Planning Board

PLANNING BOARD MINUTES DRAFT THURSDAY, JUNE 27, 2024 6:00 P.M. CITY COUNCIL ROOM CALL TO ORDER: Charles (Chuck) Marshall, Chair called the meeting to order at 6:00 P.M. PRESENT: Chuck Marshall, Chair, Bill McTygue, Kerry Mayo, Anthony (Tony) Stellato, Joe Ferrante-Alternate, Mike King, Patty Morrison ABSENT: Mark Pingel STAFF: Aneisha Samuels, Principal Planner, Leah Everhart, PB Legal Counsel, James Salaway A. APPROVAL OF MEETING MINUTES: VOTE: B. POSSIBLE CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS: Note: The intent of a consent agenda is to identify any applications that appear to be ‘approvable’ without need for further evaluation or discussion. If anyone wishes to further discuss any proposed consent agenda item, then that item would be pulled from the ‘consent agenda’ and dealt with individually. Chuck Marshall said that Mike King will be late for the meeting. 1. UDO Text Amendment – Penalties & Fines. Consideration of an advisory opinion to the City Council for a text amendment to the UDO to amend Article 20 Enforcement (20.2 E&G). Chuck Marshall, Chair said this is regarding an advisory opinion to the common council based on their decision that they don’t feel imprisonment is an appropriate approach to enforcing the UDO. There’s a general conformance with that. A motion was made by Tony Stellato and seconded by Kerry Mayo to approve the UDO Text Amendment on Penalties and Fines. Vote: B. McTygue-Y, K. Mayo-Y, C. Marshall-Y, J. Ferrante-Y, T. Stellato-Y. 5-0 motion carried. C. PLANNING BOARD APPLICATIONS UNDER CONSIDERATION: NOTE: Agenda item discussion will not begin past 10:00 p.m. 2. #20240190 28 Aletta St. Area Variance Lot Lines. Advisory opinion to the ZBA for an area variance to permit a lot line adjustment to allow for the development of three duplex dwellings in the Urban Residential – 3 (UR-3) District. 3. 20240410 9 Gridley Horseshoe Inn Site Plan. Site plan review of constructed changes to the property associated with the outdoor entertainment use in the Gateway Commercial Urban (GC-U) District. 4. 20240348 1 Kaydeross Ave. West Site Plan. Site Plan review of a proposed +/- 4,000 sq. ft. marijuana dispensary and associated site work in the Gateway Commercial-Rural (GC-R) District. 5. 20240427122 Regent St. Site Plan. Site plan for adaptive reuse of an existing educational facility to residential units and associated site work in the Urban Residential – 4 (UR-4) District. 2. #20240190 28 Aletta St. Area Variance Lot Lines. Advisory opinion to the ZBA for an area variance to permit a lot line adjustment to allow for the development of three duplex dwellings in the Urban Residential – 3 (UR-3) District. Chuck Marshall, Chair said the applicant is seeking a series of line adjustments for three separate tax parcels. He said the applicant has been present at 2 workshops but did not present anything at the last meeting. Dave Carr, LA Group represented the applicant, Andre Schmidt. Dave said there are 3 parcels that total 29,079 sq. ft. He said Lot A has an existing garage on it and is almost completely paved, and in this zone is non-compliant. Lot B has the existing home with a shed. A portion of the shed goes over the property line into parcel A and a portion of the porch goes over the property line to parcel A. Lot C is a vacant piece of property. They are proposing to move the existing lot line of Lot A to the south and the lot line of Lot B to the north. This will make Lot A about 1,000 ft. larger, Lot B about 4,000 feet smaller and Lot C about 3,000 ft. larger. Dave said before the applicant purchased the property he talked to LA Group and the building department and had to make a quick decision about the purchase. Dave said they looked at the neighborhood and comprehensive plan and decided that in their opinion with the density it made sense that it would get approved. Dave said the plan they decided to go with was to have consistent frontages along Aletta St., so each lot has 70 feet of frontage. Dave showed a map and photos of comparable parcels in the neighborhood. Dave said many of the lots have 50 ft. of frontage and the requirement is 80 ft. He said the apartment building across the street is on a .4-acre lot and there are 21 apartments in the building. Dave said they are proposing duplexes on each lot. He said if everything is favorable with the ZBA, they would come back to the Planning Board for a lot line adjustment/subdivision for the 3 lots. Dave said this neighborhood is in the Core Residential Neighborhood District 1 of the Comprehensive plan and calls for a maximum of 10 units per acre, their parcel would be 9 units per acre. He said the parcels along Union St. are about 9.5 per acre. Dave said they will have double the required parking for two of the buildings, within the garages and in the driveway. A concern of the ZBA was the driveway variance which the City of Saratoga Springs – Planning Board Minutes – June 27, 