NEWTON PLANNING BOARD
MINUTES OF PUBLIC HEARING AND MEETING
DECEMBER 8, 2015
1. Call to Order: Chairman Roger Hamel called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm. In attendance were: Chairman Roger Hamel; Vice Chairman Jim Doggett; Planning Board members Barbara White, Sandra Estabrook, and Bill Smith; Alternates Jim Holland and Jim White; and Circuit Rider Planner Jennifer Rowden. Minutes were transcribed by Administrative Assistant Rick Milner.
R. Hamel appointed J. White to stand in for R. Miller.
R. Hamel appointed J. Holland to stand in for F. Gabriel.
2. Town of Newton, NH requests a public hearing to review proposed amendments to the Town of Newton Zoning Ordinance for inclusion on the 2016 Town Warrant.
R. Hamel opened the public hearing.
Code Enforcement Officer Tina Cardoso was present.
R. Hamel presented the following proposed amendment to the Town of Newton Zoning Ordinance.
Amend Section X - General Provisions, Paragraph 4. The changes are in BOLD and struck out as follows:
4. No occupant or owner of land shall have or shall cause to have on their property or permit more than one (1) motor vehicle which is not registered or inspected and with a current valid State of NH inspection, unless such vehicle is stored in a legally permitted structure. Per NH RSA 266:1, any vehicle registered shall be inspected not later than 10 days after the registration or transfer of ownership of said vehicle. This shall include vehicles or appurtenances no longer intended for legal use on the highways, or used parts or materials from which, taken together, include in bulk one or more vehicles. Violations of this ordinance shall be subject to fines and penalties as outlined in RSA 676:17. (Amended March 1994, amended March 2003, amended March
2008)
J. Rowden suggested striking ‘NH’ before ‘RSA 266:1’ as unnecessary. The Board came to a consensus without objection to remove ‘NH’ before ‘RSA 266:1.’
B. Smith asked if the proposed amendment would also pertain to car repair businesses, commercial garages, etc.
T. Cardoso explained that the amendment was intended to be applied to residential properties, not commercial properties.
R. Milner stated that the General Provisions section of the zoning ordinance applied to all zones, not just residential areas.
The Board discussed language options to clarify the intent and proper application of the proposed amendment.
R. Hamel suggested striking ‘of NH’ in the phrase ‘valid State of NH inspection.’ He stated that someone who owned a vehicle with a valid registration and inspection from another state could be found in violation of the proposed amendment.
The Board discussed additional language options to clarify the intent and proper application of the proposed amendment. The Board came to a consensus without objection to authorize the Circuit Rider Planner to draft suggested language that addresses the concerns expressed by the Board members and will clarify the intent and proper application of the proposed amendment.
J. Doggett suggested striking ‘current’ before ‘valid State of NH inspection’ as redundant. He stated that a valid inspection must be current. The Board came to a consensus without objection to remove ‘current’ before ‘valid State of NH inspection.’
R. Hamel suggested that the discussion concerning the General Provisions amendment should be continued to the next meeting date. The Board came to a consensus without objection to continue the discussion concerning the General Provisions amendment to the next meeting date.
R. Hamel presented the following proposed amendment to the Town of Newton Zoning Ordinance.
Amend Section XXXV - Commercial Architecture, Subsection III - Commercial Design Standards, Subsection B - Signs, Paragraphs 1 and 4. The changes are in BOLD and struck out as follows:
1. General. All new signs within a new development or the replacement of any sign not in existence prior to March 2007 must conform to the following requirements. All signs within a development must be consistent with the overall design of the development, and should shall be constructed of wood, granite, painted cast metal, bronze, brass, or other material consistent with the materials used in the building’s façade or fixtures. Plastic panel rear-lighted signs are not permitted. Billboards are not permitted. Signs employing mercury vapor, low pressure and high-pressure sodium, and metal halide lighting are not permitted.
