Newton Planning Board
Minutes of WORKSESSION
March 25, 2008
All minutes are in draft form until approved by the Planning Board. Please check subsequent minutes for approval of and/or amendments to these minutes.
1. Call to Order / Attendance: Vice Chairman, Jim Doggett called the meeting to order at 7:12pm. In attendance were: Vice Chairman, Jim Doggett; Planning Board Members, Kim Vaillant, Frank Gibbs and Barbara White; Ray Thayer, BOS ex officio; and Administrative Assistant, Lisa Babcock. Minutes were transcribed and typed by Lisa Babcock.
Also in attendance: Circuit Rider Planner, Eric Steltzer
1. Grey Barn Boatworks: request by William Colbert for a letter from the Planning Board to NHDMV as required for Boat Dealer registration and final approval of a minor non-residential site plan at 14 Amesbury Road. The property is referenced as Tax Map 10 – Block 7 – Lot 20-1. Mr. Colbert, owner of Grey Barn Boatworks, was in attendance and distributed revised building layout plans.
Steltzer referred the Board to his review letter dated 3/19/08 re: Grey Barn Boatworks Minor Site Plan. Steltzer recommended that the following be added to the plan: business owner's name, scale and north arrow. He also recommended that the plan be reprinted on 34" x 24" paper.
Steltzer reviewed the revised building layout plans and stated that they appeared to be complete and the conditions of the approval had been met. He said that the Board could issue the letter for boat dealer registration stating that Mr. Colbert had complied with town zoning and regulatory requirements and that in doing so this would not permit any changes in the operation of the business as approved. Steltzer also recommended that a letter of Facts and Findings affidavit be recorded as an addendum to the site plan for the lot.
Vaillant moved to grant final approval for the minor non-residential site plan for Grey Barn Boatworks and provide the requested letter for boat dealer registration. Second by Gibbs. Motion carried 4-0-1 with Thayer abstaining.
2. OEP Conference: the Board was informed of the OEP Planning and Zoning Conference to be held April 26th. Board members were asked to forward registration forms to the secretary if they wished to attend.
3. CIP Discussion with Chief of Police: Chief Streeter was in attendance to discuss the capital needs of the police department. He stated that his aim was to establish the need for more building space. Chief Streeter handed out a report titled "Report to the Newton Planning Board – Capital Improvement Program" which outlines the department's needs and provides supporting statistics and details.
Steltzer recommended that the Planning Board choose either the Safety Complex or the individual department needs (separate improvements to the existing police and fire facilities) in the CIP but not both. Vaillant and Doggett disagreed stating that they wanted the CIP to include both the Safety Complex and the smaller individual projects in order to give the Board of Selectmen more choices when deciding on budgets and warrant articles.
Chief Streeter stated that although Newton's relatively high per capita income precludes the community from qualifying for USDA grant money for the police building, the Town could qualify for a low interest loan.
Chief Streeter then read through his report. Some key points were:
· the area of the current police station is approximately 1,296 square feet
· the Town's ratio of officers to residents is 1.1 to 1,000.
· the Town has not added a full time officer since 1996
· the population, number of taxable properties, number of road miles, and number of streets have all increased since 1996
· to increase the ratio of officers to 2.0 per 1,000 residents, the town would need a total of 9 officers
· there were 485 incidents/events in 2007 requiring extra documentation and follow-up for 3.5 officers to manage
· the workload leaves little time for proactive community involvement
· the International Association of Police Chiefs recommends 300 square feet of building space for each full time employee
· the current space deficit (for 7 full time employees – including administrative personnel) is 805 square feet
· the projected deficit (for 11 full time employees) is 2,104 square feet
· the current facility is deficient or completely lacking in the following areas: there is no garage bay, training room, conference room, kitchen/break room, records room, interview room, supervisor office or detective office; and the current booking room, administrative area, lobby, restroom facilities, storage areas and locker room are inadequate
Chief Streeter also handed out an article entitled "Building a New Police Facility" and current and proposed building layouts.
Doggett asked how many people were on duty at any one time. Chief Streeter replied that that does not figure into the equation for determining building size since all of the functional areas are required regardless of the number of officers on duty.
Chief Streeter added that the services provided by the police add to the quality of life for Newton residents and that the Town views the police department as a viable part of the community.
