Westminster Planning & Zoning Commission

CITY OF WESTMINSTER, MARYLAND PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION April 12, 2012 The regular meeting of the Westminster Planning and Zoning Commission was held in Westminster City Hall on April 12, 2012, at 7:00 p.m. Chairperson Bair; Members Palmer, Graham and Beaver; Steve Griswold; Lura Griswold; Steve Barnhart (BPR); Randy Bachtel (BPR); Brooks Leahey (local Counsel); Ned Cueman (owner representative.); Charles Cull (Fenby Farm HOA); Robert Coursey (Eagleview Ests. HOA); County Planner Scott Graf; Elissa Levan (City Counsel); and, Interim Director Steve Horn were in attendance. Dr. Wack was not in attendance. On motion of Ms. Graham, second by Mr. Beaver, the minutes of the meeting of March 8, 2012, were approved. The first item for review and consideration by the Commission was a request to grant ‘Conditional Preliminary Plan Approval’ on the Amended Development Plan for Wakefield Valley (Area F1). Mr. Horn introduced the agenda item and requested that Mr. Barnhart, surveyor/engineer for the project, briefly review the history of the proposal for the Commission. Mr. Barnhart noted that the Plan was previously before the Commission in May of 2009 for conceptual review and discussion, and he noted that the parcel is the last remaining undeveloped land resulting from the 1987 General Development Plan for Wakefield Valley. The original General Plan established the density for the site at twenty (20) units on 15.64 acres currently zoned R-20,000. Mr. Brooks Leahey, Counsel to the owners, then discussed the reason for the requested conditional approval. He indicated that the proposal was put forward at this time for the purpose of estate planning. He further indicated that the owners recognized and acknowledged that the City has no water to allocate for the project at this time, and they agreed to the proposed plat note language put forward by City Staff and Counsel to address this issue. Mr. Barnhart then continued with a review of the project and noted several specific items with regard to the proposal: the Plan contains the same number of lots as proposed during the concept review in May of 2009 (17 single family lots); the lot sizes range in size from roughly .5 acres to 2.0 acres; existing Bell Road will be widened and repaved, and curb/gutter/sidewalk will be added along its property frontage; and, existing Fenby Farm Road will be realigned, widened to a pavement width of 30’, and upgraded to current City standards with on-street parking on one side (i.e., two 11’ wide travel lanes with an 8’ parking lane). Mr. Barnhart then responded to a question from Mr. Cull regarding the major change to the project since the original concept was presented to the Commission: storm water management. The owner has agreed to divert the storm water from the subject site to the nearby Eagleview SWM facility. At their cost, the owner has agreed to retrofit the existing SWM facility, expand the capacity and increase efficiency (accommodating the flows from both Eagleview and the subject site), and bring the facility into compliance with the State’s 2009 Revised Standards for SWM. Mr. Cueman reported that the original concept showed four lots fronting on, and accessing, Bell Road. While three of the four are proposed to continue to access Bell Road, the fourth, located on the corner of Bell and Fenby Farm Roads, is now proposed to access Fenby Farm Road as previously requested by the Commission. Therefore, a total of fourteen (14) lots will now access Fenby Farm Road while three (3) will have their driveways on Bell Road. Staff then reviewed the language of the plat note for consideration by the Commission. Upon recommendation by Counsel Levan, the Commission agreed to the revised language of the plat note, as follows: The Conditional Preliminary Approval of this development plan, granted by the City of Westminster Planning & Zoning Commission (the Commission), does not guarantee the owner/developer of this project any allocation of water or wastewater capacity from the City of Westminster (the City). The Commission requires submittal of a Final Development Plan for further review and approval before any water and/or wastewater capacity is allocated to this project. No building permits or use & occupancy permits will be issued for this project until the Final Development Plan has been reviewed and approved by the Commission. The property owner and/or project developer acknowledge that the City is subject to water and/or wastewater capacity deficits and may not have water and/or wastewater capacity available to serve the project. In addition, changes to local, state or federal regulations pertaining to the development of the site may require revisions to the site development plan and reconsideration of the Conditional Preliminary Plan Approval granted by the Commission. Ms. Graham inquired as to whether the questions posed by Dr. Wack prior to the meeting had all been addressed by the presenters. Mr. Horn indicated they had in fact been addressed. The Commission, on motion of Ms. Graham and second by Mr. Beaver, approved the Amended Development Plan for Wakefield Valley (Area F1), owned by Steven R. Griswold, and Lura C. Griswold, conditioned upon the addition of the plat note language, as revised. The second item for consideration by the Commission was a review of the proposed 2013-2018 Capital Improvement Program (CIP). Mr. Horn presented the Commission with a copy of the proposed CIP and highlighted the major elements contained therein. He noted that, as in years past, the major projects in the proposal are for water and wastewater improvement projects. Specifically, Mr. Horn identified several projects of importance: a $1 million carryover to develop the Gerstell Well and Little Pipe Creek Intake; groundwater development at Union Mills for $6.5 million; and, continued funding for the $27 million Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) project to enhance nutrient reduction. The WWTP improvement was noted as the largest capital project ever undertaken by the City. After a brief discussion, the Commission voted to forward the proposed 2013-2018 CIP to the Mayor & Common Council with a favorable recommendation. There being no further business to discuss, by unanimous consent, the meeting was adjourned at 9:00 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Steven C. Horn, Interim Director of Planning, Zoning & Development cc: Marge Wolf, City Administrator