HomeMy WebLinkAbout1986-02-11PLANNING BOARD
MINUTES OF FEBRUARY 11, 1986
The meeting of the Lexington Planning Board, held in Room G-15, Town Office
Building, was called to order at 7:33 by the Chairman Mrs. Uhrig, with members
Cripps, Smith, Sorensen, Wood, Planning Director Bowyer, Assistant Planner
Rawski, and Secretary Peters present.
Also present were: Mrs. Klauminzer and Mr. Spencer of the Housing Needs Advisory
Committee and Mrs. Flemings.
48. Approval of Minutes: The Board postponed action on the minutes of January
22 and 27, 1986 until the next meeting.
49. Committee Appointment: Mrs. Uhrig reported that Mrs. Flemings has agreed to
serve on the Housing Needs Advisory Committee. On the motion of Mrs. Smith,
seconded by Mr. Cripps, it was voted unanimously to appoint Elizabeth Flemings to
the Housing Needs Advisory Committee.
************* ADMINISTRATION OF LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS *******************
PLANS NOT REQUIRING APPROVAL UNDER THE SUBDIVISION CONTROL LAW
50. Form A/86-5, Solomon Pierce Road: Ms. Rawski presented a plan showing
' changes in a lot line between two lots, 20 and 21, Pheasant Brook Estates, both
.
lots conforming to the frontage and acreage requirements of the zoning district.
On the motion of Mr. Sorensen, seconded by Mr. Cripps, it was voted unanimously:
to endorse the plan entitled "Plan of Land in Lexington, Mass.", dated
September 27, 1985, by T & M Engineering Associates, Inc., certified by
Erland S. Townsend, Jr., Registered Land Surveyor, with application form
A/86-5, as it does not require approval under the Subdivision Control Law.
51. Form A/86-6, Bridge Street: Ms. Rawski presented a plan showing a division
of one lot into two with the back lot to be joined to a third lot, resulting in
two lots both conforming to the acreage requirements of the zoning district, and
with no change in the frontage of the lots. On the motion of Mr. Sorensen,
seconded by Mrs. Smith it was voted unanimously:
to endorse the plan entitled "Plan of Land in Lexington, Mass.", dated
November 22, 1985, by Hayes Engineering, Inc., Sidney Field, Jr., Certified
Land Surveyor, with application form A/86-6, as it does not require approval
under the Subdivision Control Law.
CONSTRUCTION OF UNACCEPTED STREET
52. Hazel Road, CUS 84/2 Robert Phelan: Mr. Phelan submitted a bank book from
Guaranty -First Trust Company, account #102-4266, in the sum of $1500, as surety
for the completion of work on Hazel Road. On the motion of Mr. Sorensen, second-
ed by Mrs. Smith, it was voted unanimously to accept the bank book as surety for
work remaining to be done on Hazel Road.
APPLICATION FOR COMPREHENSIVE PERMIT
53. Katandin Woods: The Board reviewed the memo entitled: "Conditions for
Approval of Katandin Woods Proposal." Mr. Sorensen thought the buffer between
Minutes for February 11, 1986 Page 2
the residential development and the surrounding commercial properties was inade-
quate, and added the use of this property for residential purposes was totally
inappropriate. Mrs. Uhrig agreed it was inappropriate. Mrs. Smith proposed
increasing the buffer between Signatron and the dwellings to at least 120 feet by
eliminating the swimming pool complex.
The Board agreed to the following:
1) that Section 4.12 of the Housing Element, which deals with the percentage of
dwelling units to be dedicated to affordable housing, shall not apply to a devel-
opment that receives a comprehensive permit, which by-passes the increased risks
and expenses that may be incurred when submitting a proposal to Town Meeting for
approval. Therefore, the developer should dedicate 25% (an additional 5% above
the requirements of the "Housing Element", dated 12/9/86) of the dwelling units
in the development to affordable housing.
2) that at least 20 percent of the dwelling units should be in the rental range
affordable by low-income households and at least 25 percent of the dwelling units
should be in the rental range affordable by moderate income households. They
added that prior to the issuance of the permit, the applicant shall prepare and
submit an applicaton to the Mass. Housing Finance Agency for financing of the 20
percent of the dwelling units in the low income range, under Chapter 705, and for
approval of SHARP financing for that part of the development which is not financ-
ed under the Chapter 705 program.
I3) that all (eight) three-bedroom units shall be rented to low-income or moder-
ate -income households, with at least six available for low-income households and
two available for moderate -income households.
4) that all affordable dwelling units shall be maintained in an affordable status
for 20 years, and that any affordable dwelling unit may be purchased by the
Lexington Housing Authority or the Lexington Housing Assistance Board at any time
after the start of construction for the (1986) total development cost per dwell-
ing plus any tax consequences resulting from the sale. If no purchases are made
until the dwelling units are offered for sale as condominiums, the Town shall
have the right of first refusal on the purchase of any market rate dwelling
units. The offering price shall be the fair market value at the time of sale
minus 10%.
5) that the development shall be maintained as rental housing. No change to
another form of occupancy shall be permitted except by a majority vote of the
Town Meeting. The rent for affordable housing shall be calculated on the basis of
the income of the mean size of potential applicant households, without exceeding
the 30% of gross annual income guideline, rather than on a flat rate based on the
size of the dwelling unit irrespective of household size.
6) that in the rental of the market rate units, or the sale if the development is
subsequently converted to a condominium, the developer shall give preference,
from a period of six months from the start of the advertising period for the
initial rental and for a period of two months for any vacancy after initial
occupancy, to the following households (listed in order of priority):
Minutes for February 11, 1986
Page 3
1. a minority household
2. a resident of Lexington
3. an employee of a company, or other employer located in Lexington
4. a former resident of Lexington.
