MEMBERS PRESENT: Vice Chairman Kevin McCann, Patrick Kennedy, Sue Larsen, Cliff Slicer, and Gary Bazzano
ALTERNATES PRESENT Michael Sullivan sat for Tim Wentzell except for Application 04-80P, Mitchell Property when he recused himself. He left the meeting at 7:45 p.m.
Marc Finer sat for Bart Pacekonis
Louise Evans
STAFF PRESENT: Marcia A. Banach, Director of Planning
PUBLIC HEARING – COUNCIL CHAMBERS
Vice-Chairman McCann opened the Public Hearing at 7:30 p.m.
1. Appl 05-10P, Thomas Stecko, request for a 5-year in law apartment for property located at 40 Mara Trail, AA-30 zone
Larsen read the legal notice as it was published in the Journal Inquirer on Thursday February 2, 2005 and Thursday, March 3, 2005.
The applicant stated the house was built in 1983 with an in law apartment and her Mother has lived there for 22 years. The applicant was informed that the in law apartment was not legal and she is before the Commission to legalize the in law apartment.
Banach provided the following Planning report:
1. This is an AA-30 zone at 40 Mara Trail.
2. The PZC in law apartment regulation has specific criteria for the unit.
3. Provides for a 5-year permit period.
4. Criteria includes that the in law apartment cannot be larger than 900 sf or 40% of gross floor area, whichever is smaller.
5. The entire structure must maintain the appearance of a single family dwelling.
6. Off street parking for 3 vehicles must be accommodated.
7. Adequate water and sewerage disposal must be provided.
8. The owner of the dwelling units must occupy either the in law apartment or the main dwelling unit.
9. The applicant has indicated that the apartment has been in the home since it was built in 1983.
10. The apartment was recently brought to the attention of the Planning Department Staff by the Assessor’s Office and we were unable to find the approval in either the Planning Department or Building Department files.
11. I do have a theory about what may have happened because a listing for guest room is shown in what is clearly apartment area back in 1983. That is why it wasn’t brought to anybody’s attention at the time.
12. Nothing was done wrong, it’s just now being brought to our attention by the Assessors and once that happened, we’re obligated to clean it up and make sure that it’s by conformance with your regulations.
13. Every thing appears to conform to our regulation. The house itself is approximately 2900 sf, the apartment is 528 sf. There is a plan before you and it’s the highlighted portion of the plan.
14. The applicant provided us with a plot plan, a picture of the existing house, and a floor plan of the existing apartment.
15. The one question that the Commission may have, we’ve already noted to the applicant is that, generally with an in law apartment at such time if the in law apartment is no longer needed by a relative, it gets converted back into living space for the rest of the house.
16. The Commission may grant approval for up to five years. The applicant will be asked via letter to reaffirm ownership of the property every two years. And at the end of the permit period if the family situation has not changed the applicant may request renewal by Staff.
17. There are no engineering comments on this application.
No one from the public spoke in favor of or against this application.
It was noted that the area to be converted back into living space includes the dismantling of the kitchen area.
McCann closed the public hearing at 7:40 p.m.
REGULAR MEETING – MADDEN ROOM
There was no public participation.
Appl 05-10P, Thomas Stecko, request for a 5-year in law apartment for property located at 40 Mara Trail, AA-30 zone
Kennedy made a motion to approve application 05-10P, Thomas Stecko with the following conditions:
This approval is for an in-law apartment for a family member/relative only. When the in-law apartment is no longer occupied by a relative of the family, the apartment cannot be treated as a second dwelling unit. Instead, the kitchen must be removed and the living area must be converted into other living space for the main dwelling.
This permit will expire in five years, on March 15, 2010, and will have to be renewed at that time if the use is to be continued. Owner(s) of the property must reside in the apartment or the main dwelling unit. Reaffirmation of occupancy by owner will be required every two years. This will be done via a letter from the Planning Department requesting the reaffirmation of occupancy.
Any new building, or alterations/additions to existing buildings, requires a building permit prior to start of construction.
The building footprint must not exceed 10% of the lot area in accordance with Section 10.2 of the Zoning Regulations.
Larsen seconded the motion. The motion carried and the vote was unanimous.
2. Appl 04-80P, Mitchell Property Group, request for site plan approval for the operation of Environmental Services, Inc. facility, including a new truck-to-truck transfer facility, for property located at 90 Brookfield Street, GC zone.
