Conservation Commission

City of Laconia Conservation Commission Wednesday, March 16, 2022 - 6:00 PM City Hall in the Armand A. Bolduc City Council Chamber Approved April 6 3/16/2022 - Minutes 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair D. Anson called the meeting to order at 6pm 2. ROLL CALL Dean Anson, Deb Williams, Robert Harrington, Mike Foote, Stacy Soucy 3. SALUTE TO THE FLAG The commission saluted the flag 4. RECORDING SECRETARY Taylor Daigle, Conservation Planner Technician 5. STAFF IN ATTENDANCE Dean Trefethen, Planning Director 6. ACCEPTANCE OF MINUTES FROM PREVIOUS MEETINGS 6.I. Draft Minutes 3/2/22 M. Foote motions to accept the minutes from the 3/2 meeting as presented. D. Williams seconds. All vote in favor 7. OLD BUSINESS 7.I. Master Plan Chapter The Commission and T. Daigle discuss the goals laid out in the updated master plan chapter. D. Trefethen asks for clarification on the scenic roads designation and whether it would be the municipal designation or state bypass designation. There is discussion of the restrictions this could involve on property owners and whether its something to pursue or not. The Commission discusses reducing some of the goals into different categories – high priority and others. It is decided to focus on goals #1 and 3-6. Goal 7 will be incorporated into all other goals and goal 2 will be reworked into others as well. It is also noted that all topics in the goals section are discussed previously in the text as well. T. Daigle will make some edits and the commission will review the goals in more detail for the next meeting. 8. NEW BUSINESS 8.I. Province St Apartments The applicants present the project to the commission and discuss the reason for the CUP addition. The 8. NEW BUSINESS 8.I. Province St Apartments The applicants present the project to the commission and discuss the reason for the CUP addition. The project is a 90-unit apartment complex on a previous gravel pit involving a closed drainage system and connections to city sewer and water. There is a vernal pool off the property whose buffer covers part of the project property. The roof of one building will hang over the buffer and there is a small overlap of the building on the buffer as well. The applicant highlights that site slopes down to the vernal pool. There will be a split rail fence that delineates the boundary to protect the vernal pool from the property as well as boundary signage. There will also be landscaping and appropriate plantings to remediate the buffer encroachment. D. Williams asks about snow storage. There are designated spots along the driveway and some other areas on the site where snow will be stored. The fence construction and building orientation will ensure no snow gets stored in the vernal pool or its buffer. D. Anson asks about the wetland delineations. They were done over the past two years by Luke Powell. The commission asks about the fill put in the gravel pit. The owner of the land says it came from various places in the city, but it is all sandy and clean material. S. Soucy discusses planting trees for an additional noise buffer from the dog park. The applicants explain that the topography might not be much concern for noise but there will be very little clearing for trees in the first place. The schedule for the project is discussed. The applicant is expecting a May planning board approval and will need to get the AOT permit. They are shooting for a summer start. D. Anson notes that if anything potentially hazardous is found during the excavation if they would dispose of it properly. In addition, if any invasive species are found they should be removed and disposed of properly. M. Foote motions to support the application and share that support with the planning board. D. Williams seconds. All vote in favor. 8.II. NHDES Permits Discussion T. Daigle asks the commission for some clarification on which permits they want to see and how often. It is agreed on that T. Daigle will send out a weekly announcement to the Commission with addresses and brief descriptions of projects that have applied for a DES permit. If a commission member wants to see the permits, they will respond, and T. Daigle will coordinate with them to review the permit/plans. 9. NEW HAMPSHIRE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES APPLICATIONS 10. OTHER BUSINESS D. Williams discusses creating an ordinance of some kind that addresses erosion controls for all projects. She’d like to see perimeter controls for all projects in the city to reduce tracking and sediment travel to our storm water systems. D. Trefethen and T. Daigle will consider the options and discuss with the commission. It might fit well in a DPW ordinance. D. Trefethen and the commission discuss the situation with the downtown trees being cut and replaced. D. Anson discusses having conservation commission members report to T. Daigle when they see possible erosion control issues on sites across the city. T. Daigle will take those reports and investigate them shortly after. There is also discussion of how to file complaints with NHDES and who should be responsible for that. It may have more weight coming from the city, so T. Daigle will work with commission members if they have any concerns for specific violations. D. Williams discusses the Lake host program and grant status. We will receive $1000 from the program and the commission has another $1000 budgeted for this. The application is due in 2 weeks. The plan is to pay $12/hr. for 6hrs/day (8a-2p), 2 days a week, for 10 weeks. This will amount to close to $1500 for the summer. D. Williams contacted Mr. Gauthier at the Lake Opechee Preservation Association but has not heard back yet. M. Foote shares the success of the kid’s Fishing Derby he hosted. It went very well and got newspaper coverage.  D. Williams discusses the Lake host program and grant status. We will receive $1000 from the program and the commission has another $1000 budgeted for this. The application is due in 2 weeks. The plan is to pay $12/hr. for 6hrs/day (8a-2p), 2 days a week, for 10 weeks. This will amount to close to $1500 for the summer. D. Williams contacted Mr. Gauthier at the Lake Opechee Preservation Association but has not heard back yet. M. Foote shares the success of the kid’s Fishing Derby he hosted. It went very well and got newspaper coverage. D. Anson asks about the process for planting trees on city property and what approvals are needed. D. Trefethen and T. Daigle will look into this. R. Harrington discusses some of the work going on in the Taylor Community’s environmental group. Tree cutting seems to be a goal right now, but there is not much pattern with so. He will share with T. Daigle an observation report he wrote on the landscape of Taylor Community and she will pass it along to the commission. 11. LIAISON AND SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS S. Soucy discussed the Rivers Council meeting she attended last week. The meeting discussed dams, the importance of rivers, and erosion controls, among other things. The River Runners program conducts presentations on invasive species. T. Daigle will investigate contacting them about a presentation for the commission. 12. STAFF REPORT 13. ADJOURNMENT M. Foote motions to adjourn at 8pm. D. Williams seconds. All vote in favor.