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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006-01-04-PB-min PLANNING BOARD MINUTES MEETING OF JANUARY 4, 2006 A regular meeting of the Lexington Planning Board held in Cary Hall was called to order at 8:00 p.m. by Chairman Manz with members Hornig, Harden and planning staff McCall-Taylor, Schilt and Tap present. Mr. Galaitsis and Mr. Canale were absent. ************************************* MINUTES ************************************** Review of Minutes: The Board agreed to postpone acting on the minutes of December 21, 2005. ****************** PLANNING BOARD ORGANIZATION, SCHEDULE ******************* Traffic Mitigation Group: The Board agreed to appoint Ms. Manz as its representative to the Selectmen's newly formed Traffic Mitigation Group. **************************** 2006 ANNUAL TOWN MEETING ************************* Inclusionary Housing Amendment: The Board discussed ways to get the word out to the development community and to town residents in general about the January 18 public information meeting on its proposed inclusionary housing amendment to the Zoning By-Law. ************ ADMINISTRATION OF LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS ************* DETERMINATION OF GRADE AND CONSTRUCTION OF UNACCEPTED STREETS 8 Bird Hill Road, Mr. Paul Pedini, Accept Surety: Staff reported on the status of Mr. Paul Pedini's new house in connection with the need to improve a portion of Bird Hill Road, an unaccepted street. Staff is still awaiting word from the Town Engineering Division on the cost to construct the roadway. On a motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to accept surety against the road improvements at 8 Bird Hill Road, in the amount acceptable to the Planning Director after consultation with Engineering. ************************************* REPORTS ************************************* Planning Board : Meeting Training: Ms. Manz reported that Town Manager Carl Valente issued an invitation to Board and Committee members to attend training in best practices for public meetings. Several sessions will be offered. She will forward the details to the Board members. CBD Parking: Ms. Manz reported that at least two selectmen feel that addressing center business district parking is an urgent matter and would like to see some kind of measure brought to Town Meeting. Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) - The WCF committee has put forth a series of amendments concerning that portion of the By-Law dealing with wireless communications facilities. The draft warrant lists it as sponsored by the Planning Board. The Board has not had time to review it and felt it would be better to go into the warrant under the committee’s sponsorship. Senior Center Siting Committee - Mr. Hornig said that the Depot Square lot is no longer under consideration as a site for the Senior Center as it is the wrong shape for a cost effective parking structure, which would have been part of the proposal. ************* ADMINISTRATION OF LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS ************* SUBDIVISION OF LAND Lexington Hills Preliminary Conventional Subdivision Plan: Ms. Manz opened the public information meeting at 8:30 p.m. Present from the development team for the proposed Lexington Hills subdivision on land that was formerly part of the Middlesex County Hospital campus were Mr. Joseph Lerman and Mr. Habib Aminipour, the applicants; Mr. Gary Larson and Ti Johnson, landscape architects, Larson Associates; Mr. Edmund Grant, attorney; and Mr. Frederick Russell, engineer. Minutes for the Meeting of January 4, 2006 2 Mr. Larson presented plans showing the combination of two parcels of land and its subdivision into 19 single-family lots under conventional subdivision provisions. An existing transmission tower on the site would be re-located to a separate lot of approximately 10,500 square feet. It would require a Special Permit from the Board of Appeals. Two new access roads are proposed, with a dead-end street extending from the connection of the access roads. The total length of the proposed streets is 2,105 linear feet. They are designed to meet the standards for a local street, with a 50-foot right-of-way, 24 feet of pavement width, and sidewalk along one side. All of the new lots have frontage on the new roadways. The plan shows the communications tower on a separate lot with a fall-line radius of 90-feet. A landscape buffer would be planted along the Lexington property line adjacent to the development in Waltham. Mr. Russell stated that a sanitary sewer line and manhole in Lexington had been located that could serve the development. He will do testing to determine its efficacy. Board Comments and Questions : Mr. Harden expressed his reservations about the amount of impervious surface, including the proposed pervious surfaces, most of which are not permanently permeable; dwelling units with smaller footprints are the preferred way to reduce impervious surface. In response to other questions, Mr. Larson said that the lease on the communications tower runs until the year 2012 and that he paced off the sight lines at the intersections of the new roads with Walnut Street and judges them adequate. Mr. Harden said that calculations to satisfy the Development Regulation standards would be needed. Mr. Hornig presented his concern with the potential for interference with the tower by buildings on the Waltham side. He wants to see in the next submission: sidewalks on both sides of the new roadways, with the right-of-way extended to allow development (on Lot 1) to connect at the property