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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-07-13 Board of Selectmen Minutes Joint Board of Selectmen and CPDC Meeting July 13, 2009 For ease of archiving, the order that items appear in these Minutes reflects the order in which the items appeared on the agenda for that meeting, and are not necessarily the order in which any item was taken up by the Board. The meeting convened at 7:30 p.m. in the Selectmen's Meeting Room, 16 Lowell Street, Reading, Massachusetts. Present were Board of Selectmen Chairman Ben Tafoya, Vice Chairman James Bonazoli, Secretary Camille Anthony, and Selectmen Stephen Goldy and Richard Schubert, CPDC Chairman Nicholas Safina, Secretary John Weston, Members David Tuttle and Joseph Patterson, and Associate Member George Katsoufis. Also present were Town Manager Peter Hechenbleikner, Town Planner Carol Kowalski, Staff Planner Abigail McCabe, Recording Secretary Michael Schloth, Eleanor White and Charles Eisenberg from Housing Partners, Inc., and the following list of interested parties: Virginia Adams, Lynn Arena, Barbara Argonish, Curtis and Donnan Barnes, Ralph and Adele Blunt, Mark Boucher, Mr. and Mrs. Cook, Nancy Cullen, Peter Doucette, Ed and Pat Driscoll, Russ Graham, Michael Harris, Kim Honetschlager, Kim and Rob Hubbard, Naomi Kaufman, Tom MacDonald, David and Joseph McDonald, David O'Sullivan, Jim Queeny, Laurie Reilly, Jack and Peg Russell, Karen Sanborn, Rick Schaffer, Mary Sewall, David Talbot, Jeanne Thomases, Christopher Vaccaro, Ann Ward. There being a quorum of the Board of Selectmen, Chairman Ben Tafoya called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. There being a quorum of the CPDC, Chairman Nick Safina called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. Public Comments - There were no comments from the public. Discussion/Action Items Public Hearing - Downtown Smart Growth (40R) Overlay Bylaw — David Tuttle read the hearing notice. This was a joint meeting with the Board of Selectmen because the Board of Selectmen must approve the submission of the Smart Growth (40R) application including the bylaw language to the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). The DHCD accepts 40R applications at the end of each month only. The CPDC expects to submit the 40R application at the end of July 2009. The Town Manager provided a brief introduction and noted that the proposed 40R bylaw contains design guidelines which would give the Town more control over developers' projects than would be allowed under a 40B application. Town Planner Carol Kowalski made a brief presentation on the 40R bylaw and the district which included a summary of the reasons for and benefits of establishing the district. She noted that the CPDC was still working on the Design Guidelines. Joint Board of Selectmen and CPDC Meeting—July 13, 2009—Page 2 Selectman Richard Schubert asked if there are agencies or procedures in place to provide financial oversight of projects coming in under the 40R. Eleanor White, a consultant with Housing Partners, Inc., noted that 40Rs fall strictly under zoning law not housing finance law but projects would most likely require housing subsidies from the Department of Housing and Community Development in which case the DHCD would provide oversight. Selectmen Chairman Ben Tafoya asked if densities lower than the proposed 20 units per acre had been considered. Carol Kowalski stated that the others had been discussed but the CPDC decided a lower density would not work for the Downtown as it would not provide the vibrancy surveys had shown Reading residents were looking for in the Downtown. Ms. White noted that the bylaw must allow 20 units per acre but a developer is not required to build to that density. Selectman Richard Schubert asked if there would be an issue with the fact that the design guidelines were not yet completed. Carol Kowalski stated that the CPDC expected to have the draft guidelines reviewed and made final in time to be submitted to the DHCD along with the rest of the bylaw by the July 31 st deadline. She noted that it is usually not a problem if the guidelines are submitted, or if corrections to the guidelines are made shortly after the deadline. Public Comments - Although there was broad support for what was hoped to be achieved by the overlay district, there was also concern over its possible effects. Most comments fell into three not necessarily mutually exclusive categories: 1. Parking and traffic impacts. 2. Questions about the two proposed projects awaiting passage of the bylaw: Oaktree Development's redevelopment of the Atlantic Supennarket; and the redevelopment of the M.F. Charles Building. 