2024 - Page 2 of 6 applicant has been able to reduce from 26.5% to 3.5%. Dave said they are 1.5% over what is required for lots B & C. Dave noted that even though Lot A is substandard in size it meets the maximum building coverage and impervious coverage. He said they have actually reduced the impervious coverage from what exists today. Dave noted a parcel on the comp map in the neighborhood received an area variance from the ZBA in April of 2024 for minimum lot size, average lot width, and driveway percentage to take a single-family lot and make it a two-family lot. Chuck asked the board members to ask questions of the applicant. Bill said he’s concerned about putting such a large building on Lot A because it’s considerably smaller than the other two lots. Bill mentioned the townhomes that were built along High Rock Ave. where Kar Alley is to the rear and the homes were built with access to the rear alleyway. He said this is like that configuration. He said using the city alley in the back would afford the opportunity to put the driveways into the rear and use the space out front for more lawn area. Chuck noted that a townhouse is not a permitted use in the UR-3, so they would not get a product similar to High Rock. Joe asked what condition Kar Alley was in prior to the townhomes being built. Bill said it had to be reconstructed. Joe said he drove around the alley for this project and it’s in pretty bad shape. Dave said if there were 3 driveways on the alleyway the applicant may be required to repair it. Bill said the city has an obligation to keep their public alleyways up to a certain standard, and that alley way is below standard. The PB can only recommend to the city what needs to be done. Joe said he agreed with Bill and Kerry and doesn’t have a problem with the curb cuts in the neighborhood. He said he saw in the comments that someone said the house on lot A had historic significance. Chuck said it does not and it is not in an architectural overlay district. Tony agreed with other board members that he would like to see access from the alley. He said maybe they should look at changing the orientation of the building, more of a traditional city lot building – long and narrow with the garage closer to the alley so there’s not a lot of driveway. It would give a better side yard on one side of the building. He said it should be designed to keep trash off of Aletta St. Tony asked if the applicant considered improving the sidewalk on Aletta St. Dave said that would be considered when they return to the planning board for the lot line adjustment. Mike King arrived at the meeting and agreed with alley access and no double curb cuts. Chuck clarified that it would be three total driveways on the alley. Chuck said the staff recommendation was for a single-family home to address the density issue on Lot A. He said he doesn’t have a problem with the density issue on Lot A and no problem with the two- family. Tony Stellato made a motion that the Planning Board issue a favorable recommendation in their advisory opinion with the following conditions: The applicant should seek to get Alley access from Shrade Lane for all units; the width of the driveways should be kept to a single lane driveway per each lot; the applicant should look at reorienting the buildings to be long and narrow and to provide side yards and get the garages closer to the alley to eliminate long driveways; movement of the lot line for Lot A to increase its land area acknowledging that that may require additional relief for lots B and C. The motion was seconded by Mike King. Vote: B. McTygue-Y, K. Mayo-Y, C. Marshall-Y, J. Ferrante-Y, T. Stellato-Y, M. King-Y. 6-0 motion carried. City of Saratoga Springs – Planning Board Minutes – June 27, 2024 - Page 3 of 6 3. 20240410 9 Gridley Horseshoe Inn Site Plan. Site plan review of constructed changes to the property associated with the outdoor entertainment use in the Gateway Commercial Urban (GC-U) District. Patty Morrison joined the meeting. Matt Brobston, LA Group represented the applicant. Matt said they are looking to complete their special use permit and one of the conditions was to submit for site plan review by a certain date, which they were able to do. Matt presented a survey of the parcel as it is today. There are currently two curb cuts on Nelson Ave. which will be modified in the proposed condition. He said the crux of the special use permit is for outdoor entertainment. The conditions for the special use permit: 1. Outdoor entertainment with 44 seats limited to 6 days in addition to the days of the racing meet. Total capacity governed by fire code. 2. Hours of operation for outdoor entertainment limited to between the hours of 4 pm to 10 pm Sunday through Thursday and 4pm to 11pm Friday and Saturday. 3. Applicant shall continue to work with adjacent residential properties to control and reduce any adverse impacts from this outdoor entertainment. 