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October 9, 2019 DRB Minutes

DRB, DRB minutes

SOUTH HERO DEVELOPMENT REVIEW BOARD                                            October 9th, 2019

 

Members Present:    Tim Maxham (Chair); Doug Patterson (Vice Chair); Jim Brightwell (alternate); Ross Brown, Nate Hayward; Gareth Hunt;

Others Present:          Martha Taylor-Varney (Zoning Administrator)

Members Absent:      Corbin, Sherry; Kilcoyne, Liza

Public Present:         Bond, Jim; DeLong, Randy; Farnham, Joe; Grey, Shannon; McGovern, John; McGovern, Nancy; Thibault, Jim; Thibault, Judy; Wright, Keith; Wright, Nicole;

Call to Order:              Meeting was called to order by T. Maxham at 7:00 p.m.

Changes to Agenda:   A deliberative session was added as final agenda item.

Public Input:               None

Hearing:                      20-18-MR007 (Bond 3-Lot Subdivision Sketch Plan Review)

  1. Maxham opened the hearing at 7:03 p.m.

Notice & Oath

  1. Patterson read the hearing warning. T. Maxham administered the oath to the attending members of the public.

Appearing on behalf of the applicant:

Jim Bond

Hearing Notes

The structure at 7 Martin Road is an 1860 Farmhouse with a barn. With the proposed subdivision, 6.5 acres will remain with the farmhouse and barn. The applicant is planning to subdivide two additional lots, and is planning to build and occupy a residence on the back lot (Lot #4) away from Martin Road. The applicant has no immediate plans to build on the front lot.

  1. Maxham asked about a survey and wastewater planning. J. Bond responded that the lot has been staked out, and test pits are scheduled to be dug next week.
  2. Maxham asked about the lot on South Street. J. Bond said that is Lot #2, which has been there for 2-3 years. The proposed subdivision is adding a 3rd and 4th lot to the subdivision of the original lot.
  3. Maxham said that since 4 lots have been created within the past 10 years, by the town bylaws this will qualify as a major subdivision.
  4. Hunt made a motion to classify the subdivision as major. R. Brown seconded the motion, which was carried by acclamation.
  5. Maxham asked if the dotted lines on the sketch are the lot setbacks. J. Bond said yes.
  6. Maxham asked if the right-of-way to the two new lots (#3 and #4) was 50 feet. J. Bond said yes.
  7. Bond said that the 50’ right-of-way would remain on Lot #1 and will accommodate two parallel driveways, one to each parcel.
  8. Brown observed that on the sketch an additional driveway was shown to Lot #3. J. Bond said that this represented an alternative, and he was open to either solution, and expressed a preference for the two parallel driveways on one curb cut.
  9. Maxham said that it was up to the applicant to decide what he wanted to do and propose a solution to the Board.
  10. Taylor-Varney asked if there was an existing curb cut. J. Bond said yes, there is a 40’ culvert accommodating the curb cut.
  11. Taylor-Varney said that if there are to be two curb cuts, the applicant would need to apply to the town for a second curb cut, and that the town prefers to grant just one when possible.
  12. Bond said that he would present one curb cut on the final plan.
  13. Maxham opened the hearing to questions from the public.

Randy DeLong said that he was generally in favor of the subdivision but was concerned about the potential creation of a septic isolation zone that would encroach onto his property.

  1. Maxham said that the Board would take note of that, but that the State regulates septic and that Mr. DeLong would need to address that with the State.
  2. Taylor-Varney said that once a septic application is submitted to the State, the State notifies abutters and there is a comment period in which abutters can state their concerns.
  3. Hayward noted that the only type of impairment from an isolation zone would be the ability to put in a potable well, not necessarily a structure.
  4. Taylor-Varney said that the applicant might consider a shared septic to reduce the isolation zone.
  5. Brown said that the applicant could consider putting the septic leach fields on the east side of the property to avoid impacting the neighbors, or consider putting the septic on Lot #1 with an easement.
  6. Maxham said that the configuration of the lots may change based on what the applicant finds for septic capacity. T. Maxham drew the attention of the applicant to the requirements in the bylaws for the items needed for final approval. T. Maxham said that if there were things on the checklist that the applicant felt were not needed, he could ask for a waiver.
  7. Taylor-Varney said that the applicant had up to 6 months to apply for a final review.

