Washington Planning Board

Meeting Minutes

July 6, 2021

 

0.0       Assembly:  6:30PM, on 2nd floor of Town Hall

0.1       Members present: Hatch, Kluk, Crandall, Revane and Schwartz

            0.2       Alternates present: None

0.3       Members and Alternates Absent: Terani and Chidester

0.4       Visitors: Paul Kapteyn, Jon Gibson, Cynthia and Rick Niven, Ken Tanner

 

Hatch opened the meeting at 6:30PM.

 

1.0       Minutes: June 1st meeting – Hatch asked if there were any changes needed to the minutes, Kluk had 2 suggestions for corrections; in 2.1 it should read minor home occupation and in 3.10 it should read - We looked into the 35Õ between buildings due to fire hazard. It is found in 402.2 in the LUO and is a Life Safety issue. Kluk made a motion to approve as corrected, Crandall seconded the motion and all voted in favor.

 

2.0       New Business –

2.1       Discussion of seasonal home conversions and camping – Kluk sent a document with a draft of changes to the LUO in regard to seasonal buildings and non-dwelling structure conversions. She received some input from Steve Buckley (NHMA) and she said the language is all there in the LUO it just needs a few wording updates. Revane suggested defining seasonal use of a building or camping and maybe put a period of permitted time so it doesnÕt become a health hazard. Kluk mentioned existing seasonal camps on the lakes that draw water from the lake. These are grandfathered structures that arenÕt allowed to be built today. Schwartz asked about having a camping permit and Kluk said that Newbury allows camping for 30 days in a calendar year. We will continue the conversation on this issue.

 

Discussion - Hatch said that he has created a spreadsheet of unimproved lots under 1 acre and wants to determine whether they are buildable or not. They are taxed as a building lot but may not be buildable because of setbacks or other issues. He wants to know what the TownÕs responsibility is. Kluk said we should discuss creating a separate overlay zone for these small lots with different setbacks to accommodate their small sizes. The original subdivision deeds set out minimum setback size and the lots on Highland lake were created as ÒcampÓ lots. Hatch asked about setbacks from private roads. We will do more research and continue the conversation on this issue.

 

2.2       Niven Annexation – Rick and Cynthia Niven attended our meeting to speak about their intended annexation of some of their land. They have 135 acres of backland they want to sell to their neighbor, Jessie Caruso. They showed us a preliminary site plan done by Patrick Dombroski. They are straightening out a few boundary lines and giving and easement for the private road into the property. We went over the draft plan with them and they will submit the finished plans and application for our August meeting.

 

3.0       Old Business:

3.1       Jon Gibson Sign Permit – Gibson explained that they tried to incorporate the sign into the trim over the doors of the barn. He said the letters are 10Ó high and the area is 10sqft. The lettering and the white area are smaller than the 12sqft allowed. We asked him to amend his application to reflect this. Revane asked about a penalty for installing the sign before having the permit. We decided that Gibson should pay a new $30 fee for the amended permit. We will look at adding language about penalties to our various permit applications.

3.2       Business Permit from Edward (Ted) Bryant – We reviewed the Exemption for Site Plan Review paperwork for Ted Bryant at 142 Bradford Springs Road. We decided he met the requirements for a minor home occupation. Hatch made a motion to approve the Business Permit as a Minor Home Occupation, Crandall seconded and all voted in favor. Schwartz will send him a copy of the paperwork signed by Hatch.

3.3       Lucky 7 Farm – We received a letter from Lucky Seven Farm about their plans for the septic system and conversion of an existing building to process their meats and vegetables for the Farm Stand and FarmerÕs markets. We were pleased they are keeping us in the loop on their plans. Schwartz said we might have to revisit the Minor Home Occupation business permit in the future if the farm becomes more commercial.

3.4       Town Center Vision project – Crandall said he met with Costello and the BoS about adding some parking behind the buildings on top of the leach field. Revane said they are considering this and keeping the front 2-way driveway access out front with a walkway in front of Town Hall. Revane said that Peggy Carney asked about uses for the new corner lot and Hatch said the TCV committee would be happy to help with ideas and plans for that lot. Schwartz asked if they intend to merge the lot with the Library lot and Revane said yes. Kluk said the Trustees have reached out to Thayer for parking and access ideas. The Trustees have responsibility for the Library building and function but the Town owns the land.

