Planning Board Meeting Minutes March 23, 2017 Board of Selectmen Meeting Room Town Hall, 101 Main Street Ashland Massachusetts 01721

Transcription

1 Planning Board Meeting Minutes March 23, 2017 Board of Selectmen Meeting Room Town Hall, 101 Main Street Ashland Massachusetts Call to Order Preston Crow called the meeting to order at 7:17 pm. Michael Mokey, Vice-Chairman; Dale Buchanan, Member; Joe Rubertone, Member; John Rossi, Member; Sheila Page, Town Planner and Josh Chase Asst. Town Planner were present. The Preserve at Oregon Mr. Mike Kane appeared before the Board to seek approval and a recommendation to the Board of Selectmen to accept the Wilson Circle. Mr. Kane reviewed the plan package submitted to the Board that included a letter from the DPW Director approving the work at Wilson Circle, an invoice showing catch basins were cleaned, a letter from Cornerstone stating the detention basin design is in conformance, and the Certificate of Compliance from the Conservation Commission. Ms. Page indicated the only outstanding item is the brush growing in the infiltration area, and recommended holding back 10% of the surety bond until this item is cleared prior to the approved at Town Meeting. Ms. Page also stated that abutters and immediate neighbors were notified. Mr. Rubertone motioned to approve the recommendation to the Board of Selectmen to accept the road, contingent on holding $3,000 until outstanding items are cleared and a clean letter is obtain from GCG. Mr. Rossi seconded the motion and the Board unanimously voted in favor The Board members signed the plans. 60 Pleasant Street Site Plan Review Ms. Page explained that the Applicant has requested to continue the review until April 20, 2017 and requested to be heard on April 13, Mr. Buchanan made a motion to accept the applicant s extension until April 20, The motion was seconded by Mr. Rossi and the Board unanimously voted in favor Mr. Buchanan made a motion to continue the Site Plan Review on 60 Pleasant Street to April 13, The motion was seconded by Mr. Rubertone and the Board unanimously voted in favor Approval Not Required Additional paperwork is required and there were no representatives present from the Warren Center or Framingham State University, therefore the following ANRs were not addressed: Approval Not Required 529 Chestnut Street- Massachusetts State College Building Authority Approval Not Required 433 Chestnut Street- Massachusetts State College Building Authority 1

2 Howe Street The Planning Board granted Ashland Howe Street Solar LLC a Site Plan Review Approval in April 2016 for a large-scale solar photovoltaic array at 102 Howe Street. One of the conditions requests if possible, that the primary meter and re-closer equipment be pad mounted rather than pole mounted. Due to utility requirements the applicant is asking for an alternative design option, possibly a pole mounted facility. Jim Daylor and Rob Bukowski, from Ameresco, provided an update of the interconnection between the Howe Street solar array and the utilities. Mr. Daylor said that Eversource insists on an above ground connection. They did submit an above ground solution that will site the mechanical equipment on an elevated 11-foot high berm. Mr. Daylor said that shortly before the meeting Eversource indicated that the elevated solution does not meet their accepted practices and design standards and requested plans for a pole solution. Mr. Daylor said he asked for further input from Eversource regarding an equitable solution that minimizes the visual impact and will meet their standards. Mr. Daylor described potential pole locations and explained the flexibility of that solution. The Board explored the challenges and merits of a subsurface, elevated mound and pole solution and potential modifications needed for each. Mr. Crow opened the hearing for public comments. Dyrick Schaefer, 101 Howe St., commented that he believes the proposed pole height is twice as high as the existing poles and fears adding more poles will result in forming a fence like barrier. Mr. Mokey explained and the Board agreed that they are not in favor of the berm solution and ask the applicant to present a proposal with interconnects and poles as far in as possible with minimal visual impact from the street. Mr. Mokey would like to see a statement for Eversource explaining what the standards are and why the ground mounted facility has to be so high. Mr. Rubertone made a motion to continue the hearing until April 13, The motion was seconded by Mr. Buchanan and the Board unanimously voted in favor Olive St. Definitive Subdivision Plan A continuation of the public hearing convened to consider the application for a Definitive Subdivision off of Olive St. Ms. Page reported that the applicant is requesting an extension of the definitive subdivision plan review process. Mr. Rubertone made a motion to accept the applicant s request for an extension of the definitive subdivision plan review process until May 1, The motion was seconded by Mr. Buchanan and the Board unanimously voted in favor