Sullivan recused himself from this application and left the meeting.
Banach provided the following summary:
At the last public hearing it was decided that PZC needs resolution on two items, the largest regarding washing of trucks at the facility. Since then it has been straightened out with DEP, in that with the applicant’s help in providing information, the applicant provided a thick package of the transporter permit; which is not the same as the transfer station permit. They are two different permits, two different groups in DEP. Result was that the transport permit does give permission to wash their trucks even though the transfer station permit does not have that as a condition. Therefore the transport facility governs the trucks that are being used to transport. The bottom line was once it was straightened out with DEP, they do have the ability to wash the trucks as stated in their
permit application as part of the transport application. Staff has proposed a few approval conditions that are different then is normally proposed because of the nature of the facility and the fact that it has been out there for a long time without any input. There is a lot of clean up to be done with the site.
Kennedy made motion to approve application 04-80P, Mitchell Property Group with the following modifications:
Prior to commencement of any site work, a meeting must be held with Town Staff.
No building permit will be issued until the final mylars have been filed in the Town Clerk's office.
This application is subject to the conditions of approval of the Inland Wetlands Agency/Conservation Commission, including a bond in the amount of $10,000 to ensure erosion & sedimentation control measures, and a bond in the amount of $15,000 to ensure establishment of stormwater structures. Erosion & sediment control bonds; and a bond in the amount of $15,000 to insure installation of the storm water structures; a bond in the amount of $50,000 to ensure proper installation/establishment of irrigation areas, and the Town Engineer and Environmental Planner to establish a bond amount to repair/replacement of the culvert pipe must be posted prior to commencing any site work.
An as-built plan is required prior to issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy per Section 8.1.11 of the Zoning Regulations.
A landscape bond in the amount of $5,000 is required and must be submitted prior to filing of mylars.
All plans used in the field by the developer must bear the stamp and authorized signature of the Town of South Windsor.
This approval does not constitute approval of sanitary sewer which can only be granted by the WPCA.
A building street number(s) must be included on the final plan.
Pavement markings must be maintained in good condition throughout the site drives and parking areas.
This approval is for the operation of Environmental Services, Inc. A new site plan of development of development will be required whenever primary use changes as required by Section 5.2.3 of the Zoning Regulations. Other uses of the site may also be subject to site plan review and approval.
All junk machinery and items of materials not used in the operation of Environmental Services, Mitchell Trucking, or Coven Construction must be removed. A detailed cleanup plan must be prepared including identification on the plan of all areas where items are to be removed and submitted to Town Staff for review. Town Staff will review the clean up plan with the applicant on site. Any unresolved differences between Town Staff clean up requirements and the applicant’s clean up plan will return to the Commission for resolution. The site clean up must be completed prior to issuance of any building permits for the transfer station. After the site plan is completed storage of junk machinery and other items not used in the operation of Environmental
Services, Mitchell Trucking, or Coven Construction is expressly prohibited without approval from the Commission.
The applicant will make reasonable provisions to allow Town Staff to inspect the site on an as needed basis to insure compliance with the clean up plan and the approved site plan.
Engineering comments dated February 8, 2005 must be addressed to the Town Engineer’s satisfaction.
Perimeter buffer plan must be performed with the buffer requirements of Section 10.4 and must address buffer inadequacy where lower branches of mature evergreen trees have been removed.
Because of the proximity to the Podunk River, this approval is not to be construed to be an allowance of the expansion of the use. The number of trucks allowed for the use shall be for a maximum of 40 trucks, 10 roll offs, and 10 additional service trucks
Larsen seconded the motion.
Discussion ensued among the Commission members with the following comments and concerns: Replies will be in Italics.
· Clarification of Army Corps of Engineers report. Approval should be conditioned upon the culvert remaining as is. If it is removed and a different configuration is required then a revised site plan would be required. This use is being permitted by a variance from ZBA. In an ideal world this use would not have been approved next to the Podunk River.
McCann called the motion. The motion carried and the vote was unanimous. Evans did not vote because she did not attend the public hearing for this application.
3. Determination of appropriateness of use – 240 Ellington Road, I zone (Exhibit A)
Wilhelm S. Von Oppen was present to explain his request. His business will include importing cases of wine from South Africa and storing them at Admiral Moving Company, 420 Ellington Road before distributing them to package stores. Admiral Moving provides him with the temperature control that is needed in storing wine. This use has been done at Admiral Moving in the past.