4. Shall comply with City’s Noise Ordinance. 5. The site shall be used in general conformance with the sketch plan attached hereto and dated 4/5/24. 6. When outdoor entertainment is offered, the curb cut on Gridley St. at the Nelson Ave. intersection shall remain closed (barricaded) as shown on the sketch plan. 7. Applicant shall submit an application for site plan review no later than 6/1/2024. 8. Applicant shall comply/complete any site plan improvements no later than 5/31/2024. 9. The SUP for outdoor entertainment shall expire in 6 years on May 17, 2030, but upon application it may be renewed by the Planning Board. Matt said he met with the planning staff and Chuck to go through the proposed changes, and they decided to close one of the entrances along Nelson Ave., making the area greener and widening the one entrance off Nelson. They will install two street trees and a light (location to be determined with DPW). Matt said they are removing the parking that straddles the line on Bowman St. and installing a green island with three street trees. He said this would allow for parallel parking along Bowman. He said the striping can be added to the final plan. He said they will also add the striping along the walkway on Gridley where the taxis pick up and drop off. Matt said there was a comment at the agenda meeting about greening up the metal fencing. He said they will add potted plants along the fence. Joe F. said that Mark spoke with him after the meeting and he was the one who suggested greenery around the black metal fence – ivy, potted plants, etc. He also brought up the metal grates around the trees as Bill M. recommended. Matt said the city doesn’t allow metal grates to be in the right-of-way. Bill said he thought the trees were going in the paved area and the metal grates would have been needed there, but since they are going in the grassy area, they won’t be necessary. Bill also mentioned that the decorative light should be wired into the city’s grid and not into the building. Mike K. asked if there was a split rail fence on Gridley. Matt said there are two small sections of split rail fence in front of the entrance that will remain. Mike asked if there would be a split rail fence along Bowman to prevent cars from parking north of the green area. Matt said no, and it’s not proposed to be curbed because there’s no drainage to move it towards. Matt said they want to keep the water coming off the building and going through the green strip out to the road where there’s an existing dry well. Matt said north of the green belt there’s an access area for delivery trucks to get in. Tony S. asked if it was a problem that the porta johns were directly on the property line. It isn’t a problem now because the City of Saratoga Springs – Planning Board Minutes – June 27, 2024 - Page 4 of 6 applicant owns the adjoining property, but it might be a problem if there’s a change of ownership. Tony said the green area they are proposing will look good. Chuck Marshall made a motion to approve the site plan for 9 Gridley, commonly know as the Horseshoe, with the following conditions: that the striping be put on the final plan showing the on-street parking on Bowman St. and that DPW review the location of the decorative light and that it be addressed in the final plan. The motion was seconded by Kerry Mayo. Vote: B. McTygue-Y, K. Mayo-Y, C. Marshall-Y, J. Ferrante-Y, T. Stellato-Y, M. King-Y, P. Morrison-Y. 7-0 motion carried. 4. 20240348 1 Kaydeross Ave. West Site Plan. Site Plan review of a proposed +/- 4,000 sq. ft. marijuana dispensary and associated site work in the Gateway Commercial-Rural (GC-R) District. Chuck Marshall, Chair said the applicant has received their special use permit where many of the site plan issues were addressed. They have returned to address some outlying issues. Stephanie Ferradino, Attorney represented the applicant. Also, Mike Ingersol, LA Group and John Montagne, GPI were present for the applicant. Matt Jones was present and representing the property owner. Stephanie said she would talk about some of the site plan changes and concerns that were raised during the special use permit application. She said the SUP was granted in October of 2023 and modified in May of 2024. DRB granted approvals of the architecture and the planning board approved the lot consolidation and site plan. Stephanie said Saratoga County Board has seen the application several times and said there’s no significant community impact. Stephanie said the outstanding items from the workshop will be discussed by John Montagne: Septic - John said that PJ’s has a mound septic system and the applicant is proposing to build a third bed next to that. John said the Department of Health said they would not like them to do that and would prefer an independent system and reserve the proposed area for PJ’s should they need it in the future. John said they will install the independent system where the old house is