Planning Board

MEETING MINUTES PLANNING BOARD REGULAR MEETING for January 6, 2021 A regular meeting of the City Planning Board was held on Wednesday, J anu ary 6 , 2 02 1 at 6:30 PM via ZOOM (https://zoom.us/) ITEM #1 ROLL CALL Chairman called the roll: In addition to Chairman Selsey, attending were the following Commissioners: Mr. Thompson, Ms. Thompson-Njenga, Ms. Gleason-Boncardo, Mr. Trolio, Charles Whites and Lesly Zamor. Also attending: Marlon Molina, Deputy Commissioner, Shanitra Lockett, Land Use Counsel. ITEM #2 ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIONS Approval of Minutes – Motion was made by the Chair to table the approval of the December 2, 2020 minutes for the next meeting, seconded by Commissioner Gleason with vote 7 – 0. ITEM #3 PUBLIC HEARING 3.1 Case No. 1-2014 8 Alden Place (Section 159.63, Block 1001, Lot 7) Located in the RMF- 15 Zoning District. The Applicant, Julie Properties, LLC, and its agent BRB Construction, LLC, represented by Leonard A. Cohen, Esq., seeks an extension of the Site Plan Resolution for the construction of a five (5) story, four (4) unit multifamily dwelling. (Continuation of Public Hearing) The Chair explained the application and indicated that the public hearing was adjourned at the request of Mr. Tartaglia (attorney for 8 Alden Place neighbors). Chair recognized Mr. Gladd (attorney from Cuddy Feder for 8 Alden Place). Mr. Gladd summarized his letter to the Planning Board addressing five issues that discussed in his letter of 12/1/2020 and the latest letter to the Planning Board dated 1/4/21. Mr. Gladd highlighted the progress that has been made in the construction of the building. The applicant has repaid his maintenance costs and constructed the concrete base of the roadway and completed the blacktopping. He showed updated photographs (the Monday or Tuesday within the past two weeks) The utility work has been completed and trench filled in and the elevator shaft has been completed as well as the second floor. Mr. Gladd showed updated photographs (from Monday or Tuesday within the last two weeks of the tonight’s Planning Board meeting). Mr. Tartaglia, the Attorney for the neighbors, was recognized and showed photographs of the roadway. Mr. Gladd interrupted to indicate that the picture is an older picture. Mr. Gladd highlighted the Applicant’s updated photograph showing no damage to the roadway. Mr. Tartaglia continued and recited the history of the project, raised the issue of the Planning Board’s conditions in their previous approval of a time extension including the condition that the previous approval was to be the final extension. Mr. Tartaglia stated that any revision to the plans should require a new application with the Planning Board reviewing and approving any changes. Other comments by Mr. Tartaglia included the disputed JMC invoice, maintenance payments based on property being vacant lot, curbing, need for an increased performance bond and revision to maintenance cost agreement. Mr. Gladd indicated that JMC was paid and it is now between the applicant and JMC to resolve any remaining fees which are minor at this point. Mr. Gladd also stated the maintenance is a pro rata share based on the number of lots. He reiterated that the construction sequencing provided showed completion by the end of August. Based on the applicant’s progress and barring any COVID-19 19 problems, construction is still anticipated to be by the end of the summer. Bart Blatt, BRB Construction, (the developer) was requested to update the Planning Board. He discussed the improvements and construction progress. He indicated that his current maintenance fee is approximately 10 percent and he is open to a pro rata share of 15% - 20%. He indicated that the project was stalled by legal obstacles and the COVID-19 pandemic. He was asked about the number of workers on the project daily. He responded that the average daily number of workers is 15 – 20. He also indicated that the taxes are up to date. He also commented on the blacktopping and surfacing provided on his side of the roadway which, in his opinion, is better than the other side. He ended by providing a status of the project to date. Commissioner Zamor: stated that he wanted to see the project completed. Sidewalks will be constructed per City specifications and there has been a good faith effort to satisfy the issues. Commissioner Thompson: indicated that the sidewalks should also include granite curbing. The Planning Board generally agreed with this. Public Comment: Rose Carmalitto – stated that the surfacing should be curb to curb. Also indicated that there is a Con Ed vault in the roadway in Bronxville. Mr. Gladd was asked if the plans were changed to include balconies. He indicated that nothing on the plans have changed. Updates are provided to the Building Inspectors and Department on a regular basis. Mr. Gladd mentioned that Applicant has provided their plans to Con Ed showing the private road with the utility easement. The Planning Board asked Mr. Blatt, the developer, if he would be willing to pave the street from curb to curb. He indicated that he was not willing to do so due to the economic costs. Mr. Blatt did indicate that in review with the ARB and the City Building Department he was providing a new street lamp on the project and would match the other street lamps along Alden Place. He has already run the conduit for this new street lamp. A letter from the City Building Department confirmed that the conduit was done correctly. Mr. Blatt also indicated that the 24’ x 30’ Con Ed vault was positioned at its location in the roadway at the recommendation of Jim Palmer, the Bronxville