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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-10-10-PB-min PLANNING BOARD MINUTES MEETING OF OCTOBER 10, 2018 A meeting of the Lexington Planning Board, held in the Selectmen’s Meeting Room, was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Chair Ginna Johnson with members Charles Hornig, Nancy Corcoran- Ronchetti, Richard Canale, and Bob Creech, and planning staff David Kucharsky and Lori Kaufman present. *******************************STAFF REPORTS******************************** General Updates: The search for staff for the Assistant Planning Director and Planner positions is ongoing. Mr. Kucharsky gave updates for the dates of the Tri-Town transit study with Bedford and Burlington as follows:  nd Monday, October 22, 11:00 a.m. in Estabrook Hall, Cary Memorial Building: 2 Stakeholder meeting  nd Monday, October 22, 7:00 p.m. in Battin Hall, Cary Memorial Building: 2 Community meeting There is still a survey posted on line that can be taken that will provide more information at www.lexingtonma.gov./transit-survey. There will be a Cotton Farm Revitalization Public Forum #1, October 2, 2018 at 7:00 p.m. in Estabrook Hall. There will be another public forum at future date in October/November. There will be a site visit at Cotton Farm Monday October 15, at 3:00 p.m. Comprehensive Plan Update: The second World Café is October 23, 2018, Estabrook Elementary School (7:00 p.m.) The third World Café is November 27, 2018, Community Center (7:00 p.m.) We are currently setting up the next meeting of the CPAC Hartwell Avenue Zoning Initiative Update: Staff will be meeting with the consultant from RKG to get some preliminary findings for fiscal impacts. *************************SPECIAL TOWN MEETING***************************** Marijuana Zoning Bylaw Amendment; Discuss Town Meeting Report: The Board discussed the proposed draft for the report drafted by Mr. Hornig. On a motion of Mr. Canale, seconded by Ms. Corcoran-Ronchetti, it was voted, 5-0, to adopt proposed Planning Board report as drafted for Town Meeting. Page 2 Minutes for the Meeting of October 10, 2018 *********************DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION************************ CONTINUED PUBLIC HEARINGS 7 Hartwell Avenue, Proposed Rezoning: Chair, Ms. Johnson, opened the continued public hearing at 7:12 p.m. with approximately 50 people in the audience. Present was Robert Buckley, David Paley, Director of Business Development for the Russian School of Math, Sonia and Ilya Rifkin CEOs of the Russian School of Math. The applicant is looking to rezone this parcel to a CSX District and make it more responsive and financially viable allowing it to grow in the Town of Lexington. If this passes it would come back to the Planning Board for Site Plan Review (SPR) for the circulation of traffic flow. Individual Board Comments:  Would like to see data for traffic; is there a way to route the cars some other way making a left onto Hartwell Avenue when leaving the school?  My concern is that the Town is spending a lot of money to rezone this whole area with a zoning initiative and if the school moves could wind up with a use that would not be desirable like a gas station. There is no problem making this lot a CD for a single use. Mr. Buckley said this site is only good for a few uses and a gas station would have to be by special permit only.  CSX does not allow housing and trying to make this area more self-supporting uses to not generate more traffic and would be more inclined to allow as a CD. The site is too small for housing by permitting some amenity uses would allow people to remain on site and reduce traffic.  There is a concern with the use, traffic pattern, and schedule and until we have that information we may make a traffic nightmare. This could be used for other amenities that are not clear and have concerns about what we would get and would have a problem with approving this at this time. Audience Comments:  A representative for the Chamber of Commerce said the Chamber supports this change of this zoning. The applicant is a resident and will work to make it palatable for this area. This is a small parcel at the tip of Hartwell Avenue and has been a long time challenge to the area. This makes a lot of sense and is similar to the Property at Marrett Road that was rezoned at the last Town Meeting.  A resident’s son has been going to the school for years and said this is an exceptional education resource. They provide educational resources for exceptional and challenged Minutes for the Meeting of October 10, 2018 Page 3 students. If they leave it would impact many families that rely on this school for their children’s supplemental education.  This has been a wonderful resource for me as a teacher and the applicant has been very involved in the community.  The school has been an outstanding resource in Lexington and is important for it to stay here in Town. The applicant is financially supportive of fundraising for local initiative and is a strong community partner.  