3 Ms. Page reported that the Board of Selectmen approved the installation of temporary stop signs on Olive St. Mr. Crow said the applicant must obtain a letter from the Board of Selectmen for a permanent Stop sign, if not the plan must be engineered without a stop sign. Kevin Underwood, 85 Olive St., said the developer proposed to cut a berm at the right-a-way, but he has not seen documentation on how the trees in front of his house will be affected. Mr. Underwood also explained there are mixed feelings among the neighbors concerning the stop signs, therefore if the applicant does not obtain the letter from the Board of Selectmen proper plans to address the sightlines will be necessary. Joel Arbeitmen, 28 Woodridge Ln., suggested the Board consider a joint meeting with the Board of Selectmen to discuss the issues and concerns. The Board agreed that although the stop sign is potentially a workable solution to the sight line issue, they did not want to force it on to the neighborhood. They prefer that the design stands on it own and not force anything into the neighborhood. Mr. Buchanan made a motion to continue the hearing until April 13, 2017 at 7:30 pm. The motion was seconded by Mr. Rubertone and the Board unanimously voted in favor Joint Scenic Road and Public Shade Tree Hearing Mr. Crow opened the hearing by reading the notice: Public notice is hereby given that Eversource Energy, has applied to the Planning Board under Chapter 249, Section 20 of the Town of Ashland Code and Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 87, Section 3 to remove scenic road trees in the right-of-ways on the following scenic roads: Cherry Street, Cross Street, Fountain Street, Green Street, High Street, Myrtle Street and Winter Street and public shade trees on Pine Hill Road and Ponderosa Road. Trees that are designated for removal will be posted in the field at least seven days before the hearing. A Public Shade Tree Hearing and a Scenic Road Hearing will be held concurrently in the Board of Selectmen s Room, Ashland Town Hall, 101 Main Street, Ashland, MA on Thursday, March 23, 2017 at 8:00 p.m. at which time and place all persons interested may appear and be heard. Mr. Crow reviewed the Board s review procedures. Because there are many trees to discuss, the session will go by streets in this order: Winter Street; High Street; Cross Street; Cherry Street; Green Street; Myrtle Street; Fountain Street; Pine Hill Road; and Ponderosa Road. Rajitha Purimetla, Tree Warden for Ashland, introduced a GIS connected presentation which identified the location of the hazardous trees. Chris Gonzalez, Eversource Lead Arborist, reported that circuit work will be done in town and it would be advantageous to remove hazardous trees at the same time. 3

4 Chris Kovago, 30 Green St., said that she has cared for the maple tree in front of her house, but it is infested with carpenter ants and termites and therefore she is in favor of removing it. Mr. Crow indicated that the tree is flagged for removal. Cathy Rooney, 136 Fountain St., asked how many trees are on the list. Ms. Purimetla said 111 trees. Ms. Rooney asked what is the average diameter abreast height. Ms. Purimetla indicated the measurements are listed on the ashlandmass.com website. Ms. Rooney said she is interested in seeing a plan to replace the trees. Ms. Rooney also asked how the trees are identified. Ms. Purimetla stated the trees that are potentially hazardous have blue tags and trees that are hazardous are tagged red. Ms. Rooney asked that the snags along the town forest be left for wildlife if possible. Amy Sayed, 106 High St. and member of the Open Space and Recreation Committee asked if it will be necessary to cut electrical power to take down the trees. Mr. Gonzalez said it is very rare that a temporary outage is necessary. However if necessary, advance notice and a permit would be required, except in the case of an emergency. As a member of the Open Space and Recreation Committee Ms. Sayed was concerned that removing buffer trees near the town forest parking lot would open abutters sightlines to the parking lot. Joel Arbeitmen, 28 Woodridge Ln., Chair of the Ashland Town Forest Committee, read an excerpt from the Tree Replanting Proposal and asked that the importance of the trees in the community is remembered during the review process. Mr. Arbeitmen asked that the Board consider a replacement program to compensate for the trees that will be lost. Doug Small, DPW Director, thanked Eversource and Ms. Purimetla for their efforts and explained that the DPW staff will benefit from this work in terms of lessening emergency calls and power outages related to falling trees. Mr. Crow asked if stumps will be removed as part of the program, and Mr. Gonzalez responded no. Mr. Mokey asked Mr. Gonzalez to go over the pruning plan criteria. Mr. Gonzalez explained that one electrical circuit (single, bundled and phased wired cables) servicing about 1,800 customers will be pruned this year, and he, an Eversource contractor and Ms. Purimetla collectively flagged the trees. Mr. Gonzalez said that 95% of the trees are flagged not because of their proximity to the electrical wires, but because they are in danger of falling. Mr. Gonzalez and Ms. Purimetla described the factors used to evaluate the condition of the trees. Ms. Page read two written comments. The first was from Susan Thorn, 181 Cross St. She asked that the trees remain until dead, per a certified arborist and asked that the Board consider having the trees professionally pruned. The second comment was from Michael Herbert, Town Manager. He wrote that trees are valuable to the community, but he understands that marked trees must come down in order for Eversource to provide reliable electrical service. He asked that the Board consider requiring trees to be replace either onsite where they are removed or at an alternate location approved by the Board. 4

