Planning Board

************************************************************ TAUNTON PLANNING BOARD MINUTES Meeting held at Maxham School, 141 Oak Street ************************************************************* DATE: May 2, 2019 BOARD MEMBERS: Bob Campbell, Chairman Anthony Abreau Arthur Lopes, Vice Chairman John Reardon Manuel Spencer, Clerk Jordan H.F. Fiore Brian Carr ADVISORS: Michael Patneaude, City Engineer Kevin Scanlon, City Planner __________________________________________________________________________ Roll Call: Carr, Reardon, Abreau, Lopes, Fiore, Spencer and Campbell present. Meeting opens at 5:32 PM. Tony made motion to accept minutes of April 4, 2019 seconded by Arthur. All in favor. Public Hearing – Special Permit/Site Plan Review - 93 County Street - for an automobile filling station and a convenience store with a drive-thru, owned by Horton Street LLC, submitted by Narayan Patel. Roll Call: Carr, Reardon, Lopes, Fiore, Spencer and Campbell present. Hearing opens at 5:35 PM. Clerk Spencer read the public hearing notice along with department comments DIRB and the City Engineer which were made part of the record. Arthur made motion to invite the petitioner into the enclosure, seconded by Jody. All in favor. John DeSousa, SeaCoast Consulting LLC, Seth Cohen representing Narayan Patel. John states they are proposing to construct a gasoline station with convenience store on the property. There was some work done to grade property and on east side of the property is a retaining wall. They are proposing a 3,080 square foot retail convenience store with gas filling station, and a take out restaurant with a drive-thru. There will be 2 handicapped parking spaces in front and parking on the west side and the drive-thru will wrap around the whole building. There is room for 14 cars stacked in the drive-thru with a by-pass lane. The grading is raised in back portion of the property and they will continue the retaining wall running along the eastern portion of the lot. There are 4 catch basins and all go down and is collected and funnel through to the oil/water separator into the infiltration trench basin. They have planned for a 100 year storm and have provided overflow basin. They are proposing to collect all snow up front and let it run through the property into the infiltration system. They are proposing red maples and cedars for landscaping. The site will be fully fence and have security fence and erosion control (hay waddles) They will stabilize construction entrance and stockpile areas for soils. Putnam Pipe is located to the left on a separate lot. Arthur asked what are the hours of operation? It was answered 5:00 AM – 11:00P M - 7 days a week for both gasoline & store. Brian asked about the tanks and about the training of personnel? John stated the tanks will be located on the northwest side of the property of which they will be double walled fiberglass. He stated the attendants go through training and if there is an emergency they can stop the pumps at the register. It was asked if they can specify who gets notified and it was answered yes. The state requires the alarm be sent to the owner, manager and fire department. Brian stated he would want it like the last gas station they just approved. 1  Brian asked about the secondary overflow system. John stated they currently have a drain manhole and the water will straddle into secondary overflow if needed. John stated they have provided for a 100 year storm and then have an easement to discharge into the stormwater system. John explains that if we got 8.56 inches of rain within a 24 hour period then that would be a 100 year flood and then if we got another big storm it would trigger the overflow if we need the second relief. The river if over 400 feet away and they are not near any municipal wells. John pointed out the traffic study is based on 1989 thru 2000 data? He asked if that was the last time they made any analysis? John asked what is the benefit to the City to have this gasoline and convenience store here? John DeSousa states the tax revenue outweigh the city services in that it won’t cost that much if an accident occurs and the police &fire are called out it won’t be greater than the amount of taxes collected. John asked about the accident percentage and John DeSousa answers they estimate the amount of accidents. Brian disagrees with the petitioner analysis. Brian stated obviously there is less tax revenue there now because it’s vacant. There was some discussion about possibly extending the sewer . John DeSousa stated the owner has to provide the sewer. Manny asked if the 2-3 houses nearby can connect to sewer. John explained where the sewer was coming from and it wasn’t going by those few houses. Seth Cohen stated they are spending 2.5 million on this project and they have no intention on extending the sewer further. Brian asked if they are planning on any sidewalk improvements? They will be putting concrete ramps on end. Chairman Campbell asked if the easement to the north side will be paved prior to the gas station opening and it was answered yes. John stated they will be show details of that on the Site plan review plans. Chairman Campbell asked if there was any pedestrian pathway and John answers no. The sidewalk is accessible and it will be flush with the sidewalk and be 10 feet wide. The curbing will have wheel stops. It was asked if there would be any bollards and John stated wheel stops. Chairman Campbell asked how wide is the flush area and John answers almost 20 feet wide with