located. John said that allows for expansion and to keep the system separate from PJ’s. It is no longer under DOH jurisdiction and goes to the city level for review. DOH will review the updated chamber for the pump that doses the two existing fields. John said one of the comments was about drainage that was not captured along the ditch line along Kaydeross West. John said they will improve the ditch line as shown on the engineer’s drawings. John said there’s a very large poplar tree that they will be able to save. Parking – John said13 spaces are required for the dispensary, they had 17 and have removed one so now 16 spaces which is within the 120% threshold for parking. Landscaping – John said a comment was made about adding additional landscaping along the face and questions about the retaining wall and screen fence. John said DRB asked that the screen fence mimic the building. He said the materials that are on the building will be extended onto the security fence that comes around the enclosure. They will also extend the arborvitae (deer resistant) along the front face. They will add Black Elms instead of the maple trees and the 3 maples by the stormwater practice have been changed to hawthorns. Curb Cuts – John said the plans were submitted to the DOT. DOT said they’re fine with the sidewalk and will consider in the future whether they will do a side path. John asked if this applicant could have the same condition as the Tree House; that they will build the sidewalk and have the provision to widen it and as the side path continues to grow and they will pull City of Saratoga Springs – Planning Board Minutes – June 27, 2024 - Page 5 of 6 the concrete out and put asphalt in to modify it as required at the time. He said DOT is fine with the north curb cut. John said they presented the middle curb cut to DOT as something they would like to retain until the dispensary is built. He said the reasoning is that they would like to make sure PJ’s remains vibrant and doesn’t have a lot of disturbance. PJ’s currently uses that access for their barbeque pit. He said DOT was fine with that. John said DOT asked that they close in the drainage when they bring the sidewalk down because it's a maintenance issue for them. The area along Kaydeross will be closed off and they will be limited to one access point off of Kaydeross. John said DOT is fine with the right in, right out. He said DOT has approved their stage 1 application and would like the applicant to submit a formal stage 2 official permit. Site lighting – John said the utility plan shows a pole base. The architect and the owner are working together with their lighting consultant to pick a lighting fixture that’s compatible with the dispensary building. John said they will present the plan when finished and are aware that they have a mounting height restriction of 16 ft. because they are adjacent to residential property. He said they also need to do a point by point because they cannot have any spill over as well. Chuck said the UDO isn’t specific, but the board recommends 3,000 kelvin lighting, yellow hue. Bill M. asked about deliveries to the dispensary and PJ’s. John said deliveries to the dispensary will be through the service alley. A van type vehicle will back into a secure area and the gates will close. John said they are proposing a sidewalk to connect the dispensary parking lot to PJ’s parking lot. Bill asked if it was the intent of the applicant to keep it under one ownership and John said it was. Patty M. asked what would happen with the middle curb cut after the dispensary is built. John said it just becomes non-useable, but they won’t pull the culvert out because it may be needed at some point in the future. It will no longer be used for service. Mike Ingersol explained further but was not speaking into the mic. Patty asked once it’s no longer used as a service road, how will PJ’s get behind there to make their deliveries. Mike I. explained but not talking into mic. Patty said she would prefer that the curb cut not be kept and that the applicant determine how deliveries will be made in the future. Chuck said they may be able to screen the fence on the west side and put a dedicated delivery there. Kerry said his main concern is that the plan doesn’t seem developed for deliveries to PJ’s or whatever it may become. Joe F. asked if they would be adding plantings to the new stormwater and septic area. John said the leach field will be a grass lawn and will extend out at the same grade as the parking lot. He said the stormwater practice is a biofilter which has plantings within it and shrub plantings along the periphery and 3 ornamental trees along the edge. Tony S. asked if there was a third-party engineer for the stormwater and there is not. James Salaway answered but inaudible – no mic. Tony asked what the slope of the driveway is coming off Kaydeross Ave. John said 2% coming in and goes up to 4% through the lot. Mike K. asked