Village Administrator The Chair asked if there were any other public comments. There being none, he asked for a motion to close the public hearing. Commissioner Gleason made a motion to close the public hearing, second by Commissioner Thompson-Njenga with a vote of 7 – 0. After due discussion and deliberation, on motion by Commissioner Helene Thompson-Njenga, seconded by Commissioner Cathlin Gleason and carried, the application of Julie Properties LLC, requesting an extension of time to comply with site plan approval regarding the premises identified as 8 Alden Place is, hereby, granted commencing from August 31, 2020 and expiring on December 31, 2021 with conditions with vote of 7-0. NEW PUBLIC HEARING 2.2 Case No. 1-2021 295 East Sandford Blvd. (Section 169.33, Block 4067, Lots 26 & 28) Located in the CB (Commercial Business) Zoning District. Request for Site Plan and Special Permit. The Chair opened the public hearing on the application of Atlantis Fresh Market seeking site plan approval for Proposed Gas Station Alterations and the Renovation/Conversion of the Existing Building from a motor vehicle repair shop into an 1,813 sf Convenience Store. The application also requires a special permit from the Planning Board for a Motor Vehicle Filling Station pursuant to §267-28 (G) (4). The Applicant’s engineer, Marc Pilotta, PE, presented the application and showed the plans to the Planning Board. He described the location, the surrounding streets and zoning. The applicant now owns the property. It was formerly a Citgo gas station and will now be branded as a Shell station. He showed the site plan and described the conversion for the existing building into an 1,813-sf convenience store. There will be no expansion to the existing footprint of the building. The existing building was formerly used for motor vehicle repair work. Applicant proposes to remove the two existing fuel dispensing islands and replace with four 3’ x 10’ islands with one pump dispensing pump on each island. A canopy (39’ x 57’) will cover the fuel pumps. The height of the canopy is 17’.5”. Approximately 900 sf of the exising building at its southwest corner will be removed. The original site plan showed impervious coverage of 93.7% where 80% is the maximum allowed by Code. The applicant decreased the amount of impervious coverage on the site by using permeable concrete for the 14 parking stalls, adding foundation plantings around the proposed convenience store, and adding landscaping along the Sandford Blvd frontage. This reduced the impervious coverage to 79 percent (which is under the maximum allowable coverage of 80 percent). Mr. Pilotta described the proposed landscaping and arborvitae buffering the residential properties to the north. Landscaping was also being added to both Nuber and Homestead Avenues. Commissioner Thompson recommended that the arborvitae be switched to Schip Cherry Laurel hedge. He indicated that he has used the Schip Laurel hedge with good results. It is a cold-hardy and shade-tolerant cherry laurel. It is an excellent option for creating a narrow evergreen privacy hedge, tolerates many different soil types and its relatively quick growth makes it easy to maintain. The applicant agreed to make the landscaping change. A street tree will be added to the Sandford Blvd frontage. The Pyramidal European Hornbeam grows to 30’ to 40’ in height at maturity and 20’ to 30’ in width. The Planning Board discussed the conditions of the sidewalks surrounding the Property. Mr. Pilotta indicated that they would place a note on the plans indicating that the curbs and sidewalks shall be replaced as directed by the City. The plans will also depict the sidewalks along Nuber Avenue and Homestead Avenue as being replaced. Mr. Pilotta reviewed the lighting plan with the Planning Board. He provided the photometric plan showing the foot-candle dispersion across the site. The photometric plan shows that there is no light spill at the property line. All fixtures are cut off and shielded to prevent potential glare onto residential properties as well as for motorists along E. Sandford Blvd. An existing light pole on Nuber Avenue will be removed. Lighting is from the canopy and mounted on the front of the convenience store. The color temperature of the lighting under the canopy has been reduced from 5000 Kelvin to 4000 K. The Planning Board discussed the stormwater management system which is non-existent on the site. Mr. Pilotta described the reduction of impervious coverage and additional landscaping. Commissioner Thompson indicated that the plan should improve on capturing the stormwater runoff from the site especially since the City is having severe stormwater issues. Mr. Pilotta indicated that they would add subsurface infiltration on the site. The plans will be installed using underground infiltration units to capture the runoff from the roof, canopy, and site post construction. Soil erosion plans are included as part of the set of plans. The trash enclosure which had originally been enclosed with chain link has been replaced with a masonry 10’ x 16’ enclosure on a concrete pad. The front of the enclosure will have treated pine board gates. Trash would be picked up by a private carter. The Planning Board reviewed the applicant’s short form EAF and determined that the proposed action was a Type II action based on 617.5(c)(9) “construction or expansion of a primary or accessory/appurtenant, non-residential structure or facility involving less than 4,000 square feet of gross floor area and not involving a change in zoning or a use variance and consistent with local land use controls” therefore, ending the SEQRA process. The