The Russian School of Math has been a big part of the turnaround in this resident’s child’s confidence in being comfortable in high school dealing with math and helping others. They bring adults from other communities here when they bring their children and they will hang out and browse around the Town and that could be an incentive for the Hartwell Avenue initiative that is being considered.  The children learn a lot more here than just math, they form friendships and like the bulk of the students that come from Lexington and add a number one value that helps our children which are our number one asset. It would be a significant loss to lose them to another community.  What do they teach besides math? It teaches critical thinking, which is a different approach for not only math but dealing with life in general. The most important part would be creating a playground for the children if we own the building.  Would like to see the school thrive in Lexington; there will there be a comprehensive rezoning of Hartwell Avenue that would allow the school to operate there without allowing all the other concerning uses. It is happening, but not so fast and schools are already being allowed on Hartwell Avenue we are only discussing this site.  It would be great for them to have their own building. Mr. Buckley said the school is not permitted on this site due to the lot size, but can’t guarantee that would happen, but that is the intent. Individual Board Comments:  This school would be permitted across the street and believe this use should be permitted here. Was hoping that we could fix the CM District, but this has not happened yet. That fix for Marrett Road from last year would be a good fit for this site and do not see any reason not to approve this rezoning and have it be part of the Hartwell Avenue mix.  We know this is a great asset, but there is a concern that there is a residential community right there and there and it will create a more difficult time making a left hand turn onto Page 4 Minutes for the Meeting of October 10, 2018 Hartwell Avenue. The last project did not rent to a school because of the traffic issue. This is not as easy as it might appear.  We are in a quandary and in the spring we discussed possibilities and you chose not to meet with this all this time and wait till the last minute. I do not understand why we have not have discussions until this point. Mr. Buckley said that we met with staff and we did not meet the dimensional standards for CM but did for the CSX. The applicant is just trying to find a way to remain in Lexington so they have a permanent place to stay.  You have 1,500 students that use the facility. Ilya Rifkin said all we are looking for is to have a permanent home and have no desire to move out of town and do not plan on expanding our school just want a playground for the students.  We have to look at the benefits not only to the applicant, but the entire community and the traffic situation is a problem especially with 1,500 students. This property was purchased with a specific zoning and is a problem and coming to us now just two weeks before the Special Town Meeting is not considerate. Can the Planning Board expect any traffic and circulations patterns to view soon? Mr. Buckley said he can give us some traffic patterns soon, but don’t want to mislead the Board and the data is only basic at best. We do not know what the site would look like.  It’s too late to continue the public hearing this close to the Special Town Meeting and traffic patterns should be reviewed at the site plan review and discuss what they might do sometime in the future.  We are stuck with what we have and do not believe that we should ask for a traffic study for what might be and do not believe we should continue the public hearing. On a motion of Mr. Hornig, seconded by Mr. Canale, it was voted, 4-1, (Ms. Johnson opposed) to close the public hearing at 8:11 p.m. On a motion of Mr. Hornig, seconded by Ms. Corcoran Ronchetti, it was voted, 1-4, (Ms. Johnson and Mr. Canale, Ms. Corcoran Ronchetti, and Mr. Creech opposed) to recommend approval of this rezoning to Town Meeting. The motion failed for lack of votes. On a motion of Mr. Canale, seconded by Ms. Corcoran Ronchetti, it was voted, 4-1 (Mr. Hornig opposed) to recommend Town Meeting refer this to the Planning Board. Minutes for the Meeting of October 10, 2018 Page 5 55 & 56 Watertown Street (Belmont Country Club PD3): Chair, Ms. Johnson, opened the continued public hearing at 8:20 p.m. with approximately 50 people in the audience. Present were John Farrington, attorney, Ted Tye, managing partner for National Development, Steve Senna, vice president of National Development., Theo Kindermans, from Stantec. Mr. Farrington said tonight was about responding to requests for information and presented additional information that was revised and submitted October 3, 2018. Mr. Tye presented the major updates which include enhanced connections to nature, a reduction of 48 outdoor spaces which were brought in under the building, and design changes with different material. The following items were discussed: the updated PSDUP; market viability; referral network and outplacement; and speed limits/sight distance. Individual Board Comments:  Have a letter from Captain McClean which discussed changes to Watertown Street and it becoming a thickly settled street to reduce the speed limits. The safe limit was 25 MPH and the road should be reconfigured with speed humps or whatever it takes to reduce speeds it does not seem safe the way it is. Mr. Tye said it is not a secondary road way and would be responsive to what the Town wants.  