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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1986-06-30PLANNING BOARD MINUTES OF JUNE 30, 1986 The meeting of the Lexington Planning Board held in Room G-15, Town Office Building, was called to order at 7:25 by the Chairman, Mrs. Uhrig, with mem- bers Klauminzer, Sorensen, Wood, Assistant Planner Rawski and Secretary Peters present. Mr. Cripps was absent. Planning Director Bowyer arrived during item 163. 159. Election of Officers: Mrs. Wood nominated Mrs. Uhrig to serve as chair- man. Mrs. Klauminzer seconded the nomination. There were no other nomina- tions, and the Board voted 3-0-1, with Mr. Sorensen abstaining, to elect Mrs. Uhrig chairman. Mrs. Uhrig nominated Mr. Cripps to serve as vice chairman. Mrs. Wood seconded the nomination. There were no other nominations, and the Board voted 3-0-1, with Mr. Sorensen abstaining, to elect Mr. Cripps vice chairman. Mrs. Klauminzer nominated Mrs. Wood to serve as clerk. Mrs Uhrig seconded the nomination. There were no other nominations, and the Board voted unanimously to elect Mrs. Wood clerk. ************* ADMINISTRATION OF LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS ************** ' PLANS NOT REQUIRING APPROVAL UNDER THE SUBDIVISION CONTROL LAW 160. Form A/86-13, Kirksey and Mayne, Solomon Pierce Road: The Board reviewed a plan showing the combination of 3 lots (18C, 18D-1, and 18E-2) and 2 lots (18D-2 and 18E-1) creating two lots with frontage and acreage conforming to current zoning requirements. On the motion of Mr. Sorensen, seconded by Mrs. Wood, it was voted unanimously: to endorse the plan entitled "Plan of Land in Lexington, Mass.", dated May 10, 1986, by BSC - Bedford, certified by Roger M. Corbin, Profession- al Land Surveyor, with application form A/86-13, applicants Kirksey & Mayne, as it does not require approval under the Subdivision Control law. SUBDIVISION OF LAND 161. Sunset Ridge, endorsement of plans: Ms. Rawski reported the applicant has made all the changes on the plan, prepared the covenant and provided the blasting information, as requested by the Board. On the motion of Mr. Soren- sen, seconded by Mrs. Klauminzer, it was voted unanimously to endorse the plans. 162. Hampton Road, acceptance of surety and release of lots: On the motion of Mr. Sorensen, seconded by Mrs. Wood, it was voted unanimously: to accept surety in the form of Performance Secured By Funds Retained By the State Street Bank and Trust Co., in the amount of $24,397.25 for the remaining work to complete the development and to release lots 1, 2, and 8. [1 u Minutes of June 30, 1986 Page 2 163. Willow Ridge, preliminary sketch plan: Chris Nelson, from Nelson Engin- eering, William Callahan, attorney and David Solomon, designer, reviewed a plan for land off Wellington Lane Avenue. The site analysis was done by Larson Associates. The developer is Edward Maddon. Ms. Nelson said criteria affecting design included existing wetlands, topog- raphy, noise from Route 2 and abuttors' objections to connecting the proposed extension of Barrett Road through to Wellington Lane Avenue. There would be three buildings containing two units of 2100 sq. ft. each, and a single unit of 3800 sq. ft. The nine units would be held in condominium ownership. The developer has agreed to construct a footpath to the Bowman School on Town - owned land (conservation- and school -controlled property) which the Town has requested. In response to a question from Mr. Sorensen, Mr. Bowyer said completion of the footpath, which has not been designed yet, would include construction of a bridge across Beaver Brook. Mrs. Klauminzer was concerned with the tight clustering of the units and the size of the buildings which are approximately 80 feet long, with approximately 50 feet of space between the units. She suggested there be more buffer area between the units. The Board saw no insoluble problems with the proposal. However they insist a through street to Wellington Lane Avenue with a 50 foot r.o.w., must be part of the plan. 164. Ridge Road, letter from Robert L. Johnson: In response to a question from Mrs. Uhrig, Mr. Bowyer briefly reviewed the events leading to the draft letter, dated June 30, 1986, responding to the letter from Mr. Johnson. He commented that the status of Ridge Road does not affect their ability to develop the land, since any development of more than three units would require a special permit with site plan review. The Board approved the letter, with corrections, to be sent to Mr. Johnson and his attorney, Mr. Gilman. 