Inland Wetlands, Water Courses & Conservation Commission

Regular Meeting Minutes December 5, 2019 CITY OF NORWICH INLAND WETLANDS, WATERCOURSES AND CONSERVATION COMMISSION Lower-level Conference Room 23 Union Street, Norwich, Connecticut A. CALL TO ORDER: Chairman Richard Morell called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. B. ROLL CALL and SEATING of ALTERNATES: Present: Richard Morell, Chairman Douglas Lee, Vice Chairman Peter Chalecki David Poore Brandon Hyde Robert McCoy Absent: Swarnjit Singh Bhatia Also Present: Dan Daniska, Assistant City Planner and Katherine Rose, Recording Secretary C. APPROVAL OF MEETING MINUTES: Douglas Lee put forth a motion to APPROVE the November 7, 2019 minutes with the amendment that David Poore was not present. David Poore seconded. The motion passed unanimously. Douglas Lee put forth a motion to APPROVE the November 23, 2019 special meeting minutes with the revision of ‘comments and comments’ to ‘comments and questions’ in the third paragraph of Section C. Peter Chalecki seconded. The motion passed unanimously. D. COMMUNICATIONS: None. E. PUBLIC HEARINGS: None. F. OLD BUSINESS: 1. IWWCC #19-17: 33 Wisconsin Avenue. Application for land disturbance activities within a regulated wetland and associated upland review area for preparation of a development pad for future construction of business/professional offices. Application and property of Prime Enterprises LLC. Assessor’s Map 334, Block 1, Lot 4. Zone – BP Frank Blanchard, property owner of 33 Wisconsin Avenue, and engineer David McKay of Boundaries LLC introduced themselves. Mr. McKay reported the proposed project is the development of a building pad for future offices. Mr. McKay stated between the gravel parking area and the office building, located on a higher elevation on the property; exists an isolated wetland area that drains out through a 24-inch culvert under the property driveway. Mr. McKay stated to create a usable developable area they are proposing to fill 4,840 square feet of the wetland area to create a gravel building pad that will extend from the existing gravel parking lot. Mr. McKay stated the development will result in a filling in of a section of the wetlands which their soil scientist reported only functions to serve for ground water recharge. Mr. McKay reported their plan is to recreate that function of the wetland using their storm water quality basin that will wrap around the proposed gravel building pad so that everything from the pad will drain back into the water quality basin. Douglas Lee questioned if the soil scientist had noted or looked for evidence of standing water in the spring as the portion of the site to be filled does not have the look of a normal vernal pool. Mr. McKay responded he had not been there in the spring but in the wetlands report it was noted there are several large cobbles and rocks that make up the ground cover and likely prevented any standing water from rapid infiltration. Richard Morrell asked in total how much fill would be used to which Mr. McKay responded they intend to use what they excavate from the slope to create the building pad which will be composed of gravel top dressing. Discussion ensued on the function of the water quality basin and how water flows through the area. At the request of David Poore, Mr. McKay further explained the storm water controls within the basin which contains two parts, one being a small shallow concrete structure with a low flow control orifice (6”), located 1.75 feet above the bottom, where the basin would fill to in storm events and then release the water through the 6” hole. Mr. McKay stated during extreme storm events the basin will continue to fill up until it gets to the rip rap spillway which will have a concrete curb set across to control the flow thru the spillway and prevent erosion. Mr. McKay stated from the spill way the water discharges to the outlet control structure directly into the cobbled wetland area. David Poore asked if there was any consideration to the volume of the swale in order to replicate the piece of wetlands that would be filled in. Mr. McKay responded the storage area is set based on the water recharge volume and water quality volume set by DEEP. Douglas Lee questioned the reasoning as to why the erosion control calls for seeding with a grass mixture opposed to something more natural or reflective to an upland review area. Mr. McKay stated the seeding selected is low maintenance and requires no mowing so it would expand and fill in the slope once stabilized. David Poore asked in the event of a huge rain would the wetlands area to the south flood out as the plan proposes a diversion swale discharging into the southern part of the wetlands which would add a significant amount of water to the area. Mr. McKay responded that the detention provided by the basin would slow the flow and the diversion swale would gather water from offsite before getting to the detention basin. Mr. Poore asked about the 24” RCP’s ability to handle a 100-year flood. Mr. McKay responded that calculations have shown that it will be able to handle an event with excess capacity. Mr. Poore asked if the plans received earlier in the day had addressed the comments of the City Engineer, to which Mr. McKay replied that they had. Brandon Hyde made a motion that IWWCC #19-17 is not a significant activity and does not require a public hearing. Douglas Lee seconded. The motion passed unanimously. Brandon Hyde made a motion TO APPROVE IWWCC #19-17 with comments and notes from the City Engineer’s and Assistant City Planner’s memos be addressed, along with the following conditions:  That the approval is valid for FIVE YEARS and will expire on 12/05/2024.  