4. Freestanding signs shall only be permitted where the business is not attached to any other buildings. All freestanding signs must be no larger than four feet in height and no greater than six feet in width 32 square feet. Freestanding signs constructed of natural materials such as granite or wood are encouraged.
J. Doggett asked for clarification regarding the ‘March 2007’ date.
J. Rowden suggested adding the exact date of the 2007 Town Meeting vote authorizing Section XXXV. The Board came to unanimous consensus without objection to change ‘March 2007’ to ‘March 13, 2007.’
J. Doggett moved to place the amendment to Section XXXV Commercial Architecture as revised with the ‘March 13, 2007’ date on the 2016 Town Warrant. Second by B. White. Motion carried unanimously.
J. Doggett moved that the Planning Board recommend acceptance of the amendment to Section XXXV Commercial Architecture as revised. Second by B. White. Motion carried unanimously.
J. Doggett moved to continue the public hearing to the December 22, 2015 meeting. Second by J. Holland. Motion carried unanimously.
3. Todd Fitzgerald of Newton, NH request to review performance guarantee requirements for construction of Zena Lane subdivision and roadway.
Mr. Fitzgerald addressed the Board. Mr. Fitzgerald presented the memos from his engineering consultant and the Town Engineer proposing restoration guarantee estimates for the Zena Lane site. The deposit of the restoration guarantee would allow Mr. Fitzgerald to begin construction of the roadway for the approved subdivision. The Town Engineer’s estimate totaled $15,682.00. Mr. Fitzgerald’s estimate totaled $10,250.00. Mr. Fitzgerald stated that he would accept the amount the Board considered appropriate from the two proposed estimates.
J. Doggett explained that the proposed guarantee covered erosion and restoration of the site, not the construction of the entire roadway. Building permits would not be allowed until the guarantee was reevaluated to encompass the portion of the road remaining to be built at the time of application for building permits.
J. Doggett moved that the Planning Board approve the restoration guarantee estimate for the Zena Lane subdivision and roadway in the amount of $15,682.00. Second by B. White. Motion carried unanimously.
4. Todd Fitzgerald of Newton, NH request for preliminary conceptual consultation regarding commercial development on property located at Tax Map 13, Block 2, Lot 15.
Mr. Fitzgerald stated that he wanted to inform the Board about future work to be conducted on Lot 13-2-15. Mr. Fitzgerald stated that the Town Engineer had visited the site to evaluate the scope of work. Mr. Fitzgerald’s intention was to cut in an access way with rip rap and gravel base per the plan approved for a driveway by the NHDOT. For now, the access way would be approximately 30 to 50 feet in length.
R. Hamel presented a memo from the Town Engineer indicating that the proposed scope of work did not require any type of restoration guarantee.
J. Rowden stated that this type of work did not fall under the Planning Board’s jurisdiction.
The Board came to a unanimous consensus without objection that the proposed work did not require Board review at this time.
5. Other Board business.
a. Acceptance of minutes.
J. Doggett moved to accept the minutes of the November 24 meeting. Second by J. Holland.
Discussion of the motion – S. Estabrook suggested that the November 24 minutes indicate that a letter of authorization was submitted by Michael Price allowing Jennifer Castro to represent him during the public hearing concerning the voluntary lot merger for the properties located at 94 and 96 North Main Street.
Motion carried unanimously as amended.
b. Manifests.
R. Hamel presented an operating budget manifest to the Board. The invoices reflected payment of legal ad.
J. Doggett moved to pay the operating budget manifest in the amount of $236.55. Second by B. White. Motion carried unanimously.
c. Correspondence.
R. Hamel informed the Board of correspondence received by the Planning Board office from 125 Development NH Corp.
R. Milner informed the Board of the submittal of a citizen’s petition to amend Section X General Provisions, Paragraph 4 of the Town of Newton Zoning Ordinance. A public hearing for discussion of the citizen’s petition has been scheduled for the December 22, 2015 Planning Board meeting date.
6. Adjourn: The meeting was adjourned at 7:47 pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Rick Milner
Administrative Assistant
Newton Planning Board
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