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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2008-01-28 Community Planning and Development Commission MinutesTown of Reading 16 Lowell Street Reading, MA 01867-2683 Phone: 781-942-6612 Fax: 781-942-9071 Email: ekowralski@ei.reading.ma.us Community Planning and Development Commission CPDC MINUTES Meeting Dated: January 28, 2008 Location: Selectmen's Meeting Room, Town Hall Time: 7:30 PM Members Present: David Tuttle (DT), Secretary; John Sasso (JS), Nicholas Safina (NS), and John Weston (JW). Members Absent: Brant Ballantyne, (BB), Chairman Also Present: Carol Kowalski, Town Planner; and Michael Schloth. Attorney Brad. Latham Mr. Angelo Liani, 295 Salem Street, Woburn MA Pat Black, 18B Carnation Circle Mr. Frank DiPietro, P.E. Mr. John Brzezenski, 60 Terrace Park Ms. Tina Brzezenski, 60 Terrace Park Mr. Branden Holben, Achitect, McHenry Architecture, 4 Market Street, Portsmouth, NH. Mr. Richard Hahn, President Meadowbrook Golf Club Mr. Dario Morelli, Manager, Meadowbrook Golf Club Mr. David Goodemote, 11 Willard Road Mr. Tood.-Fremont Smith, VP of Development, Nordblom Company Mr. Grant Gao, Project Director, Excel Signs, 259 Quincy Avenue, Quincy, MA. As the Chair was not able to attend tonight's meeting, the Secretary served as Chair. There being a quorum the Chair called. the meeting to order at 7:35 PM. Public Comments Representatives of the Nordblom Company, developer of the site on which the Bertucci's and Longhorn restaurants are located (45 and. 39 Walkers Brook Drive respectively), asked to speak to the Board regarding a site grading-mistake that needs correction. Representing The Nordblom Company: VP of Development, Mr. Todd Fremont-Smith; Attorney Brad Latham; Project Engineer Frank DiPietro. Mr. DiPietro said. the curbing and pavement near the building is too high and. needs to be lowered. Their plan is to re-grade this area to slope towards a new catch basin. Mr. DiPietro said they have a site plan and an as-built. The plan showed the area to be re-graded and the location of the new catch basin. Mr. DiPietro said this plan had been reviewed by the Town Engineer who said it looked fine in Page 1 of 8 CPDC-Minutes -of 1/28/2008 general but he would. need more details of the actual construction and materials. These would be provided. The Town Planner said the grading adjustment did not require any action by the Board. as it was below the threshold of consideration as a minor modification. The Board agreed. DT noted the applicant would. only be conforming to what the Board had previously approved. No action taken. Approval Not Required (ANR) 1198 Main Street No one appeared for the applicant. The Town Planner informed the Board the engineer representing the applicant, Mr. Jeff Brem of Meisner-Brem Corp., in a telephone conversation had asked her to request of the Board the ANR be tabled until the Board's meeting of 2/25/2008. The applicant needs time to seek a variance from the Zoning Board of Appeals. The Town Planner explained Town Staff had noted to the applicant the submitted ANR would increase the non-conformity of a lot by reducing already inadequate frontage. Mr. Brem said Section 6.0 of Chapter 40A of the Massachusetts Zoning Act applied in this case [Single Lot Exemption for Single and Two-Family Use]. Town Staff pointed out to Mr. Brem the passage in question applies only if the lot had been upzoned but this lot never had been. Mr. Brem agreed. DT questioned if lots 92 and 93 had. the required frontage anyway rioting the required frontage must exist not only at the property line but 20 ft. into the lot from the property line too. The consensus of the Board was to table and reschedule the DRT. DT tabled the DRT and asked the Town Planner to reschedule it to the Board's 2/25/2008 meeting. Signage Certificate of Appropriateness (continued) 672 Main Street, Chinatown Cafe Mr. Grant Gao; the sign-maker, appeared for the applicant. Mr. Gao was not able to attend the previous meeting (1/14/08) during which the Board first reviewed this application. At that meeting, the Board had. compiled a list of concerns, suggestions, and questions about the sign and. asked the Town Planner to forward them to the applicant. Mr. Gao said he had. received these and was here to address the Board's concerns etc...: • Color and Material samples: Mr. Gao had brought samples and distributed. them to the Board. • Raised letters: the letters would be raised approx. one-half inch above the signboard on clear spacers. Fluorescent Light: The applicant would rather not change the fluorescent lighting. Mr. Gao cited cost considerations. Page 2 of 8 CPDC Minutes of 1/28/2008 Reversing color scheme to reduce glare: Mr. Gao said the applicant did not like the effect of reversing the color scheme. As for the glare, he said a matte finish would be used on the light- colored background and should eliminate any glare. Dimensions: the capital letters will be 13 inches tall and lower-case 9 inches tall. The fonts will be stated on the sign plan. Sign