Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout1982-11-01315 PLANNING BOARD MINUTES MEETING OF NOVEMBER 1, 1982 The meeting of the Lexington Planning Board, held in Room G-15, Town Offices, was called to order at 7:39 p.m., by the Chairman, Mrs. Smith, with members Nichols, Sandy, Sorensen, Uhrig, and Planning Director Bowyer present. 161. APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes of the meeting of October 18, 1982, were corrected and on a motion by Mrs. Nichols, seconded by Mr. Sorensen, were approved unanimously as corrected. L} DETERMINATION OF PLANNING BOARD APPROVAL 162. 376 Lincoln Street, Form A-82/9 [[] The Board reviewed a plan showing the division of a lot on Lincoln Street containing Q '72 q 992 square are feet into two lots. On the motion of Mr. Sorensen, seconded by Mr. Sandy, it was voted -unanimously: The plan entitled "Compiled Subdivision Plan of Land in Lexington, Mass." dated September 16, 1982, by Miller & Nylander Company of Lexington, Mass., certified by Donald J. Forand, registered land surveyor, accompanying application Form A-82/9, executed by Henrietta Atwood, owner, does not require approval under the Subdivision Control Law. 163. APPLICATIONS TO THE BOARD OF APPEALS ' The Board reviewed a staff analysis dated October 28, 1982, for cases to be heard by the Board of Appeals on November 18, 1982. On the motion of Mr. Sorensen, seconded by Mr. Sandy, it was voted unanimously to make no recommendation on the following cases: 1265 Massachusetts Avenue, Gold Ribbon Farms: SP, farm produce 1265 Massachusetts Avenue, Anthony Cataldo: SP, Christmas trees 60 Winter Street, Joseph Sullivan: Variance, front -yard 922 Waltham Street, N. A. Cannalonga: Variance, yard- SP, use The Board reviewed the draft of a recommendation on this case. It was ,agreed to pre- face the Board's recommendation with a note on the technical issue of whether a spe cial permit could be granted as the use is no longer permitted in this zoning dis- trict and line 5.4 in Table 1 under which a special permit is requested, does not allow for a special permit in the CN district. It was agreed the recommendation will be to organize and clean up the activity on the site. .The Board recommends that the commercial use be screened from, abutting residential property. The Board agreed permit should reference a specific plan for the location and the amount of square feet of exterior space devoted to parking and commercial use so that there will be a. recorded benchmark in 1982 so that the use cannot be expanded in the future. On the motion of Mr. Sorensen, seconded by Mrs. Nichols, it was voted unanimously to recommend that if it is possible to grant a special permit at this time, the special permit be subject to special conditions as follows: Minutes of Planning Board Meeting: 11/1/82 2 403 The Planning Board recommends the special permit be issued to Abbot Spray and Farm Equipment Co. Inc. (without referring to an individual) with well drafted special conditions designed to improve the appearance of the property such as: 1. the enclosure of all equipment for sale behind a fence and evergreen' hedge planting so that the equipment is not visible from any abutting residential property; 2. planting of evergreen hedge along the property line of Concord Avenue; 10 3. designation of specific areas for customer parking; 4, prohibition of parking and any commercial activity from the part of the Q lot in the RO (residential) district and delineation of the RO zoning m line by planting of evergreen hedge; Q 5. preservation of sight lines for traffic visibility across the corner of the property at the Concord Avenue -Waltham Street intersection; 6, all evergreen hedge planting to be of material at least four feet high t s at installation and not more than three feet on center. The material selected shall create a dense foliage scredn when mature; 7. the permit be restricted to the scope of the present sales and service of farm equipment and accessories. The Planning Board further -recommends the special permit cite specifically the amount of square feet of exterior space devoted to parking and commercial use and refer to a specific plan for the location of those uses so that there will be a recorded bench- mark in 1982 so that the use cannot be expanded in the future. i f SUBDIVISION OF LAND E 164. Blossomcrest Subdivision: Execution of Covenant: On the motion of Mr. Sorensen, seconded by Mrs. Nichols, it was voted unanimously to approve a covenant dated October 18, 1982. The Board signed the covenant. - i OPINION ON CONSTRUCTION OF UNACCEPTED STREETS I 165. Ward Street, Map 72, Lots 22 and 23, CUS 1982/3 The Board reviewed a staff analysis dated October 29, 1982. Samuel and Mildred Borella, owners of the property, and others were present to explain that they propose to build two new houses on what they contended were two separate lots. After dis- cussion of the platting of the lots and various property transfers that had occurred, it was agreed the Board would limit its opinion to the construction of the street. On the motion of