a 42” gap for handicapped . Manny asked how is this project going to improve the neighborhood? John answers the owner is bringing sewer to the site and they can leave a connection for future tie-in. Public input: No one appearing in favor or in opposition. Public input closed. Brian states you are going to have a brand new building with old sidewalks? Jody made motion to re-open public input, seconded by Arthur. All in favor. Joe Abreau, Horton Street LLC, owner stated they brought the sewer from E. Pole School for this project and any future use of the back lot and any neighbor can tie into it at their expense. Joe stated they are re-doing the sidewalks. He stated 12 years ago they stubbed the sewer and they can bring across the front of the property and have easement to back for future development. Brian made motion, seconded by Jody, to grant the Special Permit with the following conditions: Condition #1) That the plans dated November 7, 2018 and revised through March 14, 2019 shall govern with the following additional conditions: Condition #2) That site lighting shall not illuminate any portion of abutting properties Condition #3) The site shall be kept clean and clear of debris Condition #4) Two set of as-builts shall be submitted upon completion of all work on site and shall Design Engineer and Land Surveyor certification stating that the development has been built according to the approved plans. Plans shall show all construction of buildings, utilities, grades setbacks, etc. Condition #5) The water main extension from County Street into the property must be at least 8 inch and will require a fire hydrant at the end of the line. Condition #6) The water service must be at least 1 inch and shall have proper backflow prevention devices as per Ma DEP/Plumbing Code and the water meter must be a radio reader. Condition #7) Two sets of updates plans that conforms to this decision prior to building permit. s. Condition #8) All dumpsters shall be shown on the plan, located on a concrete pad, enclosed with a 6 foot stockade fence, be kept closed at all times and emptied regularly. Condition #9) The project shall comply with the Conservation Commission Order of Conditions #2785. Condition #10) The project shall comply with the decision of the Zoning Board of Appeals Case # 3481. 2 Condition #11) A hazardous material permit from the Board of Health is required. Condition #12) A food service permit and other permits from the Board of Health are required. Condition #13) The drainage system shall be approved by the City Engineer prior to any building permits. Condition #14) That the 2 inch low pressure sewer connection design shall be shown on the plan. Condition #15) That signs and striping indicating one- way traffic around the building be provided at the entrances and exits for this area. Condition #16) That the access and utility easement for the shared access point shall be recorded prior to the issuance of any building permits. Condition #17) That the alarm(s) on the systems monitoring fuel tank leakage, fuel line leakage and fueling island spillage be set up to immediately notify the filling station owner, the persons designated to maintain the fueling components and the Fire Department of any and all alarms, including false alarms. Condition #18) That the sidewalk in front of the property be reconstructed to comply with ADA/AAB requirements and that a sidewalk easement be recorded and shown on the plans to cover where the sidewalk would encroach into the property. Hearing closes at 6:18 PM Public Hearing – Special Permit/Site Plan Review – 280 Winthrop St. – for a retail showroom, truck sharing and storage unit facility, submitted by U-Haul, James J. Long . Roll Call: Carr, Reardon, Abreau, Lopes, Fiore, Spencer and Campbell. James Long and Matthew Peppin were invited into the enclosure. Clerk Spencer read the DIRB comments into the file. Mr. Long stated this is the former Shaws plaza which has Ocean State Job Lob, H & R Block. Mr. Long stated he has already addressed some concerns the DIRB had like cleaning out the catch basins. They are proposing to put up fencing along the rear property line for neighbors. They will upgrading all lighting to LED and it won’t interfere with neighboring properties. Mr. Long stated they walked the property after the DIRB meeting and they will bring the property up to regulations. McDonalds was recently upgrade and they will be paining the U-Haul parking spaces in Orange (the color of U-Haul on suggestion f the DIRB) and they will put up barrier if needed. The project consists of climate control indoor storage and they will have showroom where you can purchase small boxes and packaging supplies. Mr. Long stated they will be submitted As-Builts for plumbing, electrical but tonight they are here for the Special Permit for the Use. John asked how many years is the lease for? It was answered there is no set time. U-Haul is here to stay. Mr. Long explained on the plans that the trailer and trucks will be parked in the designated area on the plans. It was asked if the plan on doing any repair and Mr. Long answers no any repairs will be done in Brockton. Brian stated he noticed the vehicles are registered out of Arizona and he asked if Taunton would be receiving any monies and it was answered yes. It was asked what type of materials would be stored inside the climate control units? Mr. Long answers stuff like furniture and the non-climate stuff would be items like books. He stated there is no gasoline or flammable products allowed. He