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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002-12-17 Planning Board Minutes PLANNING BOARD OF THE CITY OF BANGOR MEETING OF DECEMBER 17, 2002 MINUTES Board Members Present: Richard Fournier, Chairman David Clark Harold Wheeler Bill Masters John Hanson Ryan King City Staff Present: Katherine Weber David Gould Peter Witham Jim Ring Chairman Fournier called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. In the absence of Members Guerette and Costlow, Chairman Fournier indicated that Associate Members Hanson, King and Masters would alternate voting starting with Mr. Hanson. CONSENT AGENDA Chairman Fournier asked if any Members of the Board wished to remove any items from the Consent Agenda. As no wished to remove any of the items, Chairman Fournier asked for a motion. Mr. Hanson moved to approve the Consent Agenda as proposed. Mr. Clark seconded the motion, and the Board voted 5 in favor and 0 opposed to approve the Consent Agenda. The items approved are as follows: Item No. 1: Site Location of Development Modification/Site Development Plan approval to construct a 576 square foot accessory structure at the existing Veterans home located at 762 State Street in a Government and Institutional Service District. Maine Veteran’s Home, applicant. Item No. 2: Modification/Site Development Plan Approval to construct an 8,800 square foot addition to the existing Recycling Building and Bus garage located off Maine Avenue in a Government and Institutional Service District. City of Bangor, applicant. Item No. 3: Site Development Plan Approval to fill and grade property located on Outer Union Street in a Rural Residence and Agriculture District. H.E. Sargent, applicant. Item No. 4: Site Development Plan Approval to revise the existing approved site plan for construction of two, four-unit apartment buildings by increasing the foot print of each building by 144-square feet located at 63 Fieldstone Drive in a High Density Residential District. Ralph McPherson and Brian Shaboski, applicants. Item No. 5: Site Development Plan Approval to construct a 9,000 square foot office building located at Telcom Drive and Union Street in a General Commercial and Service District. Grotto Bay, Realty Trust, applicant. PUBLIC HEARINGS Item No. 6: To amend the Land Development Code by changing a parcel of land located at 213 Ohio Street from Urban Residence-2 District to Contract Urban Service District. Said parcel of land containing approximately 14,000 sq. ft. Webber Oil Company, applicant. C.O. # 03-29 Chairman Fournier opened the Public Hearing, and asked if a representative of the applicant would make a brief presentation. The Chairman noted that Associate Members Masters and King would be voting. Mr. Raymond Cota, of Webber Oil Company, indicated that this building was one of Webber’s first Gasoline Service Stations many years ago. The site has been in Webber’s ownership through various uses over time, and most recently as a take-out restaurant. Mr. Cota explained that the building is adjacent to Leadbetter’s Market, a Laundromat, and a multi-family structure. Mr. Cota noted that while on paper the lot is approximately 14,000 square feet, nearly half of it is unusable due to the steep slope behind the building. He indicated that the applicant was requesting a zone change to Contract Urban Service District in order to utilize the 546 square foot structure. The Chairman asked for any other proponents. There being no other proponents or any opponents, Chairman Fournier asked for Staff comments. Planning Officer Weber indicated that the proposal would change this parcel from an Urban Residence-2 District to Contract Urban Service District. The existing use is a nonconforming use in the residential district. While this area is intended for residential development, the contract zone change is an excellent vehicle to mitigate the potential adverse impacts of a commercial use. Mr. Masters asked why would it not be appropriate to rezone this property to a straight Neighborhood Service District. Ms. Weber indicated that the contract provisions provide specific protections for the neighborhood that a NSD would not. Mr. King asked for additional information regarding the Comprehensive Plan’s intended use for this area. Ms. Weber indicated that the Comprehensive Plan recognizes this area as a residential neighborhood, although it does make allowances for existing uses to be maintained, and the contract standards help mitigate the potential adverse impacts of a small commercial use on this parcel. 2 Mr. Wheeler indicated that he had once resided in this general area, which had numerous neighborhood stores that served the needs of nearby residents. He noted that this type of development was the historic pattern of the City’s older neighborhoods. Mr. Wheeler went on to say that, if the applicant is content with the proposed contract zone change and the City Staff is content with the proposed contract conditions then the Board should be supportive of the application. As there was no further discussion, Mr. Clark moved to recommend that Council Order # 03-29 be adopted by the City Council. Mr. Masters seconded the motion, and the Board voted 5 to 0 in favor of recommending approval of C.O.# 03-29 - Contract Zone Change for 213 Ohio Street from Urban Residence-2 District to Contract Urban Service District, Webber Oil Company, applicant. Item No. 7: Preliminary Subdivision Plan approval for a 57-lot subdivision located off Broadway and Judson Boulevard in a Low Density Residential District. Judson M. Grant, Jr., applicant. Chairman Fournier opened the Public Hearing, and asked if a representative of the applicant would make a brief presentation. The Chairman noted that Associate Members Hanson and Masters would be voting on this application. Mr. Andrew Sturgeon of the Ames Corporation, provided the Board with a brief overview of the project. Mr. Sturgeon noted that the applicant had been before the Board in March, 2002 to request a zone change that facilitated the further development of this Broadway property. This single-family housing portion of the proposed development follows the previous approval by the Board in October 2002 to expand the mobile home park. The applicant proposes to build three new roadways to serve 57-house lots. All of the proposed lots will be serviced by public sewer and water. The majority of the lots will be a