Mr. Sorensen, seconded by Mr. Sandy, it was voted unanimously that: In the opinion of the Planning Board, Ward Street, insofar as it provides frontage for Lots 22 and 23, as shown on Map 72, is not now of adequate con- struction. If the improvements identified below are made, and are considered adequate by the Town Engineer, then the street would be of adequate grade and construction Minutes of Planning Board Meeting: 11/1/82 3 401 For the section of ward Street between "Short Street" (a paper street) and Garfield Street, a distance of about 280 feet, improve the travelled way by: 1) installing and grading additional gravel so that a cross section with a crown is achieved which is the equivalent of a 12 inch gravel base (taking into account material already in place), 2J installing and grading the material for a width of 20 feet, with an additional 18 inches extending beyond the gutter line on each side, and that section of Ward Street shall be considered to be of adequate grade and construction for a period of two years only from the date of this opinion. This,opinion is limited to the construction of the street and should not be interpreted asimplyingthat the lots under consideration meet other tests of the Zoning By -Law to qualify them as buildable lots. Q 166. Robbins Road, Map 31, Lot 32, CUS 1982/4 Q' The Board reviewed a staff analysis dated October 29, 1982. On the motion of Mr. Sorensen, seconded by Mr. Sandy, it was voted unanimously that: In the opinion of the Planning Board, Robbins Road, insofar as it provides frontage for Lot 32, on Assessor's Map 31, is not now of adequate grade and w construction.. if the improvements identified below are made, and are con- sidered adequate by the Town Engineer, then the street would be of adequate grade and construction: For the section of Robbins Road extending from the northerly side 1-ine of _ Lot 32 toward Plymouth Street for a distance of at least 125 feet, improve the travelled way by: - 1) installing and grading additional gravel so that a cross-section with a a crown is achieved, which is the equivalent of a 12 inch gravel base (taking, into account material already in place), 2) installing and grading the material for a width of 20 feet, with an additional 18 inches extending beyond the gutter line on each side, 3) installing and grading the material aligned along the center line of the right-of-way of Robbins Road, and for the remaining intervening distance between the 125 foot section described above and Plymouth Street, the nearest accepted public street, a distance of about 150 feet, make "maintenance -type" improvements, by: 1) filling of holes and ruts with gravel or other suitable material, rough grading and other minor improvements to insure that the travelled way along the intervening distance meets a minimum standard of passability; and that section of Robbins Road shall be considered to be of adequate grade and construction for a period of two years only from the date of this opinion. This opinion is limited to the construction of the street.and should not be interpreted as implying that the lot under consideration meets other tests of the Zoning By -Law to.qualify it as a buildable lot. Minutes of Planning Board Meeting: 11/1/82 EXECUTIVE SESSION 4 399 Chairman Smith polled the Board and it was unanimously voted to go into Executive Session to consider the purchase and value of real property because discussion in open session may have a detrimental effect on the Town's negotiating position. Chair- man Smith stated that upon conclusion of the Executive Session, the Board would re- sume action on its agenda in open session. At 9:55 p.m. the Board went into Execu- tive Session. Following the Executive Session, the Board returned to open session at 10:10 p.m. COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING, POLICIES LO N 167. Updating of "Guidelines and Policies for Petitions for RD, CD Zoning Amendments" 0 The Board reviewed suggested revisions to the policy prepared by staff, including the Q addition of an Appendix 2, which sets forth a sample format for a preliminary site [Y] development and use plan. The Board discussed changing the time allowed at the Plan - Hing Board's public hearing (Event #6) for presentation by the developer; it was agreed to leave the existing language which provides for a 15-20 minutes maximum for presentation. While not changing the language of the policy, it was agreed that the - Board would adhere more closely to the time schedule set forth particularly for ma- terial submitted late by developers. Mr. Sorensen suggested that the time for Event Y1, Preliminary Reading -Concept Plan, be retained as September -October; other members of the Board favored a change to September -November. On the motion of Mrs. Uhrig, seconded by Mr. Sandy, it was voted unanimously to revise the policy to include the ' changes suggested by staff. ` 168. Policy on Low Income -Housing in Higher Density Developments: Chairman Smith suggested that the existing policy requiring 20% of the units in a multi -family development should.at least be suspended, due