165. Toga Property, off Turning Mill Rd., development options: Richard Cook, of BSC Engineering, reported the Toga family still hope to have a three lot subdivision approved on the 2 1/2 acre site. They would give the third lot to the Town in exchange for permission to access the other two lots with drive- ways. He added that if they were required to build a road to subdivision standards, they would have to build three houses. Mr. Sorensen commented that the proposal created just the kind of oddly -shaped lot the Board has tried to eliminate over the years. Mr. Cook responded he would agree if this were an "approval not required plan', but the special permit with site plan review (for three or more lots) procedure gave the Board considerable flexibility. He said they were considering this option also, and asked if the Board would consider allowing 35 feet of frontage for the lots if they did, to obtain better lots and house sites. The Board said they would not. Minutes of June 30, 1986 Page 3 Mr. Costello noted construction of a subdivision road would require extensive cuts in the hillside and the loss of many mature trees. Mr. Bowyer noted that the Board could require the 50 foot right-of-way be shown, show that the lots could have legal frontage along the defined right-of-way and waive construc- tion of the roadway to full Town standards under the provisions of the Subdi- vision Regulations. Mr. Cook asked if he could present to the Board what he feels would be a good design for an interior drive to serve two homes. Mrs. Uhrig said the board would entertain such a proposal. She added the Board is looking for a road- way to subdivision standards or something very close to it. 166. Mason's Hollow, design issues: The Board reviewed MASONS HOLLOW - DIS- CUSSION ITEMS, dated June 30, 1986, prepared by Ms. Rawski. They agreed that underground electric and telephone lines must be shown. They also agreed they would like to see provision for the 100 year storm retention area resolved in some other way that would not require the excessive removal of trees as now shown. Joyce Miller, Conservation Commission chairman, noted she had seen two preliminary plans using: 1) dry wells, and 2) large storage pipes. The Board agreed to allow an alternate turnaround to be constructed as long as dense planting is provided along the end of the turnaround. Mr. Sorensen felt there should be a sidewalk, suggesting the walk be made from porous/crushed stone, and not necessarily built with bituminous concrete as prescribed in the Town standards. As the road will not be a public way, the Board agreed to permit a 20 foot wide interior drive for the whole length of the drive, to preserve the histor- ic aspect of the Mason property. Ms. Rawski noted that since there had been no space provided for guest parking, the 16 ft width proposed could have created bottlenecks. The 20 foot wide interior drive is a special allowance by the Board because the property is in a historic district and the interior drive will not be a public street. This allowance is not to be a precedent for other subdivisions. COMPREHENSIVE PERMIT 167. Development Application, Katandin Woods: The Board was joined by Housing Needs Advisory Committee members, Elizabeth Flemings and William Spencer, to review a draft response to the request by the Lexington Housing Authority for Planning Board recommendations on the application of the Boston Investment & Development Corp. for funding under the Teller Program to construct a mixed - income apartment development called Katandin Woods. The Board reviewed a draft of a recommendation prepared by Mrs. Klauminzer and members of the HNAC. It agreed with Mr. Spencer's suggestion to substitute the word "education" for the word "persuasion" in the last line of the "Comment:" under item number 5 on page 5, and approved the draft, with cor- rections, for transmittal to the Housing Authority. Minutes of June 30, 1986 Page 4 ******************************** REPORTS ************************************ 168. Planning Board a. Housing Needs Advisory Committee: The Board discussed proposed revisions of the HNAC "Charge to Committee" with Mrs. Flemings and Mr. Spencer. Mrs. Flemings felt the Committee should be more task oriented, and thought the Committee would be more effective if it were considered a permanent resource available to and appointed jointly by the Planning Board and the Board of Selectmen. Mr. Spencer mentioned that a possible task for the Committee might evolve from a proposal under the State Housing Partnership Program that advocates more affordable housing for moderate income owners. Mr. Bowyer suggested the Committee become involved with work on the Affordable Housing grant received by the Town. The Board approved the "Charge to Committee" with the following revisions: the elimination of the words "PLANNING BOARD" from the title of the charge, and the addition of the words "for specific terms" to section A. under "II. Appointing Authority." 169. Planning Director a. Material for new Board members: In response to a request from Mrs. ' Klauminzer, Mr. Bowyer agreed to gather resource material to help familiarize newer members with their responsibilities. This may involve a "training session" reading plans and other related material the Board regularly deals with. The meeting adjourned at 10:33 p.m. u `?rla&.4Z C. "Cloe Martha C. Wood, Clerk