TOWN OF
RUTLAND
PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING
MARCH
19, 2009
MINUTES:
The meeting opened at 7:00
P.M.
Commission
members present: Anthony Flory, Richard Hoenes, Richard
Lloyd, Jerry Stearns, Tom Turner and
Charles Vajda.
Review of the 3/5/2009 Minutes
Mr. Lloyd suggested adding
the depth of Mr. Dumas’ spring as twelve feet.
Mr. Flory motioned to approve the minutes with this change and Mr. Vajda
seconded the motion. All approved with
the exception of Mr. Hoenes, who abstained, as he was absent at the last
meeting.
CVPS Presentation
Tim Upton, the Environmental
Affairs Manager for CVPS started the presentation with an overview of the
project. There were pictures and
drawings for the Commission to review.
A solar electric generation
facility is planned to be constructed next to the Central Vermont Service
Corporation’s Rutland Service Center on Route 7 North. Construction is hoped to be started in the
fall of 2009. This will be connected to
the grid and the project requires a certificate of public good from the Public
Service Board before construction. As
part of Act 248 of the permitting process, they are required to go before the
Select Board and the Planning Commission to provide notice, explain the project
and answer any concerns or questions.
The Town can hold public hearings if desired.
Mr. Turner asked if they
needed a letter in favor of the project and Mr. Upton said that they are
required to serve a forty-five day notice to the Town before applying to the
Public Service Board. The Town could
sign a form waiving the need to do so which would move the project along. Mr. Upton is to leave a form with Mr.
Zingale for the proper person to sign.
Martin Bowen, an engineer
from CV PS, is the Project Manager and he said they were focusing on an
educational component which includes partnering with the Stafford Technical
Center. Local vendors will be used for
some of the materials. They will employ
local workers as well.
John Blittersdorf, a
representative from CV Wind and Solar, added more detail. There will be a 12’ X 12’ shed to house the
electrical components. The solar panels
are purchased from a company in Massachusetts and the inverters are from
Germany. The panels are very rugged and
can withstand all types of weather. Mr.
Turner asked about vandalism and the representative said that other similar
projects have not experienced any.
Mr. Stearns asked how many
homes this project could service and if any expansion was planned for the
future. The answer was that the panels
provide about 50 kilowatts of power and this would provide service to about
twenty to fifty homes depending on usage. There is a plan to possibly quadruple
the size of the solar generation facility.
Mr. Vajda asked about the
removal of trees. He was told they
would have to remove a line of trees.
Mr. Lloyd motioned to waive
the need for a forty-five day notice and support the project. Mr. Stearns
seconded the motion. All were in favor.
Rutland Town Plan
Tara Kelly from the Rutland
Regional Planning Commission was present to review some more sections of the
update to the Town Plan.
Government helping first time home owners. He is to provide
Ms. Kelly with a newspaper article where he got his
Information.
to Pg 19. He also added that the back-up generator project
had been completed. Mr. Turner said that some of the
numbers needed to be changed on the
enrollment/capacity
section and he provided numbers
from the last Town Report.
He also wanted a change to the
water and sewer on the last
page and also a sentence
encouraging citizens to participate
on the local School Board.
Ad Valorum agreement with the City be added and that this
tax is specific to each owner of a
business. He also
suggested a change to an awkward
sentence on a study
done by the Dufresne Company on an
alternative to City
water.
(2)
of the Rutland Town Fire Department, not 40.
He also said
that the roof project on McKinley
Avenue was complete but this
station has been
connected to the
City sewer line. There were a
few other minor
changes to sentence and some
typos to fix.
survey.
Mr. Vajda motioned to approve
these sections with the changes. Mr.
Flory seconded the motion. All were in
approval. Ms. Kelly will attend the
next Planning Commission meeting and she said that there should only be about
two more before the final draft is done.
Tracy and Nancy Hubbard Subdivision
Mr. Turner mentioned that
the Commission had made a site visit to the Hubbards’ property on March 16th. Mr. Hoenes and Mr. Matteson will go at
another time. Mr. Turner asked that Mr.
Lloyd talk about the site visit and what was discussed. Mr. Lloyd said that an appropriate culvert
system was agreed to by both Mr. Dumas Jr. and Mr. Hubbard that avoids both
springs.
A meeting between both
parties and their lawyers was discussed and all agreed there should be one to
work things out to everyone’s satisfaction but no date is set as yet. Mr. Branchaud has made up the boundary line
agreement to be signed as discussed at the last Planning Commission meeting.
Mr. Turner asked that a copy of this agreement be given to the Planning
Commission.
Mr. Hubbard asked that the
Commission make a motion to go to the final hearing on April 16th. Much discussion ensued. Mr. Dumas Sr. said that they needed to talk
to Mr. Martin of Beechwood Farms on the new plan for the culvert system. This new plan involves moving the culvert
150 feet north to by-pass both springs.
