Planning and Zoning Commission
40 Old Farms Road Willington, CT 06279
October 21, 2008 – 7:30 PM
Minutes
Public Hearing:
File 2008-17 To adopt as comprehensive changes to the Subdivision Regulations of the Town of Willington including provisions for open space subdivision, low impact development. Applicants: ~Willington Planning and Zoning Commission. (Public Hearing October 7, 2008)
A. Call to Order
Chairman, Matthew Ellis, called the hearing to order at 7:30 p.m.
B. Roll Call
Members Present:
Matthew Ellis
Phil Nevers
Edward Standish
Tom Murphy
Members Absent:
Andy Marco - excused
James Poole - excused
Peter Latincsics - excused
John Sullivan - excused
Also Present
Susan Yorgensen, Planning and Zoning Agent
M. Ellis called a recess to move the meeting to the larger room upstairs in order to accommodate the attendees. The meeting reconvened at 7:40. M. Ellis said he is taking comments and concerns that were not brought up at the previous meeting and said the commission will review these comments.
Michael Nogas asked, in regards to doing a 42 acre subdivision and giving portions to his grandchildren, if he would be open to the conventional and open space subdivision. M. Ellis said, if all the land stays within the family for no fee, he is exempt to open space.
Carol Parizek asked about the current regulations and the new regulations. M. Ellis said the new Open Space Regulations would replace the current regulations. Ms. Parizek said she is worried about who is going to maintain the open space. S. Yorgensen said the criteria will basically stay the same in regards to the kind of open space that can be submitted. Ms. Parizek said she has concerns on the agencies taking the land and telling them what they can and cannot do. A discussion was held.
Lisa Kenderdine expressed her concern that the commission wants to designate 40% to open space instead of 10%. A discussion was held on the percentages designated to open space in the Subdivision Regulations.
Felipe Silva asked who would pay the taxes on the open space. A discussion was held on who would own the open space and pay the taxes. Margaret Harrison said the town is taking all the land. M. Ellis said the regulations do not say open space is always taken by the town. Ray Stewart asked who came up with the idea of taking the land without paying for it. He wanted to know what they were going to do with the land. A discussion was held in regards to the State Statutes and the Federal Government.
Ray Crossen presented a scenario as an example. If he had a 100 acres parcel in which he would like to propose a conventional subdivision, he would still have to present an open space subdivision. He said they would have to pay for both presentations and then the board can decide what to do with it. He stated calculations and commented that the 100 acres would then dwindle down to 20 to 30 acres by the standards of the new open space subdivision regulations. Mr. Crossen said the developer would not have the right to choose a conventional subdivision or an open space subdivision. M. Ellis said he would review Mr. Crossen’s scenario.
Discussion was held on cluster houses, sizes of the homes and the potential reduction in taxes paid to the town. Mr. Crossen said the regulations should have cluster housing but it should be decided by the developer taking the current market into account. He said the developer should have a say on how they develop the land. A discussion was held.
Miranda West is concerned that the tax burden that will be passed on to taxpayers due to the open space.
Kathy Demers, of the Conservation Commission, said people in town want to keep the rural character and cluster housing allows this. She said an important reason to consider this type of development is to preserve the town and the natural resources. She said the Plan of Conservation and Development took years to develop. A discussion was held on the POCD.
Ms. Kenderdine said cluster housing is not rural. E. Standish said the town green is cluster housing and it is rural.
S. Yorgensen said the town regulations have to be in conformance with the Plan of Conservation and Development.
Ms. Parizek said she cannot believe the commission is telling people what they can and cannot do with their land.
R. Crossen commented on a subdivision they had developed in Mansfield according to their open space regulations. He said the homeowner association did not want the open space. They did not want the liability, maintenance, or litter. He said the town foreclosed on it and now nobody maintains it. He suggested everyone take a look at this subdivision.
Attorney Tim Hollister was present representing several homeowners; Ray Crossen, Keisha Hoar, Michael Vogas, Joe Voboril and Margaret Harrison. He brought up various concerns. He is concerned that the commission has the authority to demand if open space is town owned or owned by the homeowner. He said, in regards to designating 40% open space, the taxes will not “catch up” until the next tax year.
Attorney Hollister said the commission’s process has a notice violation. He said the draft filed with the town clerk on August 28, 2008 does not indicate, in the document, what is new, amended, revised or deleted.
Regarding section 5.12 on criteria, Attorney Hollister said the phrases are not clear and no-one would be able to figure out what is or is not open space. He said the applicants are at the mercy of the commission in regards to the subdivision they choose. He asked when the commission would decide what the open space is going to be. He said the applicant may then have to file 2, 3, 4 or 5 plans. He said 40% open space is off the charts and wouldn’t be upheld in court. He said they should allow cluster housing but don’t mandate it and don’t tack on 40%. He said his clients are opposed to the amendments.
Mark Peterson said the buildable area definition talks about 15% slope which is a low number. He hopes it increases to at least 20%. He commented on 2 discrepancies in the Yield Plan; page 4 states 20%, page 7 states 15%. Mr. Peterson expressed his concern on the T-3 standard verses the T-2 standard. Mr. Peterson said he is concerned on what 40% is deemed open space and when this is determined.
A discussion was held on rear lots & driveways.