Chair asked if any members of the public would like to comment on the application. Public Comment: Ms. Lawrence asked about the height of the building and the hours of operation. She asked if the Planning Board could impose hours of operation on the store so that it does not become a hangout similar to KFC on the net block. Mr. Pilotta was asked to respond. He indicated that the C-store would not be a restaurant of have cooked foods. This would require a different permit from the Westchester County Department of Health. It would also require a cooking stove with a hood. The restaurant would have different parking requirements. The Planning Board requested input from the Board’s land use counsel. She reviewed the City of Mount Vernon Code and indicated that Chapter 210-3 (Retail and Commercial Establishments) of the Code of the City of Mount Vernon, limits the hours of operation for stores such as the Convenience Store to the following hours on the following days: Monday through Saturday: 5:00 am to 12:00 midnight; and Sunday: 5:00 am to 11:00 pm. The Planning Administrator indicated that this could be a condition of site plan approval. Land use counsel agreed with this recommendation. Public Comment: Ms. Brewster asked about the location of the trash enclosure and fencing. She was also concerned about light spilling onto adjacent properties. Public Comment: Ms. Geis asked about the frequency of trash pickup and the hours for pickup. Mr. Reichmann of the development team indicated that pick up hours were from 11 pm to 6 am. They would use the same private carter that they use at their South Columbus location. Trash is typically twice per week. The Planning Board also asked about security cameras. The applicant indicated that would be standard with this type of operation. Commissioner Thompson indicated that he was familiar with the business operator and their other locations throughout the metro area. They are excellent operators. He and several other members indicated that the applicant operated another location in Mount Vernon near the Columbus Dinner (BP station), and it is also a very well-run station. Mr. Thomas Reichmann on the development team asked a clarification on the hours of operation. The Board’s land use attorney repeated the hours of operation from the City Code. Mr. Galvin, the Planning Administrator, summarized the conditions and plan changes from the meeting. These included: • Sidewalk repair with appropriate nots on the final plans • Change arborvitae to Schip Cherry Laurel on the landscape plan. • Install stormwater management (subsurface infiltration units) • Security cameras • Hours of operation for the C-Store Chair asked if there were any other public comments. There were no additional comments. Chair requested a motion to authorize staff to prepare a resolution for the Board’s review and consideration at their February meeting. Commissioner Zamor made the motion, seconded by Commissioner Gleason, and was approved by a vote of 7 – 0. New Public Hearing 2.3 Case No. 2-2021 118 South 7th Avenue, Ebony Gardens Preservation, LP (Section 165.78, Block 3066, Lot 9) Located in the RMF-10 Zoning District. Request for Site Plan. The Chair opened the public hearing on the application of Ebony Gardens Preservation seeking site plan approval for the construction of a new, one-story 3,882 sf Community Center with an adjacent Playground on an existing, underused parking lot. Applicant has provided a Project Narrative describing the new Community Center building and its proposed uses and community amenities. Applicant has also submitted a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) since the area of disturbance is over an acre (specifically 1.28 acres.) The SWPPP has been prepared in accordance with NYS Stormwater Management Design Manual, Chapter 9 (redevelopment) requirements and has been forwarded to the City Engineer/Stormwater Management Officer) for review and approval. Note that the current site does not contain any stormwater management systems. Appearing for the Applicant was their Attorney, Jack Addesso, Mark Cifelli, PE Project Manager, and Michael Antonik from Ebony Gardens Preservation. Mr. Addesso introduced the project. The overall 5.28 acre property consists of the Ebony Gardens multi-family development. Ebony Gardens has seven existing, 3-story garden apartment buildings. Each existing building contains approximately 20 – 21 units. In total, there are 144 garden apartments on the property. These will all remain and are not part of the current application. General site improvements under a building permit include ADA complliance, landscaping, paving, sidewalk repairs and drainage imrovements. Several Green Infrastucture (GI) techniques including rain gardens and permeable paving will be utilized in the planned stormwater management system improvements. It should be noted that the property does not currently have any stormwater management practices at the development. Addtionally, there will be a reduction of 220 sf impervious surface within the overall Ebony Gardens property. The Applicant is seeking site plan approval for the construction of a new, one-story 3,882 sf Community Center and a new playground to the east and adjacent to the Community Center. The Community Center is proposed at the location of an existing, unused parking lot with access from South Eighth Avenue. South Eighth Avenue is a dead end street with a turnaround at the end. Stairs lead down from the end of South Eight Avenue to a paved parking area serving the residents of Ebony Gardens. The playground will be constructed to the east of the new Community Center in a currently grassed