PLANNING BOARD MINUTES
April 04, 2012
Call to Order: 6:33 P.M.
Item One:
ROLL CALL: Present was Chairman; Steve Ranlett, Vice Chairman; Charles Lanza, Tim Moore, Selectman Ex- Officio; Robert Gray and Gennifer Silva.
Also present was Town Planner; Leigh Komornick and Recording Secretary; Laurie Pagnottaro.
Item Two:
Minutes of March 21, 2012
R. Gray motioned to approve the minutes of March 21, 2012, second by T. Moore.
There was no discussion on the motion and the vote was 5-0-0; U/A.
Item Three:
Review of Email Request from Joyce Ingerson to be an Alternate
Present for the discussion was Joyce Ingerson.
R. Gray motioned to grant the request, second by C. Lanza.
Board members all agreed that they would be happy to have J. Ingerson as an Alternate Member for the PB.
There was no further discussion on the motion and the vote was 5-0-0; U/A.
R. Gray asked how long her term would be.
It was discussed and other PB members thought it was for 1 year. L. Komornick will check into the by-laws.
J. Ingerson will go before the BOS on Monday night and all necessary paperwork will be there. The Board members welcomed her to join in on all discussions for the meeting although she will not be needed as a voting member on this night.
Item Four:
Review of Service Road Associated with the Route 125 Widening Project (East Road to Old Road)
S. Ranlett stated that one problem he could foresee would be the traffic/truck traffic. He suggested that trucks turn at the beginning of it so when trucks come out they will need to take a left onto Route 125.
R. Gray said that from a planning standpoint he is not in favor of that because there are other roads in Town that are not t’d and they are difficult to make certain turns in and out of. He used Crane Crossing Road as an example explaining that the state just erected a sign on the road that has blocked the line of sight. He is in favor of a sign that states no truck traffic right hand turn at the end of the service road. He is not in favor of anything that will put one more truck onto Main Street.
T. Moore added that as it will be a Town road they can definitely put a sign up; No Through Trucking. He stated that he could not think of much extras traffic the new service road could create until the other side of Route 125 gets developed.
R. Gray agreed saying that it will be the truck traffic that will leave the sites and want to go south to avoid the lights on Route 125.
The Board discussed the issue of whether the service road would generate more traffic and what kinds of businesses could be developed on the other side of Route 125 given the steep topography and the lack of frontage without the service road to provide the frontage. It was noted that it is all commercial properties out there.
L. Komornick noted that there are not many east/west roads in Plaistow. She said if you restrict people from turning right then they will go out and onto Jessie George Road.
S. Ranlett said it should only be no through trucks.
R. Gray agreed saying his minimum recommendation is for a sign that stated no right hand truck turning. He said they can discuss if they want to include cars or not.
C. Lanza suggested the Board wait and see if there is a problem; they can always put the sign up at a later time.
L. Komornick suggested putting a traffic counter on Old Road now for a baseline count and then again when the median is in to compare the traffic rate.
The Board discussed the traffic counters and where they would put them. It was decided that they should put one on both ends of the service road.
L. Komornick explained that she put together a summary of all the reviews and minutes from the BOS meeting and Highway Safety meeting. She said the two most powerful statements were the statement from the Fire Chief that without the service road they will have their hands tied from an access point of view; He and the Police Chief do not support having it be a road subject to gates and bars. It was also noted at these meetings that accidents on Route 125 between Old Road and Walton Road have been cut in half within a year with the median down to Old Road. She said the Board needs to weight the pros and cons of all the information. Old Road is also commercially or industrially zoned with the exception of two homes.
T. Moore added that they can check with RPC; they do traffic counts. He will check with them.
R. Gray stated that a decision will be made on the service road at the next BOS meeting because the State wants to get going on putting it out for bid.
T. Moore motioned to support the connector road with a sidewalk on one side of it to help pedestrian traffic and to reserve the right to put a “No Through Trucking” sign on the service road should it becomes necessary.
C. Lanza asked for clarification on the side walk.
There was discussion regarding the sidewalk being a raised sidewalk or a wide paved shoulder/bike way.
L. Komornick noted that Highway Safety recommended raised sidewalks on both sides.
R. Gray stated that if they build a raised sidewalk, the Supreme Court of NH has ruled that they must maintain them. He added that they do not have the equipment in the inventory to maintain the sidewalks; they will need to purchase something to do it.
C. Lanza stated that the Town has miles of raised sidewalk.
R. Gray agreed but said they were installed before the ruling. He agreed with putting in a wide paved shoulder that will be easier to maintain.
S. Ranlett stated that he would like a raised sidewalk. He feels it is not the PB’s concern to worry about getting the equipment to maintain the sidewalks. A raised sidewalk would differentiate the sidewalk from the roadway.
R. Gray respectfully disagreed saying that the PB should consider all aspects of the Town’s well being; financial or planning.
C. Lanza asked if it will tie in with the existing sidewalk and the proposed sidewalk on Route 125.
L. Komornick replied yes; that is what was recommended. It will run on the west side.
G. Silva asked if the Town maintains the sidewalks on Route 125.
C. Lanza answered that Route 125 is a state owned road but the service road will be a Town road that they will need to maintain.