In the rental, or sale, of any dwelling unit(s), where there are more qualified
applicants than the number of unit(s) available, preference shall be given to the
household(s) with the lower income.
7) that data on the income of tenants of the affordable housing units shall be
submitted to LEXHAB each year. If a household's income has risen so that it no
longer meets the maximum income guidelines, the developer may either: 1) remove
the tenant from the unit after notification of at least 12 months, or 2) permit
the tenant to remain in the dwelling unit provided the developer designates the
next vacant unit of comparable size to be an affordable dwelling unit; and
provided the total number of affordable dwelling units is not reduced.
8) that the developer shall contribute not less than $25,000 to the cost of
traffic and safety improvements in the vicinity of the Wood Street -Hartwell
Avenue intersection, and provide for the construction of a sidewalk along Wood
Street.
9) that the development plan shall conform to subsection 9.3.2 of the Zoning By -
Law which requires that no dead end interior drive may be more than 650 feet
' long; there be two means of access to dwellings; and the interior drives shall be
so constructed that they shall conform to the Town's construction standards.
Prior to the issuance of a building permit, the developer shall provide document-
ation, satisfactory to the Town Counsel, that he has the right to construct a
second means of access across the property of the Hartwood Limited Partnership to
Hartwell Avenue. If the applicant cannot provide such satisfactory documenta-
tion, he shall submit a revised site plan to the Board of Appeals showing how
compliance with subsecton 9.3.2 will be achieved.
10) that an approach and entrance to the Town's Katandin Woods conservation area,
between the secondary entrance drive (which leads to the Signatron property) and
the conservation area shall be developed. Such approach and entrance shall be
constructed to the Town's standards for a footpath in a conservation area and a
conservation easement over the footpath shall be granted to the Town.
11) that under no conditions may the house be demolished or substantially altered
with respect to the exterior appearance of a dwelling of its historic period.
Prior to the issuance of any building permit, the developer shall insure that the
Cutler house shall, subject to the approval of the Historical Commission:
1. be relocated to a site that, for a mid -eighteenth century farmhouse is an
appropriate setting with respect to land area and the architectural charact-
er of nearby structures; and
2. be restored to a use appropriate to its status as one of the few remain-
ing pre -revolutionary era dwellings in Lexington.
12) that the swimming pool and the clubhouse be eliminated from the proposal, in
order to create more buffer area between the dwelling units and Signatron.
1
Minutes for February 11, 1986 Page 4
13) that for every parking space which does not have direct unimpeded access to a
maneuvering aisle, i.e. which requires the moving of another vehicle to reach the
aisle, one additional parking space shall be provided in close proximity to the
dwelling unit it serves.
14) that all site improvements and landscaping shall be constructed in accordance
with the plan to which this permit refers, or to such other revised plan as the
Board of Appeals may subsequently approve. The construction details of the
buildings may be different than shown on these plans, but they must conform to
the State Building Code. The buildings shall be in the approximate locations
shown on the plans and the general appearance of the dwellings with respect to
massing, exterior materials, and detailing, as shown on the plans shall be main-
tained. Any substantial change in site development plans shall be submitted to
the Board of Appeals in the same manner as the original application.
At 8:40 p.m. the Board adjourned to meet with the Board of Selectmen in the
Selectmen's Meeting Room. The joint meeting was called to order by the chairman,
of the Selectmen, Mr. Marshall, with Selectmen, Eddison, Battin, McLaughlin, and
Dailey present. Present for the Planning Board were Cripps, Smith, Sorensen,
Uhrig and Wood. Also present were representatives from the Housing Needs Advis-
ory Committee, Conservation Commission, Lexington Housing Authority and Mr.
Ullian from BIDC.
Mr. Marshall invited Mr. Ullian to summarize where the process was, and Mr.
Ullian went over his letter of February 10, 1986, answering questions. Mrs.
Uhrig asked Mr. Marshall what would be the process the Boards would follow for
the joint meeting. He answered that he hoped they could reach consensus on as
many points as possible that evening. He added that he felt the developer had
met the requirements of the Housing Element, and he liked the housing mix the
developer proposed.
The Selectmen agreed basically with Planning Board positions 1), 3), 5), 8) (as
numbered in these minutes). They wished to set a specific length of time that
units must be maintained in an affordable status, and questioned the legality of
the Town regulating conversion to condominium, in position 4). On position 11),
the developer proposed either to move the Cutler house to an acceptable (to the
Town) location or to move it for use as the development clubhouse, which seemed
to be acceptable to the Selectmen.
The Planning Board left the meeting with the Selectmen at 11:41 p.m.
Mrs. Uhrig reconvened the Planning Board meeting in Room G-15, Town Office Build-
ing, at 11:46 p.m. Mrs. Smith was absent.
The Board continued their discussion of the Katandin Woods application.
The meeting was adjourned at 11:55 p.m.
Martha Wood, Clerk
PLANNING BOARD MINUTES
MEETING OF FEBRUARY 12, 1986
The meeting of the Lexington Planning Board, held in Cary Memorial Hall, was called to
order at 7:35 p.m., by the Chairman, Mrs. Uhrig, with members, Cripps, Smith,
Sorensen, Wood, Planning Director Bowyer, Assistant Planner Rawski, and Secretary
Peters present.
PUBLIC HEARING ON PROPOSED ZONING AMENDMENTS
The Board conducted a public hearing as required by Chapter 40A, on the following
proposed amendments to the Zoning By -Law:
Article 48, CD, Lowell Street, Northland
Article 50, CD, Worthen Road, Moore Homes, Inc.
The hearings were concluded at 9:50.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:52.
' Martha Wood, Clerk