area. The area of disturbance related to the construction of the new Community Center and Playground will be 0.74 acres. However, since the improvements are part of a larger development with stormwater management improvements and a total area of disturbance over an acre (1.28 acres), a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) has been developed and provided to the City Engineer/Stormwater Management Officer for his review and approval. Off-street parking will be reduced from 64 spaces to 49 spaces. The existing parking lot has 28 parking spaces and has been unused by residents. There will be 13 spaces remaining located adjacent to the Community Center. These spaces will provide parking for the facility with vehicular access from South Eighth Avenue. There is no off-street parking requirement for the Community Center nor the playground. The Community Center will provide space for a 826 sf leasing office, and for community amenities including a resident lounge/community room (668 sf), laundry room (533 sf), fitness center (333 sf), a resident support office (144 sf), and a computer room/learning center (191 sf). The new Community Center building will replace existing laundry, leasing office and community space elesewhere within the development and provide residents with a central location for these amenities with ADA access. The Community Center will comply with zoning setbacks including maintaining 15’ sideyard setback from the residential properties to the east. The Community Center will have a 20’ front yard setback from South Eighth Avenue. The building itself is setback almost 35’ from the street with two large rain gardens and lawn separating it from South Eighth Avenue. In addition to these two rain gardens, there will be other rain gardens adjacent to the patio outside the main entrance as well as a large rain garden just east of the playground. The proposed building coverage with the Community Center is 15 percent where 40 percent is the maximum coverage allowed. The impervious coverage is being reduced by 220 sf and is calculated at 57.3 percent significantly below the 70 percent maximum coverage allowed. The open space provided at the garden apartment complex is 62,232 sf or 1.4 acres. There is no open space rquirement in the RMF-10 zone. Pine trees will remain on the north side of the Community Center and new accessible stairs with railings will provide access for residents living north of the site. Photometic diagram shows the fc lighting at the prooperty lines. It shows that there will be no light spillage onto South Eight Avenue or on surrounding residential properties. Mr. Cifelli, PE reviewed the site plan and community center patio and stormwater practices including the proposed rain gardens and permeable paving. He indicated the weekend hours for the Community Center. The stormwater will be piped out to the existing City system on 7th Avenue. There is no evidence of ponding issues on the site. There is no stormwater system currently on the property. The installation of a stormwater system for the whole property will result in a decrease in impervious surface, and also provide infiltration through five raingardens and permeable patio. With the reduction in impervious the discharge or pre- development versus post-development flows results in a zero-net increase. Mr. Cifelli reviewed the tree removal and landscape plan with the Planning Board. The tree removal plan will eliminate 11 pine trees and using one for one replacement with putting back shade trees. Pine trees will remain on the north side of the Community Center. A larger rain garden will be placed to the east of the new playground. Foundation plantings will be planted around the Community Center the patio area and the grassed island in the parking lot. New accessible stairs with railings will provide access for residents living north of the site.  The Planning Board discussed the lighting plan noting that an average of 2 foot-candles are provided salong the property boundaries. The Board notes that there were 14 light poles on the east side og the building at a height of 14’. The Board requested thsat the poles be reduced to 8’ to 10’ to reduce glare on the residential buildings east of the Community Center. The Applicant agreed and indicated that he would reduce the pole heights to 10’. Additionally, applicant will use a dusk to dawn timmer with sdimmer of the lights that can be used at any other time period. Planning Board asked about security cameras and applicant indicated that they would be installed in this area. Board also asked about access t othe Commun ity Center. The Appllicant indicated that the center was primarily for residents of Ebonuy Gardesn and wasa relatively small building with number of activities. The Applicant did indicate that guests of residents would be welcomed. Applicant also suggested that fob access could be used for the fitness center. The Planning Board discussed the rendering of the Community Cnetre and made a number of comments about the building and possibilities for improvement. The plan will need to go before the ARB for review and approval.. Chair asked if there were any other public comments. There were no public comments. Chair requested a motion to authorize staff to prepare a resolution for the Board’s review and consideration at their February meeting. Commissioner Zamor made the motion, seconded by Commissioner Thompson, and was approved by a vote of 7 – 0. With no further matters before the Commission, the Chair made a motion to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Commissioner Thompson with vote 7-0. Bob Galvin, AICP Planning Administrator