Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016-02-02 Planning Board Minutes PLANNING BOARD OF THE CITY OF BANGOR MEETING OF February 2, 2016 MINUTES Board Members Present: John Kenney, Chairman Charles Boothby Steve Hicks Wayne Mallar Dora McCarthy Pete Parizo Julie Williams City Staff Present: David Gould Paul Nicklas John Theriault Chairman John Kenney called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. He briefly reviewed the Agenda for the evening. Item No. 1: Site Development Plan approval to construct a 4,832 square-foot two-story building for automobile reconditioning with general office and storage use in a General Commercial & Service District at 729 Hogan Road & 101 Frost Drive, Van Syckle, applicant. Chairman Kenney asked the applicant or their representative to provide a brief overview of the project. James F. Smith, architect, indicated it was a fairly simple project with about a 2,644 square-foot footprint. It will have 3 bays for reconditioning and one wash bay. Upstairs will be office space and some storage areas. Member Boothby asked if the applicant was aware of the recommended conditions proposed by Staff. Mr. Smith indicated he saw no issues with the conditions as proposed. 2 Chairman Kenney asked Planning Officer Gould if he had any additional points to make. Mr. Gould noted that an automobile dealership is a permitted use in the GC&S District. He noted that the dealership has expanded and is now on a few different lots. While originally on a parcel fronting on Hogan Road the lot now extends back to the Lowes site and has some frontage on Frost Drive. As the proposed building is on one of the back lots away from Hogan Road the plan does not contain all the information as to that portion of the site. To insure that those elements would not be lost via a new approval we recommended the Board just add that as a condition of approval. The second condition has to do with the provision of a Post Construction Maintenance Plan. That detail is fairly common now and while it was not included in the plan submissions it certainly can be accommodated prior to any spring construction. Mr. Gould noted the Staff had worked with Mr. Smith to resolve most all the elements of the plan. Chair Kenney noted the plan was calling for the reconstruction of the detention pond. Mr. Smith indicated that the pond was not constructed in accordance with the original design and the new site plan will correct that. Member Williams made a motion to approve the site development plan for Van Syckle to construct a 4,832 square-foot two-story building for automobile reconditioning with general office and storage use in a General Commercial & Service District at 729 Hogan Road & 101 Frost Drive with the conditions that the parking buffers at the front of the site on the Hogan Road lot should be based on the October 7, 2003 site plan as approved, and the applicant should provide the Engineering Office a post construction stormwater maintenance plan, prior to issuance of a building permit. Member Boothby seconded the motion and the Board voted unanimously to approve the plan with the attached conditions. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Item No. 2: Planning Board Approval of Minutes. Member McCarthy noted the Minutes listed her as present for the meeting which is incorrect. Member Boothby moved to approve the Minutes of the January 5, 2016 meeting as corrected. Member Williams seconded the motion which passed unanimously. 3 Assistant City Solicitor Paul Nicklas indicated he wanted to go over some best practices which Boards and Commissions should follow. They deal with freedom of access laws, due process laws and conflicts of interest or bias. All meetings of the Planning Board should be open to the public and all discussions should be made in public where all parties can hear the discussion. Discussion outside of the meeting or just prior to the meeting should not be conducted. It is fine for individual Board members to have questions for Staff and to review ordinance standards. Discussions concerning projects should not occur via email with other Board members. Board members should not undertake independent investigations or site visits. If you have unique information about a site or an issue pertinent to the discussion you should disclose it to the Board and public as part of the discussion. Attorney Nicklas noted that conflicts of interest are financial or special interests. Special Interest is defined as an interest not typically held by the public. The key element is to disclose potential interests such that the remaining Board members can vote if in fact you have a conflict. Member Boothby noted that he feels uneasy to have the Board vote you have no conflict when you, the Board member, feel you do. Attorney Nicklas indicated he understands the concern but the language was written such that the Board would be the arbiter of the decision. Mr. Nicklas noted decisions should be based on the relevant standards of the Ordinance. While other issues or details may pique the interest of a Board member, to introduce them into the discussion can lead the Board to having their final decision questioned regarding whether it is based on the relevant standards or not. Attorney Nicklas noted that the role of the Chair is to insure the meeting runs efficiently and fairly for all parties, and to insure everyone is given a fair opportunity to be heard. It’s important to make sure people speak into a microphone. If the recording system does not pick it up it will be lost when transcribed. Planner Gould noted an instance when a member of the Board was not present for some of the discussion on an item and did not partake in the vote. Also, within the Land Development Code 165-114 and 165-9 are set out as the standards which are determined by the Board. There being no further items for discussion, the meeting was adjourned at 7:20 p.m.