stated some people use it for storage of college items for their children during the summer months. It was asked how high the fencing would be and he answered they would comply with the zoning. Chairman Campbell asked if they would be installing trailer hitches and it was answered yes. What is the capacity and it was answered between 85 and 100. But it was stated they would not have the site full all the time. John asked if they intent on closing the other location and it was answered no just reduce some congestion. Chairman Campbell assumed they had cross easements with the other tenants for parking. It was asked who owns the property and Mr. Long answers Americo owns the property and they are leasing it to U-Haul. Manny asked if there will be overnight parking allowed and Mr. Long answers no. Manny brought it to his attention that currently that is happening. Mr. Long was aware of the overnight parking and has instructed them it’s not allowed. John asked what if a customer comes and leaves their car while taking a truck. It was stated there are designed spots for vehicles to park. U-Haul will have signage and it will be striped. Manny made motion to open public input, seconded by Arthur. All in favor. 3 Kevin Martin, 925 Cohannet St. is happy to see the place occupied. He appreciates all that U-Haul is proposing to protect neighbors. He asked if the proposed fencing would run the whole length of the back of the property line. He stated he does not want to see jersey barriers. Mr. Long stated the proposed lighting will not affect the neighboring properties. Kevin stated he wishes they were there now to eliminate the activity now. Jeff Bell, 999 Cohannet St. stated he’s closer to Joseph Warner Blvd. and he was wondering how far the proposed fencing would be going? Mr. Long stated they are proposing a 8 foot wood privacy fence and they will all the way along the property line. He also stated there would be 24 hour surveillance cameras and also the manager number posted if any problems. Peter Machado, 79 Davenport Terrace asked about the 50 feet of frontage along Winthrop Street? Mr. Long stated they have no intentions on using that. Tony made motion to close public input, seconded by Arthur. All in favor. Jody stated it’s refreshing to hear there is open communication between the applicant and abutters. Tony made motion to grant the Special Permit with the following conditions: Condition #1) That the plans dated December 13, 2018 shall govern with the following additional conditions: Condition #2) That site lighting shall not illuminate any portion of abutting properties Condition #3) That the site shall be kept clean and clear of debris Condition #4) That two set of as-builts shall be submitted upon completion of all work on site and shall Design Engineer and Land Surveyor certification stating that the development has been built according to the approved plans. Plans shall show all construction of buildings, utilities, grades setbacks, etc. Condition #5) That the truck/equipment rental storage areas shall be signed and the spaces shall be striped orange. The areas may be defined with posts and chains if desired by the petitioner but shall be approved by the City Engineer prior to any barriers being installed. Condition #6) That the water service shall have proper backflow prevention devices as per Ma DEP / Plumbing Code and the water meter must be a radio reader. Condition #7) That two sets of updated plans that conform to this Decision must be submitted prior to issuance of a building permit. Condition #8) That vehicle storage /sharing shall occur only within the defined storage areas shown on the plans. Condition #9) That vehicle unloading areas be shown on the plans. Condition #10) That all dumpsters shall be shown on the plans, located on concrete pads, enclosed with 6 foot stockade fences, be kept closed at all times and emptied regularly. Condition #11) That the swales that are part of the existing drainage system shall be cleaned out. Condition #12) That a privacy fence be erected between the U-Haul paved areas and abutting residential properties. Hearing closed at 6:51 PM Public Meeting- Modification of Site Plan Review – 375-377 Bay St. – for the removal of condition #11 which requires the rebuilding the sidewalk along the frontage of the project and including the wheelchair ramps and the Bay Street Crosswalk/Alger Avenue intersection and Bradley Ave/Alger Ave. intersection. In lieu of removing the above condition they are proposing to repair and improve the drainage on Bradley Avenue connecting to Bay St., submitted by Aspen Properties Dev. LLC, Christopher Coute. Chairman Campbell explains they are here tonight to remove condition #11 which required them to rebuild sidewalk and wheelchair ramps. Clerk Spencer read the DIRB, B.O.H, and Fire Dept. which were made part of the record. Tony stated since the EOCD will be doing the sidewalks as part of some grant monies they negotiated with the applicant to fix the drainage instead of the sidewalks. Tony stated the Bradley Avenue and Alger Avenue sidewalks will still be the responsibility of the owner as they are not included in the 4 EOCD project. Chris Moniz, representing Aspen Properties said that is not exactly how it was negotiated. He was under the impression the EOCD would be doing All the sidewalks. Chris said if that is not the case he would need to continue and check with the applicant because it’s a significant amount of money they will be spending on fixing the drainage. He explains how they would