We need housing which is affordable and provide 20% affordable housing to make a reasonable mix we do not need more luxury housing. Mr. Tye said they came to the Town it was discussed 15% and we went with that premise and is a fair number which will keep Lexington ahead of the 10% affordable, to ask for a higher percentage at this late date is unreasonable. Audience Comments:  The traffic concerns are the Watertown Road is very narrow; is it an unsafe area which has is a blinking light for golf carts which is a concern. This does not feel like it fits in Lexington.  This needs more low income housing.  Opposed to rezoning this residential area the main concern is traffic since the roads are too narrow. Preserving the semirural look of Lexington is a main concern with the proposed seven story commercial looking building could set a precedent.  Requested an animation to show how the buildings would look to the surrounding area with these enormously large buildings. The winter view still needs to be shown realistically.  Concerned with the levels of care you are providing and why do you not have skilled nursing. What happens when a person needs skilled nursing services and their condition Page 6 Minutes for the Meeting of October 10, 2018 deteriorates? The applicant works with residents to get what they require with skilled nursing, hospitals and whatever else they need. The applicant needs to consider providing nursing facilities.  It does not make sense to place this facility in this area and traffic will be impacted. This is not commercial area and does not belong in Lexington.  Emergency vehicles, delivery trucks, workers and any other vehicle will create a lot more traffic.  This project needs to consider the middle income seniors.  Feel this is being rushed to Town Meeting with issues that still need to be resolved and are complicated and the Town needs to take more time to look at this proposal.  The Brookhaven organization at the time of rezoning reduced the number of beds for nursing and increased for assisted living since that is where the need is. Brookhaven has no affordable units and is an expensive place to live to keep it operating. You will not find affordable units in other places. The amount of additional area being offered as conservation area should not be neglected.  Preserve our neighborhood.com are against this and any other building that intrudes in ours and other neighborhoods in Lexington.  Looking for the location of the HVAC and elevator units to be shown on the drawings.  Lexington is a historical town and this does not match that view.  Belmont Country Club will benefit from the Chapter 61 discounts for recreation land.  Rodent infestation is a concern with building.  Housing like this is needed in Lexington with the rising number of seniors. There is affordable housing being offered and this is a large parcel of land that would be appropriate. The trees on the hillside would block the building and the view from the other side of Route 2. The Board should support this rezoning so Town Meeting can make its own determination after.  National Development has gone out of its way to accommodate the Planning Board and this is a viable business that deserves your approval.  This is a project that serves a demographic population in our community and people will need this kind of housing. This is the first project that we can get 15% affordable and will be meaningful for affordable housing. The amount of impact will be less then what they believe and this is what you deal with when you live in a community.  This was developed to minimize the impact on the community. Minutes for the Meeting of October 10, 2018 Page 7  This is the wrong location for this project.  How many underground parking spaces are there? 170 spaces.  How much for the affordable units? That number is dictated by the state.  Do the units address middle income residents?  We are a middle class area and no one has considered the impact on the value of our houses.  Brookhaven’s wait list has increased and keeps going up regularly. There is clearly a big need that is not being satisfied locally. Individual Board Comments:  Requested three stories and not five stories and four stories would be better. Mr. Tye said we did as much as we could to make it as pleasant as possible and did the best we could to reduce the massing. While this is better it still needs more work.  Did you speak with Mark Sandeen from Net Zero? Mr. Senna said no. How will this facility impact achieving our goals now that Net Zero has been approved?  This is a Lexington Gateway and while the signage would comply with the bylaw there is no need for signs on both sides of the street. Mr. Senna will do only one sign.  The past meeting said there was no rip rap and all this was natural stone. Mr. Kindermans wanted to keep slopes secure and used salvaged stones from the site that is covering the area. This is changing the runoff for the drainage in the area.  