frame: This will be one piece with a one-half inch raise and constructed of MDO (Medium Density Overlaid). No aluminum will be used. The Board discussed issue of the fluorescent light. JW was not opposed to such lighting and was more concerned the matte finish was applied to the sign. JS said he would rather see gooseneck or halo lighting but pointed out the bylaw is silent on the matter of external fluorescent lighting and therefore he did not believe the Board was in a position not to allow it. The consensus of the Board was to grant the certificate provided the sign was given a matte finish. JS moved the Board approve the Signage Certificate of Appropriateness for 672 Main Street, Chinatown Cafe, as per information submitted 11/28/2007 with the following conditions. 1. A matte finish will be used for both the sign's letters and background.. JW seconded.. Voted. Approved: 4:0:0. Approval Not Required (ANR) (continued) 65-71 Pleasant Street Attorney Brad. Latham represented the applicant. Mr. Latham reminded. the Board that at the last meeting he had requested the Board not act on the ANR and grant a 30 day extension based on the Town Engineer's memo of 1/14/2008. In that memo, the Town Engineer expressed two concerns: 1. The common lot line between lots B & C was missing information. 2. Lots A& C do not meet the Lot Shape Requirements of the zoning bylaws [Section 5:2.1]. Mr. Latham said. these concerns have been addressed and the Town Engineer has stated so in his memo of 1/23/2008. The Town Planner noted the shape of Lot C has three jogs or steps and questioned how the applicant determined how this lot's rear setback was met. NS agreed adding it was his understanding the Building Inspector for measure the setback from the forward-most step. He asked if the Board could endorse a plan that creates a non-conforming lot and suggested the Board ask for the Building Inspector's opinion in the matter. Mr. Latham said the applicant would take up the matter with the Building Inspector and the Board's concern was only the lots' have adequate frontage and adequate access to the frontage. The question of easements was raised. Mr. Latham said he would meet with the Building Inspector on that matter as well and if he decides they are needed the easements will be added to the plan. Page 3 of 8 CPDC Minutes of 1/28/2008 JS agreed with NS but pointed out if a non-conformance is created the applicant would. have to address it with the Building Inspector and the Zoning Board. of Appeals (ZBA). The consensus of the Board was to endorse the ANR. The Board Members each signed. the ANR. Approval Not Required (ANR) 4 Summit Drive Attorney Chrtopher Coleman appeared for the applicant. Mr. Coleman said the plans show the creation of three lots: A, B, and C. All square-footage and frontage requirements are met but there is a question as to whether or not Lot C meets the Lot Shape Requirements of the zoning bylaws [Section 5.2.1]. Mr. Coleman requested the Board allow him time to have his engineer review the matter and if necessary adjust the lot lines. JS asked if there were any restrictions placed on the site when it was originally.reviewed. The Town Planner said she could not find mention of any in the previous Town Planner's records. Mr. Coleman said he reviewed the site's documentation and most of it is concerned with the antennas placed on the roofs of the site's buildings [multi-story condos]. Mr. Coleman said if the Board has a concern with the resulting density he noted the resulting Lot A will provide approx. two-and-one-half times the area needed to accommodate the gross area of all the floors of the building on it. The consensus of the Board was with the exception of issue of Lot C's geometry, the Board. sees no reason to withhold approval of the ANR. Mr. Coleman said he would present his engineer's calculations on Lot C's geometry the next time he is before the Board. The consensus of the Board was to continue consideration of this ANR to the meeting of 2/11/2008 at 7:45PM. Site Plan Review Waiver 292 Grove St., Meadotivbrook Golf Club Applicant proposes the construction of a deck. Mr. Richard Hahn, President of Meadowbrook Golf Club; Mr. Dario Morelli, Club Manager; and Mr. David Goodemote appeared for Meadowbrook. The Town Planner noted. the site underwent a site plan review less than five years ago (construction of a pool in 2004) and therefore meets the requirement of site plan review waiver. The Board asked if this meeting had been noticed to abutters. The Town Planner said the applicant had requested a waiver of the abutter notice because a notice had been sent to abutters in December 2007 with the applicant's application for a liquor license and that notice described the planned construction of the deck. The Town Planner said she had conferred with Chairman Brant Ballantyne and he agreed to waive notice of tonight's meeting. The Board agreed with this. Page 4 of 8 CPDC Minutes of 1/28/2008 Mr. Goodemote said. the purpose of the deck would. be to provide a place to relax, eat and. drunk, and