Peter Anderson, of the Conservation Commission, thanked the commission for their efforts. He said he understands their obligation to the town as a whole. He explained the process of developing the Plan of Conservation and Development. He commented that State Statute states the commission has to conform to the POCD. He said they should go forward with the proposal, make changes where appropriate but reminded the commission that they are guided by the POCD. Mr. Anderson submitted a document of inconsistencies they came up with to the commission. Ms. Demers noted sections 4.13 and 4.63 of the POCD and asked everyone to read these sections. She submitted, to the commission, a list of advantages of open space subdivisions which she obtained from the University of Connecticut’s web site.
Ms. West asked if the 40% open space came from the POCD. M. Ellis said no, it was based on information received from the consultants they hired. He said the amount cannot be less than 15% because the POCD states it has to be more than it is today.
Keisha Hoar gave a presentation on the open space subdivision, in Mansfield, in which they had developed. She presented the cluster housing. M. Ellis asked if it was originally a field. Mr. Crossen said the commission had them build the houses in the field and wanted the woods left alone. He said the average children per household is 2.5. Ms. Hoar then showed a conventional subdivision in which they had larger lots with more space and more vegetation in between.
A discussion was held on how many people were involved in developing the POCD and the process by which it was developed.
Mr. Crossen commented that this is a taking of the land; socialism. Melanie Tenney said she has been paying 100% of the taxes on her farm land for 34 years but in the end, she has to give up 40% of her land to open space? Ms. Harrison said they are taking part of their land; taking their value away.
A discussion was held on the Mansfield subdivision presented, the schools and the number of kids per household.
Frank Malack expressed his feelings and asked why they have to pay for schools and such.
Mr. Crossen said the landowners do not have a rights group. He said there is a right way and wrong way; taking is wrong. Figuring out the right way will take longer but it is the way to do it. Ms. Parizek said topography in Willington does do some of its own preserving. She said conservation should be specific areas that need to be protected and cluster housing is not what Willington is about.
Karl Hackner addressed the Conservation Commission and said he is concerned that only 76 people turned out to develop the plan. He said they need to do a study on how to reach the people of Willington. Mike Iacampo said he is concerned that no-one knew about taking 40% of the land or they would have come. Ms. Kenderdine asked what it would take to put this to referendum.
Ms. Parizek said the current amount is 15% and the proposed amount is 40%. Is anything in between feasible? M. Ellis said anything is feasible. The regulations have not been adopted.
A discussion was held on the meeting and the posting of the agendas.
Mr. Crossen said he believes 4 building permits for new homes were pulled last year and 6 the year before. He said, at that rate, Willington is going to stay green for a long time. He asked the commission to extend the moratorium. He said with or with out a moratorium, they have plenty of time to do this right.
P. Nevers motioned to continue the public hearing to November 18, 2008. E. Standish seconded the motion. All in favor. Motion carried.
File #2008-18 to amend the Willington Zoning Regulations (Sections 4.04, 4.18, 4.19, 4.21, 4.23, Section 10 and Table 8.02).To provide consistence with the proposed Subdivision Regulations. ~Applicants: ~Willington Planning and Zoning Commission. (Public Hearing October 7, 2008)
M. Ellis commented on a concern that was noted at the previous meeting regarding the requirement of the septic to be 150 feet from the wetlands. He said it may have been an oversight and the commission will revisit this. He asked the public for comments regarding concerns other than this one. A discussion was held as to why this regulation was a zoning regulation rather than a subdivision regulation.
A discussion was held on the common driveway and the five abutting rear lots.
E. Standish motioned to continue the public hearing to November 18, 2008. T. Murphy seconded the motion. All in favor. Motion carried.
File #2007-33 To extend the temporary, limited moratorium on subdivision applications and approvals for 6 months or until new Subdivision Regulations Changes are in place to allow the Commission to finish the development of open space subdivision regulations (a variation of Cluster Development pursuant to CGS ~8-25(c)) which ever is first. (Public Hearing October 7, 2008)
A discussion was held on extending the moratorium. Members of the public present voiced encouragement for this.
E. Standish motioned to close the public hearing. P. Nevers seconded the motion. All in favor. Motion carried.
Regular Meeting
M. Ellis called the regular meeting to order at 9:50.
File #2007-33 To extend the temporary, limited moratorium on subdivision applications and approvals for 6 months or until new Subdivision Regulations Changes are in place to allow the Commission to finish the development of open space subdivision regulations (a variation of Cluster Development pursuant to CGS ~8-25(c)) which ever is first. (Public Hearing October 7, 2008)
A discussion was held on the length of time to extend the moratorium.
P. Nevers motioned to extend the moratorium for an additional 6 months or until the new Subdivision Regulations Changes are in place, which ever comes first. E. Standish seconded the motion. All in favor. Motion carried.
File #2008-21 Application for Modification of Special Permit at 11 Phelps Way (Map 30 Lot 14 Zone DC) to add loading dock and storage space. Owner/Applicant: Jeffrey Kelly
A discussion was held on the proposed area of the loading dock and the storage space. S. Yorgensen commented that the storage area will also be used for cold storage.
P. Nevers motioned to remand to staff for final approval as it is a minor modification. E. Standish seconded the motion. All in favor. Motion carried.
Minutes
The minutes were tabled for this meeting.
Discussion
M. Ellis reminded the commission that they cannot discuss the zoning or subdivision regulations outside of the public hearing.
P. Never motioned to adjourn the meeting at 9:59. E. Standish seconded the motion. All in favor. Motion carried.
Respectfully Submitted,
Michele Manas
Recording Clerk
Board of Selectmen
860-487-3100
You have received this e-mail because you have subscribed to the Town of Willington’s E-mail bulletin feature. If you wish to remove your name from this list please visit www.willingtonct.org/subscriber.html to unsubscribe.
| 