about the location of the cross use connecting sidewalk and why it couldn’t go straight down. John said they have to place it where it is because of PJ’s septic tank. Mike asked if the applicant had an internal trip capture from their traffic analysis. Mike said he’s opposed to anything above the minimum parking requirement and is looking for shared parking between the businesses. He said he would like to see a shared parking analysis from the applicant. Chuck said the shared parking calculation shows 21 internal trips based on a total trip assignment, and only accounts for the PM peak not the AM peak. The total trips are 225 and internal capture is 21. There were 204 PM trips. Chuck said the peak is so much higher than the internal assignment you don’t get the net benefit because there isn’t enough customer turnover. Tony said he’s ok with the parking the way it is. There was a discussion about the parking calculation if there were to be a change of use at PJ’s to something retail and other than a restaurant, and whether they City of Saratoga Springs – Planning Board Minutes – June 27, 2024 - Page 6 of 6 would have to come back in front of the planning board. Chuck said he thinks what would require a return to the site plan would be if the parking calculation changed based on the use. Code enforcement would determine how much parking is necessary if the use is something other than what is currently permitted. Bill said three or four extra parking spaces seem quite reasonable, especially if it keeps people from parking on the lawn over the septic tank. Kerry said that there should be a multi-use path because it’s 3 miles from the center of the city which would be a reasonable bike ride. Bill said there’s discussions going on about sanitary sewer extensions on S. Broadway and within 8 years or so there may be an extension to this site. Bill asked the applicant if it would behoove them to anticipate that coming. John said they did do that. He said the lateral that comes out of their building straight out to their septic tank. If a sewer line were to come down, the septic tank would come out, there would likely be a forced main and they would do an E-1 pump and pump right into it. Chuck Marshall, Chair summarized the discussion:  The same condition as Tree House – concrete sidewalk that would be removed if DOT puts in a multi-use path. (Mike Ingersol commenting but not talking into the mic). Kerry asked about DOT’s requirement for a sidewalk. John said DOT requires it to be no more than 5 ft., within their right-of-way, and be made of concrete. He said a shared path can’t be concrete, must be 8ft. wide and asphalt. John said if they could get DOT to agree to a side path it would be easier to construct. Chuck said whatever improvement DOT allows will be what is required of the applicant. He said they will make the same recommendation to the City Council that they made for Tree House, that a shared use path should be developed down S. Broadway because there’s another application that is pushing the pedestrian limits of the city and we need to make modifications with their guidance.  3,000 Kelvin lights, yellow hue will be required  Curb cut will be abandoned upon the opening of the most northerly curb cut. The asphalt area between the shoulder and the sidewalk should be removed and grass replanted.  All deliveries will be made on site.  Leah suggested that the board allow public comment. She said that planning staff has recommended that the board go through the gateway commercial design standards (6) and to confirm that the applicant’s proposal is consistent with these standards in the GCR zone. Chuck read the 6 standards but did not have his mic on and was inaudible at times. In conclusion, it appears that the applicant’s proposal is consistent with the standards.  Sidewalk added to connect the parking area to the east and additional landscaping. Chuck Marshall made a motion to grant site plan approval with the following conditions: 1. The applicant will install a pedestrian improvement approvable by DOT. 2. The planning board will issue a letter of recommendation to the City Council advocating that DOT permit a pedestrian path. 3. Outside lighting will be 3,000 Kelvin. 4. The middle curb cut will be removed upon opening of the northern curb cut. 5. The western side of the building will be landscaped with the addition of a hedgerow to prohibit deliveries on the shoulder of the road. 6. There will be signage for on-site delivery only. 7. There will be a sidewalk installed from the middle access parking area into the building to enable deliveries internal to the site. The motion was seconded by Bill McTygue. Vote: C. Marshall-Y, B. McTygue-Y, P. Morrison-Y, T. Stellato-Y., M. King-Y, K. Mayo-Y, J. Ferrante-Y. 7-0 motion carried. City of Saratoga Springs – Planning Board Minutes – June 27, 2024 - Page 7 of 6 5. 