3.5       Old Schoolhouse project update – Revane said they now have the heat pumps in and are moving ahead for a quote on rehabbing the windows. Hatch reminded him that the BoS should confer with him on energy projects, as there may be money available from Eversource or other sources.

3.6       Master Plan – this is a placeholder.

3.7       ZBA Report – Hatch said that ZBA Chair Bruce Carpenter resigned and after the rehearing of a case the Vice Chair Ralph Marinaccio also resigned from the board. The BoS has appointed Mark Florence as a new full member to the board. They have 2 appeals for rehearing with new grounds for appeal. They are doing a training session with the Town Attorney later in the month. Hatch said they are aiming for maximum feasible compliance as a goal.

3.8       UVLSRPC – They havenÕt met yet but Hatch said he sent some of our issues to them for comment. They are scheduling an in-person meeting.

3.9       Tiny Houses Webinar – Schwartz reported on the webinar she attended. They consider anything under 400sqft to be a tiny house (according to code), so with our 320sqft allowed size we already allow them. They talked about THÕs on wheels (considered a vehicle) and on foundations and how they are taxed differently. The legislature is considering a Tiny House regulation but it has been set aside at this point. They would force townÕs allowing a detached ADU to accept Tiny Houses. Washington only allows attached ADUÕs or those in an existing building.

3.10     LUO Issues - We have issues we need to research and discuss this year. Tiny Houses (see 3.9), other LUO update needs, section 200.4, 304 and Certificate of Occupancy, camping, dwellings and seasonal uses (see 2.1) and Overlay zoning (see 2.1, paragraph 2).

3.11     Georgann Casey – Casey visited the BoS with an RSA that she believed made it so she didnÕt have to do a survey for her subdivision. They determined that the RSA wasnÕt relevant to her issue. Schwartz spoke with her also and asked her to send any relevant documentation to the PB.

 

 

4.0       Driveway Permits:

4.1       James Dunton, Bailey Road, TM 20-32, access for camping. Thayer checked the site and signed off on it. Hatch will visit the site tomorrow.

4.2       Chris Stubbs, Beaver Brook Road, TM 20-182, access for a home. Thayer checked the site and signed off on it. Hatch will visit the site tomorrow.

4.3       Kenneth Tanner, Valley Road, TM 22-37-2, access for a home. Tanner attended our meeting to see what the decision was on his driveway application. Thayer has visited the site and signed off with recommendations, Hatch will visit the site tomorrow. Schwartz will let Tanner know by email when it is done and will send a digital copy to him.

 

5.0       Mergers: None

 

Discussion – Schwartz said she spoke with Tom Burt before the meeting about a lot that LAE is buying next to their tennis courts. They intend to merge the lots and in the future erect a small building for administrative use. Schwartz let him know about the merging process and said that the BoS handle building construction permitting.

Paul Kapteyn attended our meeting tonight with interest in serving as an alternate member of the PB. We will appoint him for a 3-year term if he decides he would like to be a part of the board. Hatch said he spoke with Chidester about continuing as an alternate and he said he would like to in spite of his busy life.

Schwartz discussed an email inquiry from Michael Coppola that was complicated to answer and she will forward it to Revane who will take care of it.

Hatch will send information about an OSI Planning webinar on July 15th from 12 to 1PM.

We discussed the need to change our August meeting from the 3rd due to the planned absence of the Chair and Vice Chair. We decided to go with the 10th. Schwartz will let Niven and Dombroski know of the change.

 

6.0       Communications:

6.1       Email from Lucky 7 Farm

 

7.0      Meeting date for next Planning Board meeting – August 10, 2021, at 6:30 PM, at 2nd Floor at Town Hall.

                                   

8.0       Adjournment:                       Time: 8:53PM

            Motioned by Crandall, seconded by Kluk, all voted in favor.

 

Respectfully Submitted,  

Nan Schwartz