The stone walls are not natural stone and they need to be.  How can trees be preserved near the building and garage? There will be an arborist on staff to assist.  Species of plants and shrubs must be native to Middlesex County.  Change the site clearing distance which should be a meadow.  Let us know the mitigation plan for trees before Town Meeting.  There will be 18.6 acres left open space and that is a positive and with 15% affordable units. Loss of wildlife, increase traffic seems to be minimal and do not see this as a negative to the neighborhoods.  There should be no words in the zoning that are ambiguous. You did not define that the units are for senior and need to define it in zoning. We will do whatever the Town wants.  Are you still looking for ways to slow down traffic? Town staffing is not supportive for physical changes, but we will do whatever we can for a good solution. Want to see what you can do? Page 8 Minutes for the Meeting of October 10, 2018 On a motion of Mr. Hornig, seconded by Mr. Canale, it was voted, 5-0, to close the public hearing at 10:42 P.M 331 Concord Avenue, Planned Development 4 (PD 4): Chair, Ms. Johnson, opened the continued public hearing at 10:46 p.m. with approximately six people in the audience. The applicant has requested to withdraw, without prejudice the Warrant Article in for consideration for the upcoming Special Town Meeting. The applicant will continue to explore options to find a more suitable location to address the needs of the Town’s senior citizens. On a motion of Mr. Hornig, seconded by Mr. Canale, it was voted, 5-0, to close public hearing at 10:47 p.m. *************************BOARD ADMINISTRATION**************************** Open Meeting Law Discussion: Mr. Hornig had requested that a discussion on a violation of the Open Meeting Law (OML) be added to the agenda regarding an email sent by Ms. Johnson to fellow Board Members that was a direct violation of the OML. Ms. Johnson said that the e-mail she sent was a summary of what was discussed at the last meeting and when she reviewed the tape believed that this was correct. Ms. Johnson said after reviewing the OML she said according to the strict interpretation of the OML the e-mail was not in compliance with those guidelines since it was not regarding scheduling or administrative items. Ms. Johnson wanted to acknowledge Mr. Hornig’s concerns and placed this on the agenda as per his request. Mr. Hornig described the requirements of the OML relating to e-mail to provide the Board and the public with information of what is permitted and asked the Board to acknowledge that there was a violation and not let it happen in the future. Ms. Johnson said the deliberation in question did take place in a meeting and Mr. Hornig’s point was taken and thanked him for bringing this to the Board’s attention. Staff distributed a copy of the OML Guide and Reference Materials to each Board Member. Board Member Updates: BRSB is holding an open house on Monday, October 15 from 6-8 p.m. The superintendent of the park would like to be acknowledged as a stakeholder for interviews for the Comprehensive Plan. Mr. Hornig is representing the Planning Board on the School Committee for the Master Plan. Board of Selectmen put out a call for the SPRD committee and opened it up to candidates. Minutes for the Meeting of October 10, 2018 Page 9 The Annual Report was sent to Board Members for review please send corrections or comments to staff. Upcoming Meetings and Anticipated Schedule : The next meeting dates are October 24, 31, November 13, 14 & 15 tentative before Fall Special Town Meeting, and November 28, 2018. A Doodle poll will be sent to the Board for a site visit at 9 Bushnell Drive. Minutes: On a motion of Mr. Canale, seconded by Ms. Corcoran-Ronchetti, it was voted, 5-0, to approve the minutes of September 26, 2018 as submitted. On a motion, duly made and seconded, it was voted to adjourn the meeting at 11:00 p.m. The meeting was recorded by LexMedia. The following documents used at the meeting can be found on the Planning Board website in Planning Board packets.  Medical and Recreational Marijuana Draft proposed amendment (1 page).  7 Hartwell Avenue Warrant Article petition to rezone (1 page).  7 Hartwell Avenue Proposed warrant Article to rezone (7 pages).  7 Hartwell Avenue presentation to the Planning Board (4 pages). Documents for (PD 4) 331 Concord Avenue (PSDUP)  Ginna Johnson’s email regarding 55-56 Watertown Street (Belmont Country Club) that is related to the Open Meeting Law violation  Letter to withdraw without prejudice, dated October 10, 2018 (1 page). Documents for (PD3) 55-56 Watertown Street (Belmont Country Club) (PSDUP) updated 10/5/18  Introductory letter  Zoning petition  Corporate overview and sample projects  Zoning text  Reasons for rezone  Comparison to base zoning  Analysis of compliance with comprehensive plan  Environmental and infrastructure report Page 10 Minutes for the Meeting of October 10, 2018  Fiscal impact analysis  Waterstone architectural drawings  Bridges architectural drawings  Waterstone site drawings  Bridges site drawings  Waterstone Stormwater management  Bridges stormwater management  Traffic study Nancy Corcoran-Ronchetti, Clerk