T. Moore said that he thought the agreement they had with the state for Route 125 is that the state would construct the sidewalks but not maintain them; that is their policy. He added that it is state property so the Town cannot or will not assume liability and the State will not maintain the side walk. He added that at some point in the coming years legislature will need to deal with this issue so sidewalks are maintained.
The Board discussed raising the ADA Mandatory Issue to get sidewalks maintained; having property owners maintain the sidewalks in front of their properties. It was noted that other towns have property owners do this. There was more discussion.
C. Lanza said that they have the opportunity now to put in the raised sidewalks and that if they do not then they will not get the opportunity again.
It was decided that they would recommend raised sidewalks on one side.
R. Gray stated that he does not agree with that.
J. Ingerson asked if the Town could look into getting the equipment to maintain the sidewalks.
R. Gray replied that it has not been on the agenda to be discussed. He added that in a few weeks when Plan NH is in Town it would be a good time to discuss how they will address sidewalk maintenance.
There was more discussion on the sidewalk maintenance issue.
S. Ranlett agreed with C. Lanza that they have the opportunity to put in the raised sidewalks now.
T. Moore also stated that he supports the raised sidewalk.
T. Moore amended his motion to support the connector road with a raised sidewalk on the west side of the road, to obtain baseline traffic counts on Old Road just prior to its exit onto Route 125 and just beyond the intersection of Old Road and Jessie George and to reserve the right to put a “no through trucking” sign on the service road should it become necessary in the future; second by C. Lanza.
L. Komornick stated that the Highway Safety Committee also recommended that the PB make a recommendation on the lighting for the service road. She clarified that their regulations do not specify how many feet on a new road they should have a street light; most say at intersections and at each end. She added that the other issue is if they want to request full cutoff lighting then Unitel will need to do that.
C. Lanza asked if they are planning to run the utilities along the whole road.
L. Komornick answered yes; underground.
T. Moore amended his motion to include the PB’s recommendation for street lights every 500 feet, the electric utility be placed underground and full cutoff lighting. C. Lanza second the motion.
There was no further discussion on the motion and the vote was 4-1-0; R. Gray abstained.
Item Five:
Other Business/Updates: Misc. Notices, letters, and other Correspondence from Dept. of Building Safety, Planning Department and ZBA; Status of Projects
Department of Building Safety Update (Attachment D)
The Board reviewed each item on the update as follows:
The Falls at Gunstock – Ron Brown
L. Komornick explained that R. Brown will be coming in to pull billing permit forms and he also said he would be requesting waivers from some impact fees. She added that she does not have any requests in writing at this time.
S. Ranlett stated that the Board can discuss this issue when it comes in before the Board.
Cemetery Easement
S. Ranlett explained that the chain link fence was moved; Mike Dorman has asked Terry Trudel to assist in determining exactly where the lot line is for the cemetery.
Brownfield Site Assessment – Penn Box site (Phase I & II)
C. Lanza asked if the Town will get a clean bill of health or not after they do this.
L. Komornick replied that prior to the BOS accepting the land they had an environmental study done but only for the use that was there. They will now do complete research, full disclosure, on everything that has been done out there. They will be able to make recommendations on more in-depth testing/monitoring and if they do make recommendations then the program pays for mitigation/clean up. She added that it is a good deal overall.
New Tractor Supply Store – 96 Plaistow Road
It was noted that they will be coming in July/August.
Kohl’s Department store – 34 Plaistow Road
The Board discussed this issue noting that they should be almost done.
R. Gray asked if Kohl’s would be responsible for any damage to the pavement caused by the trailers.
L. Komornick replied that the Town did not mandate a bond.
C. Lanza added that Kohl’s is a tenant of Market Basket so any damage done should be between them.
New Dog Day Care – 118 Sweet Hill Road
It was noted that the project is well underway.
S. Ranlett added that he ran into one of the owners and she explained to him that they are just awaiting the decking materials.
Residential – 2 Karl’s Circle 3-Lot Subdivision
C. Lanza asked if it was built yet.
L. Komornick replied that he has the builders permit but there is no binder down yet. She added that the road is down and Steve from CLD has been conducting regular inspections. They have also been checking on the Shoreland Protection Areas per the plan and the Shoreland Protection Permit.
15 Newton Road – Absolute Roofing (Patrick and Donald Connolly)
It was noted that this issue is going before the ZBA and is scheduled for the ZBA’s April 26th meeting as last month’s meeting was canceled.
Property Maintenance Issue – 263 Main Street
It was noted that the property owner is working with Mike Dorman to get the property cleaned up.
Driveway Issue – 172 Plaistow Road (Larry’s Clam Bar)
It was noted that there was a complaint made from an abutter that a driveway cut-through has been made from the site onto Walton Rd. Mike Dorman has visited the site and confirmed; a letter has been sent to the property owner requesting the access point be closed.