Steltzer asked about the cost of the facility and in what years the cost could be expected to be incurred. Chief Streeter stated that the cost was expected to be between $800,000 and $1,000,000. Steltzer said that he would work on condensing the information provided by Chief Streeter into a format suitable for the CIP. Vaillant stated that it is important to include the tax impact per $1000 in any warrant articles. She also said that she would look into how the city of Haverhill funded their new police station.
4. Rockingham MPO Appointee: Steltzer stated that in order to get federal transportation funding a region must form an MPO (Metropolitan Planning Organization). A representative from each town in the MPO is needed to bring the town's issues regarding transportation planning to the regional meetings. Doggett tabled further discussion of this item until the April 8th meeting.
5. Sargent Woods – Hampstead Area Water Company: Steltzer had reviewed the plan and Water Rights Deed and Easement and forwarded his responses in an e-mail dated 3/25/08. Steltzer stated that the deed on record gives all rights to the water on the Sargent Woods property to Hampstead Area Water Company (HAWC). He also stated that the franchise plan includes an area much larger than the Sargent Woods property. No other water company would be allowed within the franchise area, including Town water should that ever become an option. Private wells would be allowed, however.
Steltzer said that if there was to be any large extraction of water from the Town, HAWC would be required to hold a public hearing before the Public Utilities Commission (PUC). He stated that water resources are regulated by the State. HAWC will appear before the PUC for the franchise of Sargent Woods. The Board of Selectmen will need to fully understand the plan submitted by HAWC.
Doggett directed the secretary to notify the BOS that HAWC will appear before the Planning Board on April 8th to describe the plan for Sargent Woods.
Vaillant asked if it should be noticed in the paper. Steltzer said it should be listed as a topic of discussion on the agenda and posted per the usual procedure.
6. Twombly Drive: the Board reviewed an e-mail from Kim Pettit dated 2/4/08 re: Hebb. The Town Administrator had requested an update of the project's status. The road had not been completed and only one home had been built in the subdivision to date. Doggett stated that there is a time limit for active and substantial development. Thayer stated that the project should have been completed in 2007.
Gibbs said if the bond was not enough to finish the road; the BOS could attach one of the lots as had been done on Overlook Drive.
Vaillant moved to send a letter to the BOS suggesting that they pursue completing Twombly Drive to specification using the bond and attaching one of the lots if necessary. Second by Gibbs. Motion carried unanimously.
7. Acceptance of Minutes:
Gibbs moved to accept the minutes of the 3/11/08 public hearing as written. Second by Vaillant. Motion carried unanimously.
8. Letter of Inquiry for Alternate Position: The Board reviewed a letter from Mary Sousa requesting to be an alternate.
Vaillant moved to accept the request and appoint Ms. Sousa as an alternate to the Planning Board. Second by Gibbs. Motion carried unanimously.
9. AA review: This item was tabled until the 4/8/08 meeting.
10. Correspondence:
a. Memo from Rec. Commission dated 3/11/08 re Use of Town Beach: The Board reviewed a memo from the Recreation Commission which stated that Recreation does not have an agreement with the Whispering Pines Campground to use the beach, only town residents are permitted to use the Town Beach.
Vaillant moved to send a letter to Mr. Pica/Whispering Pines Campground notifying him that campers are not permitted use the Town Beach. Second by White. Motion carried unanimously.
b. Memo from the Board of Selectmen dated 3/24/08 regarding payment of the balance of the IT consultant's invoice dated 10/26/07.
Vaillant moved to send a memo to the BOS requesting that the IT services go out to bid. She stated that there were many options for obtaining qualified personnel for IT services. Thayer said he would bring the Board's concerns to the BOS and Vaillant's motion was withdrawn.
11. Other Business: White asked why the Planning Board had not had any representatives at the last deliberative session despite there being several zoning ordinances on the town warrant. Doggett stated that several Planning Board members were present at the deliberative session and that the ordinances presented via citizen's petition could not be altered by the Planning Board.
White also asked why the Board did not support the ordinance submitted by the building department regarding building codes. Vaillant explained that the state building codes are included in the ordinances by reference and that to make a specific inclusion would require the Board to update the ordinances every time the state codes were updated. With the current wording, the ordinances are automatically updated when the state codes are changed.
10. Vaillant moved to adjourn at 9:00 pm. Second by Gibbs. Motion carried unanimously.
Respectfully Submitted,
Lisa Babcock
Administrative Assistant
Newton Planning Board
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