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PLANNING BOARD MINUTES
MEETING OF MARCH 6, 2019
A meeting of the Lexington Planning Board, held in the Selectmen’s Meeting Room, was called
to order at 7:01 p.m. by Chair Ginna Johnson with members Richard Canale, Charles Hornig,
Robert Peters, and planning staff Sheila Page and Lori Kaufman were present. Mr. Creech was
absent. The Board welcomed Mr. Peters as the new Planning Board Member and thanked Ms.
Corcoran-Ronchetti for her six years of service to the Board.
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On a motion of Mr. Hornig, seconded by Mr. Canale, it was voted, 4-0, to appoint Mr. Peters as
clerk until the Board reorganizes after Town Meeting.
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Review and Approve: Article Recommendation Reports:
Zoning Articles:
Article 37:
The Board discussed Zoning Bylaw Amendment to change all references to the “Board of
Selectmen” to “Select Board” and all references to individual “Selectmen” to “Member of the
Select Board”.
On a motion of Mr. Hornig, seconded by Mr. Canale, it was voted, 4-0, to adopt the draft report
as the report for Town Meeting. The vote will be reaffirmed with a full Board at the next meeting.
Article 39:
The Board discussed the Zoning Bylaw Amendment to reasonably regulate land uses protected by
Mass. General Law Chapter 40A Section 3 through site plan review. Last week Town Counsel
made changes to clarify the limited nature of the review. Some members thought the revisions
were confusing. Mr. Hornig suggested changes which were acceptable to the Board.
The Board will revote when Mr. Creech returns next week. The motion will be provide by Ms.
Kreiger, the article’s petitioner.
On a motion of Mr. Canale, seconded by Ms. Johnson, it was voted, 4-0, to adopt the Board’s
amended draft report as the report for Town Meeting.
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Non-zoning Articles:
Page 2 Minutes for the Meeting of March 6, 2019
Article 14f CPA project Minuteman Tech Fields:
Melissa Batitte, Director of Recreation, sent a memo to CPC explaining that this item will be
removed from the warrant. The Town and the Minuteman Tech (MMT) put the MOU on hold
while MMT reaches out to other potential partners. The field project will be coming before the
Board as a limited site plan review. Mr. Canale was concerned that that stakeholders have not
been involved with the process.
The CPC will be meeting next week to update the reports for any changes to be made.
Review of Planning Board Workshop:
Board Members gave an overview of what was discussed at the workshop held February 28.
Economic Development:
Questions asked were:
What Economic Development areas should the Board focus on?
What benefits of Economic Development are important?
What impacts of Economic Development most important?
The results still need to be tabulated.
Transportation:
Topics discussed:
Walkability, ways to get around, public transit, a better way for kids to get to school, congestion
and other modes of transportation.
Housing:
People like the variety of styles and architecture of the houses
Concerned about the growing lack of diversity of house styles.
Mansionization was a major concern.
The Board briefly discussed the next steps and timeline. The Board would like to try to have
workshops twice yearly in September and January.
Board Member Updates:
The Economic Development Advisory Committee plans to hold a meeting with property owners
and managers on Hartwell Avenue to better understand what they want done in the corridor.
Staff sent a memo to the Town Manager about updating the TMO-1 district: summarizing
completed actions and improvements and looking for support to move forward and to seek
funding.
The Battle Road Scenic Byway Committee is beginning to update their plan in preparation of new
federal funding opportunities.
Minutes for the Meeting of March 6, 2019 Page 3
The MAPC is working on a new comprehensive plan for 2050.
Lexington Next is the new name of the comprehensive plan. The Plan will soon have its own
webpage on the Town website.
Audience Comments:
It was requested that the Comprehensive Plan information be kept updated on the website.
Upcoming Meetings and Anticipated Schedule:
The CPAC informational presentation about demographics is at 7:00 p.m. in Estabrook Hall in
the Cary Memorial Building tomorrow, March 7.
Review and Approval of Minutes:
On a motion of Mr. Hornig, seconded by Mr. Canale, it was voted, 3-0-1, (Mr. Peters abstained)
to approve the minutes of February 6 and 13 reflecting Mr. Peters as the Clerk.
On a motion, duly made and seconded, it was voted to adjourn the meeting at 8:40 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.
Mr. Hornig edits to BOS article 37.
Draft report BOS Article 37.
Article 39 draft report staff.
Mr. Hornig edits to Article 39 draft report.
Town Meeting Warrant.
Robert Peters, Clerk