C. Lanza asked about the 90 degree turn in front of Irving Gas Station. He stated that at night it is pitch black on that corner; there is no striping.
L. Komornick replied that she has Kevin Wynn’s phone number (The field Project Manager for the Route 125 widening Project); she will call him and look into it.
Property Maintenance Issue – 11 Old Road
S. Ranlett stated there was a chimney fire there a while back. Mike Dorman went to the property; he figured out that people are not just living there but they are also working there as well.
Subdivision of Portion of Property at 144 Main Street
FYI for the Board; no discussion
Town Hall ADA Accessible Parking
It was noted that they want to create two handicap spaces out in the front lot.
Other Business - Plaistow First; Sale of Town Owned Land
FYI: At BOS 4/2/12 meeting, the Board approved the proposed form for Departments/Boards/Committees to review the proposed Town-owned properties being proposed for sale. The forms are based upon the locally approved process and the NH RSA governing the disposition of Town owned property. These forms are for use internally by the different Departments/Boards/Committees.
Main Street Traffic Calming
R. Gray gave the Board an update noting that the BOS approved the purchase of two Radar Units at Monday night’s BOS meeting. They will put one at Pollard School and one before the railroad tracks coming into the Village.
J. Ingerson suggested doing something down by Westville Road.
R. Gray agreed and suggested more discussion at the Plan NH meeting regarding this and the vision for Main Street; what is going on now is not working. He added that the units may not work without enforcement coupled with them.
S. Ranlett added that they are working on getting the personnel back up to staffing.
There was discussion regarding the Town now owning the beginning of Main Street at the Haverhill/Plaistow Line and it was suggested that they close it off to truck traffic altogether. It was noted that M. Dorman was working on it.
L. Komornick updated the Board that John Pettis (Engineer for City of Haverhill) sent an Email to M. Dorman regarding M. Dorman’s request to meet; he said there was no purpose in meeting until they knew what was happening with Sonic. Sonic is stuck in a legal battle right now. She added that they (J. Pettis/Haverhill) feel that putting more trucks on North Ave. would not be a good idea because there is a weighted bridge on that road.
R. Gray said there was no way to legally get to North Ave. in Haverhill with a tractor trailer, so his statement is miss-leading.
There was more discussion on this issue and where trucks should be driving.
Plan NH
FYI – Monday April 23rd @6pm, Town Hall
Walgreens
R. Gray informed the Board that there was an article in that evenings paper regarding Walgreens.
The Board members were not aware of the article or that Walgreens was going in at the old Shaw’s Plaza.
L. Komornick replied that there was a persistent reporter that must have found out somehow; no one knew about it yet.
There was some discussion about Walgreens and traffic coming in and out of that plaza.
S. Ranlett asked the Board to table the discussion until a representative (for Walgreens) comes before the Board.
MP Energy Chapter
S. Ranlett asked L. Komornick to email the Board a copy of Atkinson’s MP Energy Chapter. He will be working on the chapter.
She will email both Atkinson’s and RPC’s Energy Chapters out to Board members.
R. Gray asked what they had decided to name the new chapter they had discussed; the implementation chapter. He was answered that they have not decided on a name.
S. Ranlett thanked J. Ingerson for becoming an alternate Board member.
Item Four:
Review of Service Road Associated with the Route 125 Widening Project (East Road to Old Road)
Geoff Adams, 128 Newton Road, arrived to express his concerns regarding the proposed access road. He would like to have sidewalks on both sides of the access road. He stated that per the MP; it speaks about growth and states that sidewalks would be included in that growth. He feels that future development on the west side could include small shops which would produce foot traffic. On the east side it would be beneficial for the Town to seek development of office buildings; then employees could access the shops utilizing the sidewalks.
S. Ranlett asked T. Moore if there was a lot of wetland out there.
G. Adams also stated that the Supreme Court ruling that the Towns must maintain sidewalks is false; it was a non-precedence setting decision so it could be changed and applies only to the Town of Tilton currently. He feels it is a good idea to get a traffic count and feels there will be a reduction in traffic once the median is in. He stated that it would be easy to install signs for truck traffic if needed.
S. Ranlett stated that all G. Adams comments and suggestions are in the motion with the exception of a sidewalk on the east side.
There was more discussion.
S. Ranlett asked G. Adams if he would be interested in becoming an alternate for the PB.
G. Adams answered yes.
C. Lanza motioned to appoint Geoff Adams as an alternate to the PB, second by T. Moore.
T. Moore asked G. Adams what his occupation is.
G. Adams replied kitchen and bathroom remodeling; he runs his own business. He added that he has prior experience on the ZBA for a town in Connecticut.
There was no more discussion and the vote was 5-0-0 U/A.
S. Ranlett explained that G. Adams would need to attend the BOS meeting on Monday night and all necessary paperwork would be there.
Item Six:
Adjournment
There was no further business before the Planning Board and the meeting was adjourned at 7:49pm.
Respectfully submitted as recorded by Laurie Pagnottaro.
Approved by the Planning Board on ______________________________________
_______________________________________
Timothy E. Moore, Chairman
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