to the absense of public subsidy funds, and may need to be reworked entirely with more emphasis on affordable housing. Mr. Sorensen and Mr. sandy responded that the policy may need to be revised, but they did not favor suspending the policy until there is an alternative to replace it. It was agreed that the Planning Board's Advisory Committee on Housing Needs would be re- quested to research this question and suggest some alternatives. It was agreed that, in the interim, the staff would indicate to any prospective developers of RD propo- sals that some affordable housing would be expected. - 169. Proposed Amendments to the Zoning By -Law Mr. Sandy explained a proposed amendment he had drafted which would allow cluster development in the RS district and permit a reduction in the area requirement in the RO district. Mrs. Smith commented that the cluster provision of the Zoning By -Law does need more flexible provisions and she advocated a complete revision of the cluster section rather than pieces of it. Yr. Sandy explained a second amendment he had drafted to allow more two-family dwell- ings in the town. Two-family dwellings would be permitted if the lot area is at least twice that required in the district and the street frontage is at least 140% of that otherwise required. Mr. Sandy commented that there would be no increase in den- sity since the lot size is equivalent. More rental housing would be produced because Minutes of Planning Board Meeting: 11/1/82 5 39'7 about half of the units would be rental, though one could build a two-family condo- minium structure. Several members questioned whether it was advisable to present the two-family proposal to same Town Meeting that would be considering an accessary apartment proposal. ' 170. HUD -Flood Insurance Districts Mr. Sandy reported that his review showed that the new HUD flood district map would not provide any more wetland protection than the Town currently had under the State Wetland Protection Act and the -Town's Wetland Protection By -Law. Mrs. Nichols noted that HUD's principal interest is the insurance of structures against flooding rather than the protection of wetlands-_ Mrs. Nichols said that they are waiting for reports from Engineering and the Conservation Commission on this matter. REPORTS Q 171. Planning Director Q a. Hill Street Subdivision: Mr. Bowyer presented two alternative preliminary subdivision skteches for a 3.7 acre parcel off Hill Street. He reported that he had suggested to Leonard Colwell, the applicant,_ that they explore a -different type of site plan that would have the same number of dwelling units --(six) but with much greater flexibility in the siting of the units. Mr. Bowyer suggested a technique of using an RIS zoning amendment to obtain more site planning flexibility and avoid the lot area and frontage require- ments of a conventional subdivision. He thought that might result in a ' site plan more compatible with the rough terrain which has many trees and good vistas. 172. Chairman: Planning Board Syllabus: Mrs. Smith reported that she had recently read three books from the Planning Department's professional library. She distribu- ted written reviews of each of the books. She encouraged each member of the Board to read books or reports on subjects of interest to members and to report back to the Board. Mr. Bowyer had a collection of professional literature which members took for "homework." 173. Planning Board Members, Subcommittees a. Meeting - November 22: The joint meeting with the Board of Selectmen for presentation of the findings of the Household Survey of Lexington Center, which had been scheduled for November 8, has been postponed until Novem- ber 22 at 8:15 p.m. It was agreed to meet at 7:30 that evening for regular. Planning Board business. b. Selectmen's Follow-up on Inclusionary Housing: Members discussed.a letter dated October 19, 1982, from Selectmen Politi to Representative Markey seeking the Congressman's assistance in obtaining a commitment from HUD for the acquisition, by the Housing Authority, of units at Morrow Crossing and Potter Pond which had been pledged to comply with the Planning Board's policy. Mr. Sandy remarked that the Town should get on with establishing separate lots for the publicly owned units so they are not subject to the vote of the condominium association. Chairman Smith stated that she under- stood that the letter to HUD was only one of what may be several approaches to deal with the problem. Minutes of Planning Board Meeting: 11/1/82 6 395 c. Board of Appeals Hearings, October 28: Mr. Sorensen reported that the Board of Appeals and the Building Commissioner had difficulty with the Section of the Zoning By -Law that attempts to measure the intensity of light of signs in "foot lamberts." He said it would be desirable to have a method of measurement, expressed in plain English, and capable of being measured by an instrument in the field. It was agreed that Mr. Sandy and Mr. Sorensen would work on clarifying the method of measurement. The meeting was adjourned at 11:12 p.m. LJudith( J. Uheig, clerk COQ Q F I I