5 Ms. Purimetla provided a presentation that depicted each of the trees by street. Mr. Crow invited the Board as well as anyone in the audience to speak up if they object to a specific tree being removed. Mr. Arbeitmen said without a replacement plan, it is difficult to react to the assessment of the condition of each tree. Mr. Buchanan suggested adding a condition that specifies a certain number of trees are replaced. Ms. Rooney also asked the Board to first develop a mitigation plan before approving the removal of the trees. Mr. Gonzalez said that Eversource operates on a four year pruning cycle. Mr. Crow asked Ms. Purimetla to suggest a replacement tree process. Ms. Purimetla said the biggest challenge is determining the property where replacement trees should be planted. If there are trees coming down in residential areas in front of homes, Mr. Mokey suggested offering home owners the opportunity to determine what happens to the tree and a replacement. Chris Kovago, 30 Green St., reported on the condition of the tree in front of her property and said despite the care she has provided the tree over the years it is hazardous and needs to come down. Gene Crouch, 111 Green St., asked why the trees on the list are not identified as publically or privately owned. Mr. Crouch said he suspects the flagged trees on Green St. in front of his home belong to him and questioned the property lines and the right-of-way used to identify the location of the trees. He also said there was a notice left at is door concerning the tree work and offered home owners wood, but it had no contact information. Mr. Arbeitmen questioned the Board s jurisdiction to remove trees within the town forest. Ms. Purimetla said the trees that would be significantly damaged by pruning are identified on the list. Trees that are identified on the list are believed to be in the right of way. If tree owner ship was questionable a notice was sent to the abutter requesting permission to cut. Mr. Crouch, Chair Conservation Commission, questioned the removal of snags on the Riverwalk, as it would be considered an alteration and therefore asked for an additional review. Mr. Gonzalez agreed to discuss those trees with the Conservation Agent. The Board reviewed the flagged shade trees. Mr. Buchanan made a motion to continue the tree approval hearing until April 13, 2017 at 8:00 pm. The motion was seconded by Mr. Rubertone and the Board unanimously voted in favor Review Minutes Mr. Buchanan made a motion to approve the minute of March 9, 2017 as amended. The motion was seconded by Mr. Rubertone and the Board unanimously voted in favor

6 Adjournment Mr. Rossi made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Mr. Buchanan seconded the motion. The Board voted in favor to adjourn the meeting at 10:18 p.m Documents Reviewed at the March 23, 2017 Meeting Agenda for March 23, 2017 Letter from the DPW Director approving the work at Wilson Circle Catch Basin Cleaning Invoice, Compliance Letter from Cornerstone Certificate of Compliance from the Conservation Commission. Revised Proposed Site Plan for 102 Howe Street dated March 16, 2017 Scenic Road application Excel document of Scenic Road trees proposed for removal Excel document of public shade trees proposed for removal from Susan Thorn from Michael Herbert Minutes for March 9,