3. Concern the 40R would have a detrimental impact on the character of Reading (e.g., too tall buildings, too great a density, etc.). In particular, residents of the portion of the proposed district located west of the railroad tracks (roughly between Arlington and Fulton Streets) expressed concern over the 40R's impact on their neighborhood, and questioned why their neighborhood was being included in the district at all since, in their view, it is not an area typically associated with Reading's Downtown. Pat Driscoll of 105 Washington Street and Jim Queeny of 28 Mt. Vernon Street each submitted statements to the Boards expressing opposition to all or parts of the bylaw as being out of step with the character of the Town of Reading. Dave McDonald of 11 Arlington Street, Lynn Arena of 26 Francis Drive, Kim Hubbard, of 43 Washington Street, Jeanne Thomases of 21 Arlington Street and others commented on the adverse effect the district would have on the neighborhood west of the railroad tracks. Naomi Kaufman of 64 Woburn Street cautioned against voting on the bylaw without reviewing the design guidelines in detail. Rick Schaffer of 67 Woburn Street also requested more information on the design guidelines. Joint Board of Selectmen and CPDC Meeting—July 13, 2009—Page 3 Concern was expressed over the impact of more school children. The Town Manager noted that the expectation to the type of residential units proposed would probably not attract many families with children but noted that the State's 40S program is meant to specifically mitigate through cash offsets any adverse effects a 40R would have on a participating Town's services. David Talbot of 75 Linden Street asked why the Town should be against providing units for families with children. The Town Manager stated that was not the case. Developers could use the district to create rentals or condominiums for families but the expectation is most units would be purchased by first-time buyers or empty-nesters. Mr. Talbot asked how often the State has gone after towns that have refused to allow the construction of a 40B. Both Boards and the consultants answered as one - always. Mr. Talbot asked why a traffic study for this 40R was not required when one was required for the recent proposed redevelopment of the Addison-Wesley site which includes a 40R District. Carol Kowalski stated that the Addison-Wesley project triggered a MEPA (environmental impact) study but she did not expect the Downtown 40R itself to trigger a similar requirement. She agreed that a traffic study for individual developments within the district; for example, the proposed Oaktree Development (Atlantic Supermarket) or Mawn (M.F. Charles Building) projects may be warranted. Mr. Schaffer noted that the parking exemption for businesses within 300 ft. of a municipal lot is still in place, and expressed concern that it could lead to much worse parking problems in the Downtown if a large business was to establish itself in the proposed district. Almost all properties within the district could take advantage of the exemption. Russell Graham, member of the Economic Development Committee, expressed support for the 40R District. He noted that the advantage of establishing a 40R rather than waiting for a 40B is that the Town has a greater say in what can be built within a 40R District. Christopher Vaccaro expressed concern over the possible shadow impact on abutting residential neighborhoods of buildings built to take advantage of the design guideline's height and setback allowances. The CPDC noted buildings could be built just as tall and with no rear setback under current zoning, and the design guidelines would improve this situation by requiring buildings built in the 40R District be set back at least 15 feet from the rear boundary. Mr. Cook asked how the M.F. Charles building could be redeveloped if it is on the historical register. Carol Kowalski explained that historical properties could be rehabilitated; i.e., redevelop the interior only while.keeping the building's envelope and important historical features unchanged. Its height would not change. The Town Manager noted that the redevelopment plans for the building call for the demolition of a portion of the parking lot side of the adjacent one-story buildings to provide additional parking spaces. For the Board of Selectmen, Vice Chairman James Bonazoli moved to close the public hearing. The motion was seconded and approved by a vote of 5-0-0. Joint Board of Selectmen and CPDC Meeting—July 13, 2009—Page 4 For