20240427122 Regent St. Site Plan. Site plan for adaptive reuse of an existing educational facility to residential units and associated site work in the Urban Residential – 4 (UR-4) District. Mike Ingersol, LA Group represented the applicant. Sonny Bonacio and Gianna Bonacio were also present. Mike said Sonny and Julie Bonacio are the developers. Mike said the parcel is about a half-acre and was known as the Waldorf School. Mike said the building was built post WWI. Mike said they are before the board for site plan review. He said they are zoning compliant, so no zoning application is required. He said they are proposing to reuse the structure for 5 condo units. Mike said the building was sold or gifted in 1924 to Skidmore for a campus. Mike showed aerial photos of the building. He said the utilities come into a partial basement in the center of the building. He said there won’t be a center hall common area. Each unit will have its own entrance. Mike showed the floor plan for 5 units and the only additions to the building will be small porches on the first floor. He said all the units will be 2 stories and there will be a small garden area on the roof off the second floor. Mike said garages are considered accessory structures in the Code. He said because the building is on three streets there’s a front yard, side yard & interior side yard. He said there will be an HOA and they will be condominiums. Mike displayed the utility plan. He said they’ve calculated the heat pumps and generators and are fully compliant. Mike discussed the landscape plan. Each owner will have a minimum lawn area and would have the ability to put a pond, garden, etc. Mike King asked about the carport. Mike I. not talking into mic. The carport is zoning compliant at this time. Mike K. said the UDO allows for 9 parking spaces and they have 10 so they would need a waiver for one additional parking spot. Tony asked about the garage for unit 2 and why it has to face Regent St. Aneisha said if they access off White St. they would be required to get a variance. If they access off Regent St., they get the 20 ft. needed and no variance is needed. Joe F. voiced concern about the 5 units having different ideas about their landscaping that may not be acceptable to the other owners. Sonny said after they’re done as a sponsor the owners would govern each other with a majority decision about the landscaping. Mike I. inaudible. Leah clarified that these are not 5 single family structures, if they were the applicant wouldn’t be before the PB for site plan review. She said it's a single site that’s going to remain a single site. When there are proposed changes to the site plan it will trigger additional review before the board because it would be a change to an approved plan. She said the board could approve alternative landscaping plans. Sonny said he will be putting in brick sidewalks, fencing as described, sodded lawns and the minimum landscaping shown on the site plan. He said anything after that they will come back to the board and show a proposed design. He suggested it could be done administratively. Kerry asked about the distance from the intersection to the curb cuts. Mike I. inaudible. Kerry asked if the driveway could be shared between two units. Chuck asked if they could remove the first driveway on White St. and access the unit from Regent St. Mike I. inaudible. Patty said she wants to see the condition that the yellow wood tree will be protected during construction. Patty asked how people will know that they can use the civic space and who will maintain that space. Sonny said it will read as civic space and the HOA will maintain it. Chuck said he’s in favor of two parking spaces per unit and granting the waiver for the 10th parking spot. Mike K. said that the UDO allows for 1.5 parking spaces per unit (5x1.5=7.5) with a 20% bonus (allows for 9 total). They need a waiver for 1 parking spot. Bill M. noted that if they don’t give the waiver there will be one more car parked on the street. He said there’s a big advantage to getting a car off the street – wintertime maintenance, street City of Saratoga Springs – Planning Board Minutes – June 27, 2024 - Page 8 of 6 maintenance, etc. He’s in favor of granting the waiver. Kerry asked if they could make the two outdoor spaces permeable. Sonny said yes. Chuck Marshall made a motion to grant site plan approval with a waiver for one additional parking space giving the applicant 10 total, provided that any outdoor space have an element that is permeable. The motion was seconded by Bill McTygue. Vote: C. Marshall-Y, B. McTygue-Y, P. Morrison-Y, T. Stellato-Y., M. King-N, K. Mayo-Y, J. Ferrante-Y. 6-1 motion carried. MOTION TO ADJOURN: Chuck Marshall made a motion to adjourn. The motion was seconded by Tony Stellato. All in Favor. The meeting was adjourned at approximately 9:10 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Donna Gizzi, Recording Secretary City of Saratoga Springs – Planning Board Minutes – June 27, 2024 - Page 9 of 6