half acre or greater in size. The roadway grades are between 1% and 6 % as required by the City Engineer’s Office. Two of the roads end in cul de sacs, and the third proposed road has a “T” turnaround in anticipation of a new street accessing Broadway to serve Phase II of the development. Mr. Sturgeon also noted that the traffic analysis for the project indicates that it would be beneficial to have a central turning lane in Broadway both north and south of Judson Boulevard. Mr. Masters asked if the proposal would include areas for neighborhood children to play in and whether the development would include sidewalks. Mr. Sturgeon indicated that such recreation areas presently exist throughout the Judson Heights development, and it is planned that a larger area will be dedicated to open space use in the Phase II development. Mr. Sturgeon also indicated that the roadway design is intended to match that of the existing Judson Heights development, that being a wider travel-way and no sidewalks. Chairman Fournier asked for any other proponents. There being none, he asked for any opponents. Mr. Mike Michaud, of 14 LaSalle Drive, asked if the public could see the applicants’ 3 plans that were facing the Planning Board. He was interested in seeing where the proposed roadways connected with the existing development. Mr. Sturgeon turned the plans toward the audience, and explained the connection of Peruvian Way and Hillside Drive to Judson Boulevard and LaSalle Drive, respectively. There being no further comments, the Chairman closed the Public Hearing, and asked for Staff comments. Katherine Weber, Planning Officer, indicated that the proposal before the Board was for Preliminary Plan approval of 57-lots on 39 acres in a Low Density Residential District. Most of the lots are in excess of 20,000 square feet. Planning Officer Weber indicated that the applicant has provided stormwater analysis and traffic analysis that has been reviewed by City Staff. She noted that there are only a few minor details to be addressed by the applicant, and these details can be included in the Final Plan submission. The Planning Staff recommended that the Board grant Preliminary Plan approval. Mr. Masters asked for clarification of the improvements proposed for Broadway, and whether the speed and volumes could handle the additional turning movements. City Engineer, James Ring, explained that presently Broadway has two northbound lanes, one being a through lane and one being a right-turn lane. Unfortunately, they act as a default passing lane. Work should begin soon on improvements at the Broadway-Burleigh Road intersection that will add additional lanes. The proposed center turn-lane could fit into that scheme well. Mr. Hanson asked what is the anticipated timing of Phase II given that significant open space and traffic infrastructure supporting this development is part of that phase. Michael Longo, of Grant Trailer Sales, indicated that it is their intent to begin Phase I this spring and proceed with Phase II upon the completion of Phase I. Mr. Longo said that, as long as the economy stays good, they anticipate starting Phase II immediately after Phase I. Mr. Wheeler moved to grant Preliminary Plan Approval to Judson M. Grant for his 57-lot subdivision as presented. Mr. Masters seconded the motion. The Board voted 5 to 0 in favor of the motion to approve the Preliminary Plan as presented. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Item No. 8: Planning Board Approval of Minutes. Chairman Fournier noted that because the Board had just received the December 3, 2002 Minutes, the Board would consider them at the next regular meeting. NEW BUSINESS Item No. 9: Planning Board Bylaws Chairman Fournier indicated that the Board had received a revised set of Planning Board By-Laws for their review and adoption if so warranted. Chairman Fournier noted that under the Administrative Section, it indicated that the Board would receive Planning Board Minutes 5 days in advance. He questioned whether that was plausible given the current practices of the last few 4 years. Planning Officer Weber indicated 5 days was the goal or target to get the Minutes to the Board. Mr. Wheeler asked if the language in Article 3 - Conflicts of Interest “Believes a conflict exists” is open to unfounded allegations of conflict as opposed to factual information. Assistant City Solicitor John Hamer indicated that this is the language used in the City’s Code of Ethics. Mr. Wheeler agreed to defer to the Ordinance language. Mr. Wheeler asked if the language in Section B-3, Special Interest was vague. Assistant City Solicitor John Hamer indicated that, again this language was taken from the City’s Code of Ethics. Again, Mr. Wheeler agreed to defer to the Ordinance language. Mr. Wheeler noted a few misspellings - Section 8 B, page 4, should be “than,” and Section 9, first sentence should be “public”. Mr. King asked for more specific information on the approval standards to be cited in the denial of an application. Planning Officer Weber noted that typically, it is the Ordinance Standards of Section 165-114 that should be cited by Board Members. Assistant City Solicitor Hamer also noted that the Board should make written findings and conclusions on its decisions because the reasons for specific decisions need to be in the record. Mr. Wheeler questioned the language “Entire Board present.” Mr. Hamer indicated that the language was intended to allow Associate Members to vote on By-Laws amendments. Mr. Hanson asked if the designation of voting associates should be clarified other than the existing random pattern. As presently practiced, if designation is made after discussion, there may be the potential perception of bias in that selection. Mr. Hamer noted that the voting associate should be designated prior to any public hearing or discussion on an item. Mr. Hanson moved to approve the Planning Board By-Laws, as amended. Mr. Wheeler seconded the motion. The Board voted unanimously, 6 in favor and 0 opposed to approve the By-Laws as amended. Planning Officer Weber wished the Board a Happy Holiday Season. Mr. Wheeler noted that the Legal Staff had provided the Board with appreciated legal counsel on its By-Laws and procedural practices. ADJOURNMENT As there was no further business, the Chairman called for a motion to adjourn. Mr. Clark moved to adjourn. Mr. Wheeler seconded the motion, and the meeting was adjourned at 8:20 p.m. 5