watch golfers at the F" tee and 91h hole. JW asked if the deck would need to be screened and if the applicant had plans to illuminate the deck. Mr. Goodemote said screening would not be necessary because there is no one to screen the deck from. The deck would sit high above the roadway. Regarding lighting, they had no plans to add lighting for nighttime service. Some lighting would be provided by the existing roof. it would overhang the deck and the underside of the overhang has lighting. The consensus of the Board was to grant the waiver. There was no comment from the public. JS moved the Board approve the Site Plan Review Waiver for Meadowbrook Golf Club in the matter of the construction of a deck as described in a memo addressed to the Town Planner dated 1/23/2008. NS seconded. Voted approved: 4:0:0. Site Plan Review Waiver 580 Main Street, Main Street Rending LL C. Mr. John Brzezenski, Ms. Tina Brzezenski, and Mr. Brandon Holben (architect) appeared for 580 Main Street. The Board had granted a site plan review waiver to 580 Main in March 2007 for plans submitted by the previous owner (Tambone Investment Group) describing the re-skinning of the building with a panel system. Those plans had not been acted upon when the site was sold to the applicant [Main Street Reading, LLC]. Mr. Holben said the previous plan to retro-fit the exterior walls with a new panel system and insulated glass was abandoned when it was discovered the existing panels contain asbestos and the existing window system is drafty. Instead, they want to remove the existing panels and windows entirely and replace them with an insulated. clear and spandrel storefront system. The entranceway will be pronounced: its roof will be approx. four feet higher than the building's roof and will project over the sidewalk. Regarding tenants, Ms. Brzezenski said 50% of the first floor would be taken by Bank of America. The remainder will be occupied by Christopher's Restaurant and Verizon. NS asked if the windows would be mirrored. Mr. Holben said they would not. The Board noted the previous waiver decision had specified numerous conditions including but not limited to parking lot striping, traffic flow and curb cuts, landscaping, fire-lane designation... and asked if these would change. Mr. Holben said they would not. NS asked if this requires a waiver if all it is a change of the exterior wall. The Town Planner agreed. She said. she should have referred to it as a minor modification to a waiver rather than a site plan review waiver. JS questioned if it was possible to apply for a modification to a waiver and suggested the applicant's request be changed to a minor modification. The Board agreed.. Page 5 of 8 CPDC Minutes of 1/28/2008 Mr. Holben said the signage would be more integrated with the building than before. JS pointed out the Board had separately approved a Master Signage Plan for the site when they approved. the site plan review waiver for Tambone Investment Group and if the applicant wants to change the signage they must resubmit a new Master Signage Plan for the Board's review and approval. The Board agreed. Overall Design DT thought it was a significant improvement over the existing building. JW agreed but thought all the glass made it too great a departure from the style of neighboring, predominantly brick buildings. He granted the existing building with its 1950s-motif does not fit well either but the proposed changes make no effort to bring the building more in line with the buildings in the downtown. Ms. Brzezenski said they tried various brick treatments but nothing looked right. The reality is the building was not meant to be a brick building. NS pointed out the new design actually uses more brick than the existing building. JS said given the challenges of the site he thought it was a great presentation but he also shared JW's concerns and asked the applicants if there might be some way to tie the design to the surrounding buildings. He suggested malting the sign-band darker (brick-tone) or adding signboards and borders to the signs rather than having the letters attach directly to the building. Mr. Holbert said they tried bordered signboards but it felt like they were fighting what the building wanted to be. Ms. Brzezenski said they had considered darker colors including doing the bright, metal features in burgundy but they felt it would look dated in a few years. The Town Planner said she prefers signs with black backgrounds and gold letters but she did not think they would work with this design. DT suggested changing the color of the spandrel above the sign-band. Ms. Brzezenski said you want the spandrels to disappear not draw attention to them. JW suggested his concerns may have to do with the overall effect of the dramatic roofline combined with all the glass and although he likes the roofline perhaps if that was toned down a little - reduce the height of entranceway's roof above the main roof and pull back its projection it would fit better among the other buildings. Other issues: Roof: Ms. Brzezenski