be fixing the drainage and putting new pipe in and to have to fix some of the sidewalk also. Tony stated that is how he understood it. The Board thought it was best to continue to get some clarification. Brian made motion to continue to next meeting, seconded by Tony. All in favor. Public Meeting – Site Plan Review – 311 Somerset Ave – for a mixed use of the existing building as an office and one residential apartment – submitted by Antonio DaRosa, owned by Roman Catholic Bishop of Fall River. Clerk Spencer read the public meeting notice, department comments from Veolia, Water, Engineer, TMLP and DIRB into the record. Atty. Matthew Costa, and Brad Fitzgerald, P.E. were invited into the enclosure. Atty. Costa stated this is the former parish and annunciation of the Lord church property. The applicants have a P&S and they want to re- locate their existing tax office from Broadway to this location. There will be no physical changes to the building. Atty. Costa stated they met with the DIRB and have no issues with any conditions. Brad said there is an existing brick wall with some grass and trees. They will be adding 8 parking spaces and some wooden guard rails per the DIRB. They will not be adding any new pavement. They plan on putting the sign near the walkway. Chairman Campbell asked if the plans showed bearings and Brad stated he will submit revised plans to show all the DIRB conditions. Public input No one in favor or in opposition. Public Input closed. Tony made motion to approve the Site Plan Review to include the DIRB conditions: Condition #1) That the plans dated March 15, 2019 and revised through April 22, 2019 shall govern with the following additional conditions: Condition #2) Lighting shall not illuminate any portion of the abutting properties. Condition #3) The site shall be kept clean and clear of debris. Condition #4) Two sets of As-Builts shall be submitted upon occupancy for all work on site and shall include design engineer and land surveyor certification notes stating the development has been built according to the approved plans. Plans will show all construction of buildings, utilities, grades, setbacks, etc. Condition #5) The plus and minus shall be removed from the lot area. Condition #6) The gas line shall be shown on the plan. Condition #7) Two sets of updated plans that conform to this decision prior to building permit. Condition #8) All dumpsters shall be shown on the plan, located on a concrete pad, enclosed with a 6 foot stockade fence, be kept closed at all times and emptied regularly. Condition #9) Show the free-standing sign on the plan. Condition #10) Show the required handicapped van accessible space (space 9) and show the handicap ramp on the plan. Condition #11) Add a wooden guard rail along the edge of spaces 1 through 8. Condition #12) The fence around space number 10 shall be removed. Condition #13) Dumpster shall be located next to space 8. Condition #14) Building shall conform to the State Sanitary Code 105 CMR 410. Fuller Estates – Requesting to release one lot (Lot#14) holding 0 surety –all lots under covenant John Garanito was invited into the enclosure. He stated lot 14 was not intended to be included in the covenant but it was. The lot has frontage on South Boundary Road and is essentially a Form A Lot. Clerk Spencer read the department comments from the City Planner and City Engineer. The Board needs to determine if any surety is warranted. Jody stated he doesn’t know what the surety would be assuring since the infrastructure is there. John explained how they originally did a Form A and then re-configured lot lines 5 and ended up with 14 lot subdivision. Lot 14 really should have been a Form A (ANR Plan) and not included as part of the subdivision. He said it’s not going to be part of the homeowner’s association either. Chairman Campbell stated the purpose of requiring surety is to ensure suitable access and this has it. Tony made motion to release Lot 14 without any surety required and Lot 14 be excluded from the Homeowner’s Association. Seconded by Arthur, All in favor. Ashleigh Estates Phase I & II – update The Secretary informed the Board she mailed letter to Steven Perry but it came back because he moved. She called to remind him of the meeting and unfortunately he is unable to attend. He had no new updates other than he‘s still working on selling the project. Motion made and seconded to seek a legal opinion on whether or not they could explore the possibility of acquiring other properties owned by the developer to try and re-coup monies to complete the subdivision. All in favor. Cont’d. Public Meeting - Site Plan Review - 391 Winthrop St. - for a 51 vehicle auto sales business, submitted by Timothy Strojny, owned by Frederick Kingsley. Letter from applicant requesting a continuance. Motion made and seconded to grant a continuance. All in favor. Cont’d. Public Meeting -Site Plan Review -344 Winthrop St. - to allow the display of sheds (55) in conjunction with the existing 128 vehicle automobile business, submitted by Tim Fogg. Letter from applicant requesting a continuance. Motion made and seconded to grant one Final Continuance and inform the applicant to not put any additional sheds on the property. All in favor. Summer Schedule - Tony made motion to approve the following schedule, seconded by Brian. June 20th, July 25th and September 5th. All in favor. Summer Schedule: July & August. Motion made and second to have the following meeting dates: June 20th, July 25th , and September 5th . Meeting adjourned at 7:42 PM 6