line; landscaping between lots six and seven; a sewer easement along Walnut Street: sidewalk along one side of Walnut Street; an easement for future widening of Walnut Street; a utility plan showing locations, including gas if it is available. Mr. Gilbert Garber, a resident of Potter Pond across Walnut Street from the proposed development, said there is gas service in Walnut Street. Ms. Manz indicated her concern about the amount of impervious surface in the development and said the Board looks forward to seeing more detail in the next submission. She wanted clarification on the need for a sewer pump station and where the sewer was tying into a public system. Mr. Russell said they may have to pump uphill if they connect 2000’ up Walnut Street, but if they can use the sewer near Waltham the pump station will not be needed. Audience comments and questions : Residents expressed concern about the ability of Walnut Street to safely handle the additional traffic, as it is narrow and the sight lines may be a problem; the appearance of encouraging development on Lot 1by showing an easement to it on the plan; and the future of the pine forest on the north edge of the site. Mr. Roger Wrubel, Director of Habitat, asked the Board to encourage the developer to work with Habitat and the Friends of the Western Greenway to keep the greenway uninterrupted. The current plans show no provision for it to traverse the development site. He went on to describe the greenway and its purpose. Mr. Drews, a Waltham resident, and Mr. Stewart Kennedy, 38 Liberty Street, echoed the wish to accommodate the greenway. Mr. Larson expressed his willingness to work with them and agreed to provide an easement proposal in that regard in a future submittal. The Board asked the applicant to submit another preliminary plan, given the information requested by . : staff and the numerous issues raised tonightThe plan should show Less impervious surface. The current plan shows use of pervious surfaces in some areas, but it – Minutes for the Meeting of January 4, 2006 3 was pointed out that products marketed as pervious are not addressed in the Zoning By-Law, which states that if a surface is not entirely pervious then it is deemed impervious. The Board indicated that it would prefer to see a 40% reduction in impervious surface on the site, preferably by reducing the sizes of the dwellings. More information about sight distances at the intersections of the new roadways with Walnut – Street, Traffic analysis, given the narrowness of the Walnut Street right-of-way. – Sidewalks on both sides of the proposed roadways. – The lot size for the tower must conform to the dimensional standards of the RO district, 30,000 – square feet of area and 150 feet of frontage. A landscaped buffer should be provided on the lot to help screen the tower from abutting properties. Connections to the adjacent State-owned land should be explored with the Division of Capital – Asset Management (DCAM) with respect to potential development of Lot 1. If residential uses are probable on that site, the Board indicated that it would prefer that street connection easements be dedicated on the Lexington Hills plan. If development of Lot 1 is unlikely, then pedestrian easements should be provided to access the preserved open space. The landscape plan should show buffer plantings along the south side of the property, as well as – screening along Walnut Street. More information about the proposed sanitary sewer connections. The service from the site – should be connected to the Town of Lexington’s system. It is uncertain that the existing sewer line on the Waltham section of Walnut Street leads to any service owned by Lexington. The utility plans must show the locations of telephone, electric, and gas lines. The Board – recommended that gas service be provided to the development and asked the applicant to consult with Keyspan to ensure that service will be available. The approach to the intersection of the two internal roadways should have a maximum grade of – two-percent for at least 75 feet from the point of intersection. The drainage system should include drywells on the individual lots for rooftop runoff. The overall – size of the infiltration systems should be reduced to the minimum necessary to accommodate only stormwater runoff from the proposed roadways. Pretreatment of solids from stormwater is necessary for all catch basin inlets, and it is suggested that a passive surface drainage system be used rather than infiltrators. The development on the adjoining property in Waltham should appear on the locus map. – More information about how slopes will be landscaped to prevent erosion control. – More details regarding lot coverage and site layout. A Table of Development Data should be – included on the Site Construction Plan. Information on how the proposed cul-de-sac will be designed. If a landscaped median is used, it – should be either flush with the surface or depressed to accommodate plowed snow or stormwater. Before the next submission, the applicants should coordinate with abutting property owners, – DCAM and members of the Friends of the Western Greenway to discuss options for pedestrian easements, and whether vehicular connections may or may not be feasible. Drafts of any easements, covenants and operations and maintenance plans that will be recorded – with the subdivision. Attorney Edmund Grant raised the applicants' concerns about timing and Board member availability. On a motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to adjourn the meeting at 10:00 p.m. Minutes for the Meeting of January 4, 2006 4 Anthony G. Galaitsis, Clerk