the CPDC, David Tuttle moved to close the public hearing. The motion was seconded and approved by a vote of 4-0-0. The consensus of the Board of Selectmen was that they had no issues with language of the bylaw but thought it best to remove from the district that portion to the west of the railroad tracks. Selectman Camille Anthony moved that the Board of Selectmen approve the submission of the Downtown Smart Growth 40R application, as amended, by redrawing the district's boundary to be coterminous with the Business-B Zoning District's boundary along Lincoln Street. The motion was seconded and approved by a vote of 5-0-0. Vice Chairman James Bonazoli moved that the Board of Selectmen adiourn their meeting of July 13, 2009. The motion was seconded and approved by a vote of 5-0-0, and the meeting was adjourned at 10:55 p.m. After the Board of Selectmen and most of the public had left, the CPDC continued its agenda. Smart Growth (40R) Overlay District: Design Guidelines Work Session - The Board learned the Floor Area Ratio of the Oaktree Development's proposed redevelopment of the Atlantic Supermarket site would be greater than the design guideline's maximum of 2.0. After discussion with the consultants of Housing Partners, Inc, the Board determined the proposed Floor Area Ratio (F.A.R) of 2.0 to be too low to attract desired developments, and suggested increasing the guideline's F.A.R to 3.4. David Tuttle moved and Joseph Patterson seconded that the Board meet on July 20, 2009 (next Monday) to continue the Desil4n Guidelines Work Session. The motion was approved by a vote of 4-0-0. Carol Kowalski stated that she would investigate if the Oaktree Development project could meet a F.A.R of 3.4 and report her findings to the Board at the July 20, 2009 meeting. Other Business Bond Reduction Request: Benjamin Lane John Weston moved and David Tuttle seconded that the Board follow the recommendation of the Engineering Department and release $59,500.00 of the Benjamin Lane bond leaving a bond amount of$5,500.00. The motion was approved by a vote of 4-0-0. John Weston moved to adiourn their meeting of July 13, 2009. The motion was seconded and approved by a vote of 4-0-0, and the meeting was adjourned at 11:20 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Secretary Joint Board of Selectmen and CPDC Meeting—July 13, 2009—Page 4 For the CPDC, David Tuttle moved to close the public hearinIZ. The motion was seconded and approved by a vote of 4-0-0. The consensus of the Board of Selectmen was that they had no issues with language of the bylaw but thought it best to remove from the district that portion to the west of the railroad tracks. Selectman Camille Anthony moved that the Board of Selectmen approve the submission of the Downtown Smart Growth 40R application, as amended, by redrawing the district's boundary to be coterminous with the Business-B Zoning District's boundary along Lincoln Street. The motion was seconded and approved by a vote of 5-0-0. Vice Chairman James Bonazoli moved that the Board of Selectmen adiourn their meeting of July 13, 2009 The motion was seconded and approved by a vote of 5-0-0, and the meeting was adiourned at 10:55 p.m. After the Board of Selectmen and most of the public had left, the CPDC continued its agenda. Smart Growth (40R) Overlay District: Design Guidelines Work Session - The Board learned the Floor Area Ratio of the Oaktree Development's proposed redevelopment of the Atlantic Supermarket site would be greater than the design guideline's maximum of 2.0. After discussion with the consultants of Housing Partners, Inc, the Board determined the proposed Floor Area Ratio (F.A.R) of 2.0 to be too low to attract desired developments, and suggested increasing the guideline's F.A.R to 3.4. David Tuttle moved and Joseph Patterson seconded that the Board meet on July 20, 2009 (next Monday) to continue the Design Guidelines Work Session. The motion was approved by a vote of 4-0-0. Carol Kowalski stated that she would investigate if the Oaktree Development project could meet a F.A.R of 3.4 and report her findings to the Board at the July 20, 2009 meeting. Other Business Bond Reduction Request: Benjamin Lane John Weston moved and David Tuttle seconded that the Board follow the recommendation of the Engineering Department and release $59,500.00 of the Benjamin Lane bond leaving a bond amount of$5,500.00. The motion was approved by a vote of 4-0-0. John Weston moved to adjourn their meeting of July 13, 2009. The motion was seconded and approved by a vote of 4-0-0, and the meeting was adjourned at 11:20 p.m. Respectfully submitted, t� Secretary