There being no other questions from the Board or public, T. Maxham closed the hearing at 7:40 p.m.

 

 

 

 

 

Hearing:                      20-19-WS353 (Wright Family Partnership 3-lot Subdivision Sketch Plan Review)

  1. Maxham opened the hearing at 7:45 p.m.

Notice & Oath

  1. Patterson read the hearing warning. T. Maxham administered the oath to attending members of the public who planned to testify.

Appearing on behalf of the applicant:

John “Jake” McGovern

Hearing Notes

  1. Maxham noted the site visit which occurred on October 5th with all members of the Board present attending.
  2. Maxham asked if the dispersal field for the mound system had been relocated to accommodate the Martin road right-of-way.   J. McGovern said yes.

The Board had a discussion with the applicant as to whether the plan showed where the right-of-way narrowed from 50’ to 30’ to accommodate the dispersal field. After discussion and examination of the plan, all agreed that the 30’ segment was shown.

  1. Maxham noted that the Board had the discretion under 401 (B) of the town’s bylaws to grant an exception to the requirement that a 50’ right-of-way be provided if the road has more than three houses, provided that the applicant demonstrates that safety is not impaired. He noted that the Board had seen from the site visit that the land along the right-of-way was open and flat.
  2. Maxham asked if the dispersal field was designed to take care of the two houses. J. McGovern said yes, and that the other two lots (#1 and #3) will be seasonal.
  3. Maxham asked if Lot #3 would only have the boathouse. J. McGovern said that there would only be a boathouse on Lot #3 and that it would have a shower and a bathroom.
  4. Taylor-Varney asked if the Board wanted the applicant to show building envelopes on the final plat. D. Patterson said yes.
  5. Maxham noted that the realignment of the dispersal field solved the conflict with the 30’ right-of-way and asked for a motion to declare this a minor subdivision. G. Hunt made the motion to declare the application a minor subdivision. The motion was seconded by D. Patterson and carried by acclamation.
  6. Maxham opened the meeting to the public for questions. Joe Farnham asked if Lot #1 would have new construction. J. McGovern said yes.
  7. Maxham asked if the new septic will serve all four lots. J. McGovern said yes.
  8. Patterson said that if there were any requirements for the final plat in the Town regulations that the applicant felt unnecessary, he could request a waiver.
  9. Taylor-Varney said that the final plat should show that the septic serves all four lots.
  10. Patterson said that the applicant may need to have new easements created to provide access from all four lots to the new septic, and that this should be shown on the final plat.
  11. Maxham noted that Lot #2 is not served by the new septic, and if sold, would have its own septic.
  12. Maxham asked for the length of the section of the road where the right-of-way would be only 30 feet wide. J. McGovern said 125 feet.
  13. Maxham asked for a motion to approve a reduction in width for 125’ of the right-of-way to 30’ based on 401(B) of the Town bylaws. The motion was made by N. Hayward, seconded by R. Brown, and carried by acclamation.

There being no further questions from the Board or public, T. Maxham closed the hearing at 8:02 p.m.

 

 

 

 

Review of Minutes

  1. Patterson moved to accept the minutes of minutes of September 25th. The motion was seconded by R. Brown and passed by acclamation.

Administrator’s Report

The Administrator’s Report was delivered by Martha Taylor-Varney (Zoning Administrator). The following hearings are planned:

October 23:     (1) Final plat review for Wright; (2) Variance request on nonconforming lot Richards Road; (3) Site plan amendment for the brew pub.

November 13: Continuation of hearing for R.L. Vallee. The applicant is not expected to be ready at this time, so the hearing will likely be opened and continued to a future date. The Board will enter into deliberative session to consider the applications from Wright and the variance on Richards Road.

December 11: (1) Variance request for a pre-existing non-conforming condition; (2) Two-lot subdivision on West Shore Road.

  1. Taylor-Varney noted that the Zoning & Planning Forum will be in South Burlington on November 13th. The deadline to register is next Wednesday.

 

Adjournment

  1. Hayward moved to adjourn the business meeting and enter deliberative session. The motion was seconded by R. Brown and carried by acclamation at 8:25 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

 

James G. Brightwell

Clerk for S. Hero Development Review Board

 

 

Signed: ____________________________________________ Date: __________________

                        For the Development Review Board

These minutes are unofficial until approved at the next regularly-scheduled meeting. All motions were unanimous unless otherwise indicated.

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