said the building's roof deeds much work and will have to be re-built. Lighting: JS asked if there would be changes to external lighting. Mr. Holbert said existing soffit lighting would be replaced with more efficient lighting. Ms. Brzezenski said they had no lighting changes to the site at the moment but Bank of America had asked for backlighting on their signage. The Board said internal illumination is not allowed in the Business B zone but they could use halo lighting. NS noted it would not be simply a matter of adding gooseneck lighting as they would. not fit with the look the applicant is proposing The Board agreed_ Page 6 of 8 CPDC Minutes of 1/28/2008 Bank of America signage: JS noted the Board had had a great deal of trouble getting Bank of America to correct the nonconforming signage at its current location [across the street at 600 Main Street] and suggested the Board make clear to the applicant all of Bank of America's signage issues should be ironed out ahead of time. Internal Lighting: NS was concerned too much light may flood from the entranceway/lobby windows and given the plans show a great deal of windows asked if the applicant would be dictating internal lighting to their tenants. Ms. Brzezenski said they would be looking for a subtle lighting effect and they could keep the window treatments consistent. JS moved the Board determine the applicant's submitted changes to the prior approved. Site Plan Review Waiver of 580 Main Street dated March 26, 2007 to be a Minor Modification to said waiver. NS seconded. Voted Approved: 4:0:0. JS moved the Board. approve the Minor Modification to the prior approved Site Plan Review Waiver of 580 Main Street dated March 26, 2007 with the following condition. 1. The applicant will submit an updated Master Signage Plan to the Board for review and approval. NS seconded. Voted Approved: 3:1:0. JW voted against the motion. Minutes JS moved. the Board accept and approve the minutes of 1/14/2008 as amended. .JW seconded_ Voted Approved: 4:0:0. Other Items Work Plan Items for 2008 JS said he was keeping four lists: 1. Zoning Items the Board has been asked. to review and. investigate. 2. Outstanding Master Plan items and the Boards and/or Committees assigned. to them. 3. Zoning Enforcement items: checking if the conditions of our own decisions are being complied with. 4. Projects begun but not yet completed. Zoning Items: 0 Accessory Structures: voted down by Town Meeting is it dead? • Impervious Cover: Should we move forward. if our work on Accessory Structures could not be passed.? • Minor/Major Amendments: Town Counsel advised the Board to include specific examples. • Cluster Zoning (PRD): Richard Howard devised wording based on language of other towns' bylaws. • Canopy Illumination: still open? • Flood Insurance: still open? Is the State waiting for a response from the Board`? Page 7 of 8 CPDC Minutes of 1/28/2008 Accessory Apartments: tabled because discovered it was not as quick a route towards adding affordable units to the town's inventory as we had originally thought. South Main Street: still a priority item of the Town Manager and Board of Selectmen? Signage Bylaws: rewrite. The Town Planner said there is a hesitancy to try to pass more zoning changes until the bylaws are rewritten. She suggested the Board select two or three of the above to focus on because soon the Board will have to looking into adding a 40R Smart Growth district to the downtown. JS suggested scheduling a joint CPDC/Board of Selectmen meeting to discuss priorities. The Board agreed. Master Plan Items: JS said it has been a long time since this list has been updated and it needs to be done. It will not be easy to update because all other Boards and Committees would need to be involved. Enforcement Items: JS said. it has been at least one year since this list was reviewed. The Board of Selectmen consider it one of this Board's responsibilities to know what needs enforcement and direct town staff to do so. He suggested each Board Member take on the responsibility of investigating the status of one decision. Town staff would need to provide assistance. The Town Planner suggested focusing on the administrative issues of enforcement: site plan review procedures, waiver procedures, signage procedures. DT reminded the Board Members they have a planning-issues only meeting scheduled for next Monday [2/4/2008, in the Conference Room]. JS said he would email his lists to the Board Members. DT suggested they all review the lists and come to next Monday's meeting with their opinions on what should be made priorities. JS said another issue the Board needs to review is how they are to be kept in the loop with regards to developers' performance bonds. JS moved to adjourn. JW seconded. Voted Approved.: 4:0:0. The meeting adjourned. at 9:40 PM. These minutes were prepared by Michael Schloth and submitted to the CPDC on February 11, 2008; the minutes were approved as amended by the CPDC on February 11, 2008. Signed as approved, c 25'x- 2408' David Tuttle, Secretary Date Page 8 of 8