All were in favor.
A motion was made to adjourn. Seconded. All were in favor. The Meeting adjourned at 9:45 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Lacy L. Cluff
Land Use Board Assistant
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