That a bond, in an amount satisfactory to the City Engineer, be submitted for Erosion and Sediment Control and Site Restoration.  That the Review Comments from the City Engineer and Zoning Enforcement Officer in emails dated 12/02/2019 be addressed before the final revised plans be submitted and reviewed by City Staff.  That all site activities shall be conducted in accordance with the plans, specifications and documents of record. Any deviation from the approved plans or construction sequence shall be cause for enforcement action by the Inland Wetlands, Watercourses and Conservation Commission.  That the permittee shall notify the Inland Wetlands Agent prior to the commencement of work and upon its completion.  That all work and all regulated activities conducted pursuant to this authorization shall be consistent with the terms and conditions of this approval. Any structures, excavation, fill, obstructions, encroachments or regulated activities not specifically identified and authorized herein shall constitute a violation of this approval and may result in its modification, suspension, or revocation. Upon initiation of the activities authorized herein, the permittee thereby accepts and agrees to comply with the terms and conditions of this approval.  That no equipment or materials including without limitation fill, construction materials, or debris, shall be deposited, placed, or stored in any wetland or watercourse on or off site unless specifically authorized by this approval.  That the General Provisions stated in Section 11.9 of the Inland Wetlands and Watercourse Regulations are applicable to this permit.  That the permit shall not be assigned or transferred to another entity without the written permission of the Commission.  That all erosion and sediment control measures shall be in accordance with the Connecticut Guidelines for Erosion and Sediment Control. Erosion and sediment control measures shall be installed and inspected prior to site disturbance. It is the permittee's responsibility to schedule the inspection with the Norwich Planning Department. Additional erosion and sediment control measures shall be installed if determined to be necessary by the Designated Agent. The permittee shall take such necessary steps consistent with the terms and  conditions of the approval, to control stormwater discharges and to prevent erosion and sedimentation and to otherwise prevent pollution of wetlands and watercourses.  That this permit will be strictly enforced. The Commission may suspend or revoke this permit, may direct the Commission's Agent to issue a cease and desist order or may require the applicant to modify, extend, or revise the site work or restore the area to its original condition if it finds that the applicant has not complied with the conditions set forth in this approval or if the applicant exceeds the scope of this approval as set forth herein or if the intended use or actual use of the general site is not as represented by the application or the plan of record. Dave Poore raised a question as to if the applicant would have to reappear before the Commission when the second phase of the development was going to take place. Richard Morell replied that this approval is only for the first phase, and the applicant would have to come back when the buildings are developed. Douglas Lee seconded. The motion passed unanimously. G. NEW BUSINESS: 1. IWWCC #19-18(JR): Baltic Road Rear aka Lot 46R Atlantic Avenue. Request for a two (2) lot subdivision on a 2.71 acre parcel. Jurisdictional Ruling required by IWWCC. Property of Kevin Mellor, Application of Hatch Construction, LLC. Assessor’s Map 6, Block 1, Lot 46B. Zone R-40 Douglas Lee made a motion IWWCC does not have jurisdiction on Application IWWCC #19-18(JR): Baltic Road Rear AKA Lot 46B Atlantic Ave due to the fact that no activity is proposed within the 100 ft. Upland Review Area of any surrounding wetlands. Brandon Hyde seconded. The motion passed unanimously. 2. IWWCC #19-19: 177 Otrobando Avenue. Request for a building addition and parking area within an Upland Review Area. Peter Chalecki made a motion to table Application IWWCC #19-19 until the next regular meeting. Brandon Hyde seconded. The motion passed unanimously. H. OTHER BUSINESS: 1. Staff Report: Dan Daniska reported there was one agent issued permit for Disturbance within the Upland Review Area in regards to a backup generator for Chelsea Groton Bank; IWWCC#19-16A: 444 West Main Street. I. VIOLATIONS: None. J. ADJOURNMENT: Robert McCoy made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 7:23PM. Peter Chalecki seconded. The motion carried unanimously. Respectfully submitted, Katherine Rose, Recording Secretary