Mr. Turner said he would
like a report from the Town Health Officer, Stan Rhodes, concerning the
potential drinking water problems from the springs. . Mrs. Cook’s daughter-in-law
said that the test done of the Cook spring in 2007 showed ecoli bacteria and
Mr. Dumas Sr. said that he had a test done in 2008 that also showed ecoli
bacteria. Mr. Flory asked how previous
tests to these came out and she said that they were okay. Mr. Zingale said that tests would need to be
done on the tap and the source. Mr.
Turner also said that he would like a report from the engineer hired by the
Hubbards to check the adequacy of the proposed drainage system.
(3)
Mr. Candon, the attorney for the Dumas family, was concerned about
this as Mr. Hubbard had removed a lot of vegetation that used to help the
run-off of the water.
Mr. Turner wanted to know if
the right of way on Stratton Road was documented. Ms. Hubbard said that it was included in the previous
subdivision. Mr. Stearns wanted
clarification from Mr. Turner as to whether the Hubbards needed to do anything
in this regard. Mr. Zingale said that this issue was not germane to this
subdivision. Mr. Turner agreed that if
there was something documented, this would be enough. He just wanted to be sure so there would be no problems.
Mr. Turner went over the
conditions and waivers mentioned at previous meetings. These included relocating the fence on the
map, having the surveyor sign and seal the map, the drainage issue relating to
Sections 185-4,185-5, 185-25(Item 15) and 185-35 of the Code Book. Mr. Turner also mentioned that easements
need to be shown on the map as required by the rules of a subdivision but the
surveyor had listed as one of his notes that he’s not intending to show all
right of ways, easements, agreements or any other restrictions on the map. Mr. Turner suggested that Mr. Branchaud, the
Hubbards’ attorney, write up a document that says that there are none to be
shown. Mr. Turner also pointed out that the surveyor shows in his Note #4 that
there is an agreement as to the boundary line but the document has not yet been
signed by both parties.
The following waivers were
listed:
path of the
Cook’s spring is unknown.
that it appeared that the
contours are now shown on
the map at 5 foot intervals, so
this waiver is no longer
needed.
Mr. Turner said that the
application for the final hearing has to be made out and that they could see
Mr. Zingale before he warns the hearing.
Mr. Lloyd wanted to know if
there was enough time for everyone to be ready for April 16th. Mr. Hubbard said yes. Mr. Dumas said he just
had to discuss the culvert system with Mr. Martin. Mr. Martin said that is seemed okay to him.
Mr. Hoenes motioned to
accept the needed waivers. Mr. Lloyd
seconded the motion. All approved.
Mr. Lloyd motioned to move
to the final hearing. Mr. Vajda seconded the motion. All approved.
(4)
Ted Hubbard Sketch Plan for Subdivision
Mr. Hubbard said that Mr.
Hathaway, the Road Commissioner, did not like the idea of a common curb cut on
Stratton Road for the four lots. Mr.
Turner said that he would like a letter from Mr. Hathaway concerning an alternative
entrance.
The four lots will hook up
to City water and sewer.
Mr. Turner reviewed the
steps needed for a Sketch Plan hearing.
He reminded Mr. Hubbard that all abutters need to be shown on the map
including properties across the street.
He also questioned whether or
not there would be any drainage problems for lots three and four. He suggested showing two separate driveways
vs. a shared driveway as this would be more appealing to potential buyers. He said that a locus map needed to be added
to the plot plan.
Mr. Hoenes motioned to
approve the sketch plan with the changes mentioned above. Mr. Lloyd seconded the motion. All were in approval
Miscellaneous
Mr. Turner read an article
from the 2/19/2009 Rutland Herald concerning zoning in Rutland Town and pointed
out an incorrect statement. It said
that projects over ten acres do not need Act 250 approval.
Mr. Ide, the Rail Program
Manager, responded to Mr. Zingale concerning possibly attending a Planning
Commission meeting on rail crossings in Rutland. Mr. Zingale will send him a list of upcoming meetings and have
him choose one that is convenient.
Mr. Turner read a notice
from the Rutland City DRB of an upcoming hearing on a subdivision in Rutland
City on the old A & W property on North Main Street. It will be held on April 1, 2009 in the
Board of Alderman’s chambers.
The Department of
Conservation sent notice of a proposed hook-up to the City water and sewer by
EJR Realty of Shelburne for the Napa Auto Store property on Route 7 South. They intend to have three tenants in the
building. Mr. Zingale said the Select
Board already approved this hook-up.
Mr. Lloyd motioned to end
the meeting. Mr. Stearns seconded the
motion. All were in approval. The
meeting ended at 8:45 P.M.
________________________________________ __________________
Thomas Turner, Vice Chairman Date
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