REGULAR MEETING MINUTES
Wednesday, October 17, 2012 at 7:30 p.m.
Town Hall – 1st Floor Conference Room
302 Main Street
I. CALL TO ORDER
Chairman Janis Esty called the regular meeting to order at 7:40 p.m.
II. ROLL CALL
Members Present
Janis Esty
David Shearer
Michael Urban (seated for R. Missel)
Members Absent
Robert Missel
Cathryn Flanagan
Donald Ranaudo
Kathleen Sugland
Kenneth Soudan
Staff Present
Christine Nelson, Town Planner
Kathleen Noyes, Recording Clerk
A. Minutes
MOTION to approve the minutes from October 3, 2012 as presented.; MADE by D. Shearer; SECONDED by M. Urban; VOTED IN FAVOR: M. Urban, J. Esty, D. Shearer; OPPOSED: none; ABSTAINED: none; APPROVED: 3-0-0.
MOTION to pay invoice #31118 dated 10/1/2012 from Branse, Willis and Knapp for $33.00.; MADE by D. Shearer; SECONDED by M. Urban; VOTED IN FAVOR: J. Esty, D. Shearer, M. Urban; OPPOSED: none; ABSTAINED: none; APPROVED: 3-0-0.
MOTION to pay invoice #31117 dated 10/1/2012 from Branse, Willis and Knapp for $825.00.; MADE by J. Esty; SECONDED by D. Shearer; VOTED IN FAVOR: J. Esty, D. Shearer, M. Urban; OPPOSED: none; ABSTAINED: none; APPROVED: 3-0-0.
In their packets, Commissioners received the following: the schedule of Zoning Commission meetings for 2013, “The Commissioner” A publication of the American Planning Association (Summer 2012), and a copy of a letter dated 9/24/12 from an anonymous citizen complaining about the unsightly look of the Boston Post Road corridor especially “the stuff” in front of a particular shop on Boston Post Road.
C. Nelson said this is an enforcement issue which the Zoning Enforcement Officer is currently working on.
D. Shearer said as a member of the Route 1 Task Force, he would be sure this letter would be taken into consideration as the Task Force moves their focus to Route 1 West.
M. Urban suggested a copy of this letter be sent to the owner of the shop.
J. Esty emphasized that it is important that the rules for selling items in front of a shop or a store are consistent for everyone.
C. Committee, Representative & Staff Reports
The Route 1 Task Force meets on 10/23/2012. C. Nelson will be speaking to the group. D. Shearer will be showing video that he recorded of Route 1 East coming off of I-95.
J. Esty noted that the IWWC will meet on 10/18/12, and the NHMC will be meeting on 10/24/12.
C. Nelson said the town has received a $20,000.00 payment for adoption of the Incentive Housing Zone from the State Office of Policy and Management. The town is expecting that there will be another payment for development of the actual units.
Jay Northop from the NHMC has moved to TN. The group is trying to complete the report soon. They’ve invited the Regional Planning Agency to their first meeting in November.
J. Esty asked if Commissioners had reviewed the e-mail C. Nelson sent informing them of scenic sign dimensions. C. Nelson said scenic signs would be exempted up to 6 square feet from the sign regulations if they are placed on a separate post.
IV. WORKSHOP
C. Nelson asked Commissioners to consider the product they would like to create; a written plan for The Town Plan of Conservation and Development and a poster sized map that depicts resources. C. Nelson noted that the poster -sized map could be reduced in size if Commissioners felt this was best.
Commissioners would like to thank Joanne Rynecki for her time using the GPS to record the locations of the stone walls and trees along both Schoolhouse and Ingham Hill Roads for this project.
Commissioners reviewed the proposed layout style of the Scenic Roads chapter of The Plan of Conservation and Development. They discussed the structure and language of the document. C. Nelson suggested, and Commissioners agreed, that they would like to make the document more reader friendly with fewer policies and goals and more of a narrative style.
J. Esty suggested putting the Scenic Roads chapter online with an index with the capability of an interactive online keyword search so people could type in a keyword and read about that specific topic such as “scenic roads.”
Commissioners talked about whether the new chapters should be incorporated into the current Town Plan or whether they should be stand alone chapters.
D. Shearer asked who is responsible for achieving the action steps presented in The Plan. C. Nelson said those actions will vary. The action steps need to be clearly defined, and the right agencies need to be enlisted with the resources they need to carry out The Plan.
Commissioners would like to set up a time to meet with members of the Old Saybrook Historical Society to get more information about the history of Ingham Hill and Schoolhouse Roads. C. Nelson offered to set up an informal session at the Historical Society during their regular hours where interested members can meet with her and the Commissioners.
V. ADJOURNMENT
MOTION to adjourn the meeting at 9:10 p.m. until the next regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday, November 7, 2012, at 7:30 P.M.,Town Hall, 302 Main Street, 1st Floor Conference Room.; MADE by D. Shearer; SECONDED by M. Urban; VOTED IN FAVOR: J. Esty, D. Shearer, M. Urban; OPPOSED: none; ABSTAINED: none; APPROVED: 3-0-0.
Respectfully submitted,
Kathleen Noyes
| 