Banach noted that distribution use is permitted in an Industrial Zone. The difference in this request is that it is a business nestled within a business. Admiral Storage will be moving the merchandise in and out. Admiral is an approved site and they are using their own trucks and facilities.
Discussion ensued among the Commission members with the following comments and concerns: Replies will be in Italics.
· Number of bottles of wine and number of trucks. A shipment is 1/2 of a container which is 24’ x 8’; 1000 – 1200 boxes of wine. This would be done twice a year.
· 1200 cases of wine? Yes
· Truck in and out every day? Admiral’s transportation trucks will truck the wine to the liquor store.
· Regulations state that warehousing and distribution centers can be located within an Industrial Zone.
· Number of employees. Just Von Oppen.
· On the site? No, Von Oppen will provide information to Admiral Moving for the number of cases to be moved.
· Admiral Moving requiring additional manpower? It is not known, this business would not require an additional person on their work force.
· When Admiral Moving was approved it was not intended for a distribution center at that time – more for a storage center.
The Commission decided an application was not required.
4. Determination of appropriateness of use – 280-302 Sullivan Avenue (Exhibit B)
Banach spoke for Joe Luginbuhl. Site is zoned Industrial. Area being requested is the location of where Rex Lumber Company once was and Luginbuhl is requesting the use of two building located in the easterly portion and rear of the site. The buildings will be used for a refinishing, repairing, and restoring automobiles for licensed automotive dealers. They are currently located in East Windsor and need a place to expand to. All work will be done inside and there will be no outdoor storage.
Discussion ensued among the Commission members with the following comments and concerns: Replies will be in Italics.
· What’s occurring inside the buildings? It is not known at this time.
· A transporter of cars has been seen at this site – sometimes more than one.
· The whole site is a concern because the sheds are substandard – general concern of what occurs inside the building.
· Luginbuhl needs direction.
· Visibility from the public road.
· The number of cars in and out should be known and method of transportation along with the number of employees.
· Building should be applicable and built to Town Code.
· Drainage at this site has not been properly attended to. After a heavy rain there is ponding on the front of the site.
· A site plan is requested.
5. Request from RSK-Kellco, Inc. (Exhibit C)
RSK-Kellco, Inc. requesting Morra Associates to perform an appraisal to determine the value for the fee in lieu of open space for Brightman Circle. The consensus of the Commission of was that Morra Associates could do the appraisal.
ITEM: MINUTES:
The amended minutes of February 8, 2005 and February 22, 2005 were accepted by consensus of the Commission.
ITEM: Applications to Be Officially Received:
1. Appl 05-16P, Stowe Kitchen and Bath, request for site plan modification for a 4,000+ sf addition property located at 845 Sullivan Ave., GC zone.
2. Appl 05-17P, M/S Town Line Associates, Inc. Earth Filling Permit, request for site plan approval for earth filling to create a building pad at 90 Buckland Road, GD zone.
3. Appl 05-18P, Oulundsen’s TAEkwon-Do, request for a special exception to 6.1.3.9 to operate a TAEkwon-Do studio on property located at 259 Sullivan Avenue, I zone.
4. Appl 05-19P, Nutmeg Recycling, LLC dba Hudson Baylor Corporation, request for site plan modification for property located at 300 Rye Street, I zone.
5. Appl 05-20P, TOSW Town Garage Addition, request for site plan modification for minor additions to the on property located at 159 Burgess Road, RR zone.
6. Appl 05-21P, Four Seasons Painters, request for site plan for construction of an office building and garage on property located at 435 Chapel Road, RC zone.
7. Appl 05-22P, Brady’s Place Doggie Daycare, request for special exception to section 6.1.3.6 to operate a “doggie daycare” on property located at 357 Pleasant Valley Road, I zone.
8. Appl 05-23P, Avery Street Christian Reformed Church, request for special exception to section 4.1.8.b and site plan of development for the construction of an 11,700 sf church on property located at 399 Beelzebub Road, RR zone.
ITEM: Adjournment
Kennedy made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 8:30 p.m. Slicer seconded the motion. The motion carried and the vote was unanimous.
Respectfully Submitted,
Phyllis M. Mann
Recording Secretary
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