2001-06-20-PB-min - Laserfiche WebLink

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PLANNING BOARD MINUTES MEETING OF R NTE 20, 2001 The meeting of the Lexington Planning Board held in the Selectmen's Room, Town Office Building, began at 7:35 p-m. with Chairman Galaitsis, members, Chase, Davies, Harden, Planning Director Garber, and Assistant Planner McCall - Taylor present. Ms. Bridge- Denzak was absent. Philip Herr and Sarah Jaynes, of Herr and James and Associates, planning consultants, were also present and co-led the evening's discussions. Members of the Comprehensive Plan Advisory Committee -- Tom DeNoto, Karl Kastorf, Joyce Miller, Wendy Manz, Larry Belvin, Lee Sinai, and Susan Solomon were present as well as Elaine Dratch, Marilyn Fenellosa, Iris Wheaton, Ada Wong, Fred Johnson and Eileen Entin. COMPREIIENSIFVE PLANNING ** * * * * * ** ** * * * * * * * ** * ** Infill Housing Pho Project Members of the Planning Board and the Comprehensive Plan Advisory Committee had been divided into five groups and assigned a section of Lexington — north, south, east, west and central_ Given panoramic one -use cameras, their assignment was to document infill housing in Lexington, taking pictures of infill houses that they felt "worked" in their neighborhood and others that did not "work_" Mr. Galaitsis introduced the team leaders, each of whom presented their group's photographs, which had been mounted on a presentation board, and explained why their examples were chosen, why certain houses blended in or enhanced the neighborhood while other did not. The asseinbled participants discussed their reactions and thoughts and began to list common themes and elements that came out of the exercise, including criticism, concerns about and approval of some of the infill houses_ Comments were as follows: Themes East Lexington: Torn Harden Is the house in scale with its neighbors? Were trees preserved? Trees mitigate a lot. Is the house sited well in relation to the topography? Architectural critique avoided. Why do Moon Hill, Five Fields, Turning Mill, and other areas, avoid teardowns? Joyce Miller Topography Mature trees Improved streets Covenants limiting additions Houses interspersed with open space. North Lexington: Iris Wheaton Some are in poor taste due to style incompatibility Some good examples are rustic, wooded, and don't overwhelm the site. Some big houses meld nl; most don't_ Mansions change the scale of a neighborhood. Some big new houses turn their backs on the neighborhood. Neighborliness is no longer an asset. Even the smallest lots are being built on. Whole neighborhoods are being nearly destroyed. Change character of neighborhood Change sense of community- camaraderie Trees, scale, character, lot coverage, pavement