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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPlanning Board Minutes 1992-08-17 PLANNING BOARD MINUTES MEETING OF AUGUST 17, 1992 The meeting of the Lexington Planning Board held in Room G-15, Town Office Building, was called to order at 7:36 p.m. by Chairman Williams, with members Davison, Domnitz, Wood, Assistant Planner Marino and Secretary Tap present. Mr. Grant arrived during Item 118. 118. Review of Minutes The Board reviewed and corrected the minutes for the meeting of July 15, 1992. On the motion of Mrs Wood, seconded by Mrs Davison, it was voted unanimously to approve the minutes, as amended. The Board reviewed the minutes for the meeting of July 29, 1992. On the motion of Mrs. Davison, seconded by Mr. Grant, it was voted 4-0 to approve the minutes, as written Mrs Wood abstained as she was not present at that meeting. ***************** ADMINISTRATION OF LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS ************ SUBDIVISION OF LAND 119. Wright Street Extension Mr. Williams asked for comments on the draft Certificate of Action prepared by Mr. Marino. Mr. Domnitz asked if a street sign was necessary in this case where an existing road is being extended. On the motion of Mrs. Wood, seconded by Mrs Davison, it was voted unanimously to waive the street sign requirement The Board also agreed that the name of the subdivision street serving Lot 7A shall be Wright Street. The existing dwelling on lot 7B shall retain a James Street address. In response to Mr. Domnitz' concerns about the slope of the road, Mr. Williams asked Mr Marino to raise these concerns with the Town Engineer and to make any changes necessary to the Certificate of Action for the meeting on August 26 120. Lowell Street Site Subdivision Sketch Plan Mr. Marino presented a draft of a letter to Mr Kelley and Mr. Perry, developers of a 5.1 acre parcel of land on Lowell Street which abuts the Burlington line The Board agreed to modifications to the draft letter and on the motion of Mrs. Wood, seconded by Mr Grant, the Board voted unanimously to approve the sketch plan, dated June 19, 1992, for further development at either the preliminary or definitive plan stage, and to make the following comments and recommendations - The cluster scheme permits more design flexibility and allows the dwellings to be clustered more closely together. This arrangement allows a greater buffer from the nearby commercial establishments. - A pedestrian path to the shopping area to the north should be established to serve the residents of the subdivision. The path should be marked and accessible to the public from the subdivision street. - The applicant should consider use of additional plant materials and additional landforms to help screen the development from noise and views. Minutes for the Meeting of August 17, 1992 2 The applicant may wish to explore the use of a circular turnaround with a landscaped island instead of a hammerhead. A circular turnaround may provide more on-street parking than a hammerhead design That may be more advantageous considering the prohibition of on-street parking on Lowell Street. The following remarks from the Planning and Engineering staff will be includ- ed A written proposal for the form of ownership of the common land should be included. Soil testing in the areas of the proposed infiltrators should be conducted. The water level at the location of the proposed dwellings should be established. The existence and limitations of the 5' Town-owned strip of land along Lowell Street should be addressed. 121. Orchard Crossing* Mr. Marino reported that the developer, Joseph Castelli, requests permission to eliminate the stone walls that will mark the conservation easement. Mr. Castelli was present and Mr Williams asked him why he does not want to build the walls. He answered that the residents of the lots near the walls do not want them, and he feels that landscaping would look better. The Board, except for Mr. Grant, agreed that stone walls are necessary to permanently mark the easement entrance. The request and the Planning Board Staff recommendation was denied. RECOMMENDATIONS ON APPLICATIONS TO THE BOARD OF APPEALS 122. ?implications To Be Heard on August 27. 1992 Mrs Wood gave an oral review of the following applications Vacant lot between 673 and 753 Waltham Street, Carroll Brothers, special z permit to operate a recreational golf facility, and erect a free- standing sign. The Board thoroughly reviewed the application to construct a driving range on the Carroll land on Waltham Street and has questions concerning lighting, traffic and future use of the rest of the (n site On the motion of Mr. Williams, seconded by Mrs Davison, the O Board voted 3-2, Mr. Grant and Mrs. Wood opposed, to recommend continu- ing the hearing until the Lighting Review Committee and the Traffic Safety Committee have had time to review the plans and have submitted written reports to the Board of Appeals for all interested parties to evaluate. The Board voted to make no comment on the applications below which are also scheduled to be heard by the Board of Appeals on August 27, 1992. 343 Marrett Road, Christine S. Klostermann, LICSW, renewal of a special permit to continue to use a portion of residence her as an office. Minutes for the Meeting of August 17, 1992 3 47 Brandon Street, Barry and Marsha Mohan, special permit to add a second floor over nonconforming portion of their home with no increase in site coverage. 24 Tarbell Street, Lynn and Garrett Knight, variance to restore front porch of nonconforming dwelling. 2 Forbes Road. Loral Infrared and Imaging Systems, special permit to temporarily install 14 office trailers for one year. 183 Bedford Street, Donald F. Kaplan, special permit to install a free- standing sign. On the motion of Mrs. Wood, seconded by Mr. Grant, the Board voted 3-2 to make no comment. Mrs. Davison and Mr. Domnitz wish to convey their concern over the appearance of clutter in that area due to the number of free-standing signs. ********************************** REPORTS ********************************** 123. Planning Board. Subcommittees: Minute Man Commuter Bikeway' Mrs. Wood reported that at the August 6 meeting of the Commuter Bikeway Committee a group called Friends of the Bikeway was formed, with Jerry Van Hook as chairman. The State has suspended work on the bikeway in Lexington until the issue of Bedford's link to the MWRA water system is resolved. Bedford would like to use the bikeway right-of-way as its route to a connection with MWRA at the Lexington-Arlington line. Lexington is trying to help Bedford find an alternate route through existing pipes within Lexington to make the connec- tion. The meeting was adjourned at 10 12 p.m. Edmund C. Grant, Clerk