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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1982-09-22 Planning Board MinutesMinutes of the Meeting of September Clerk K. Messina called the meeting 19, 52 Sanborn Street (the Communit A. Burne and M. Rich present. Also from the League of Women Voters and Finance Committee. Minutes 22, 1982. to order at 7:10 P.M. in Room y Center) wth.Board members present were 2 representatives 1 representative from the The Board reviewed the minutes of August 18, 1982 and unanimously approved them, as corrected. The Board's policy will be that the first meeting of every month, will review the minutes of the previous month.'s minutes for approval. If a matter of importance arises, the Board will review the minutes at their earliest possible time or delay approval if more pressing issues require their time. The Board then unanimously voted to have th-e meeting schedule set with specific time limits. Board meetings will normally run from 7 -10 P.M. Any Board, organization or individual will have a set time, which is limited, for their meeting with the Board. Also on the schedule will be a time for citizen input, if needed. This meeting schedule will be flexible enough to allow the Board to consider important issues, but during regular meetings, the Board will adhere to the 10 P.M. deadline. The Chairman will set the agenda, as customary, and will conduct the meeting to conform to the time frame, as outlined. Sign By -laws Town Counsel reviewed the drafts of the sign by -laws nd re oted£r w back to the Chairman.. In Town Counsel s opinioi, the d i; close to the violation of rights under the lst Amendment (the Consumers right -to -know laws) and through these sign by -laws may „fJ find that if passed by Town Meeting, Attorney General approval may not be forthcoming. - ReTsuggested a— c-oxp to,; insure that we were no, im blatant wio1atione of__the "consumer`�s�rriq,hts He also stated that the Town has a right to limit the size and placement of such signs, but it is his opinion that they cannot totally exclude them. On the sign permit for signs under 12 feet in size, Town Counsel saw no problem with this provision. The Board then duly moved and unanimously voted to place this Article on the Fall Town Meeting Warrant. With the corrections suggested by Town Counsel, the Board also duly moved and unanimously voted to place the sign restriction by -law on the Fall Town Meeting Warrant. Page 2 9/22/82 Spence Farm Town Counsel also reported that with the new passage under Chapter 40, the Town can still set "reasonable" restrictions for roadside stands and the sale of agricultural products. The Board then discussed matters relevant to this request to the Board of Appeals to allow a 601 on the Spence Farm, West Street property. The Board reviewed and noted the following concerns: - traffic in that area of West Street, as outlined and confirmed in the MAPC October 1981 study of traffic problems on that street, are already dangerous; -the im generated by such a facility should be and the costs borne by the proponents traffic counts are being conducted by level of use of the roadway. Specific determined and forwarded to the Board review; pact of the traffic professionally of the project; BPW to determine the counts should be of Appeals for their - there can be only one principal building on any lot; - the accessory use for a roadside stand is addressed in the Town's Zoning By-laws; - legal opinion on this request should be sought by the Board of Appeals before rendering any decision. The Board then unanimously voted to have the Secretary draft a letter with the Chairman's approval of the content and send it to the Planning Board members for their final approval before being sent out to the Board of Appeals. This letter should out- line the Board's major concern of traffic safety in this area and also highlight the other areas which the Zoning By-laws cover in relation to "roadside stands" and "accessory" and "principle use" Batchelder Property-Franklin Street, Land Swap Chairman Mitchel noted that the Conservation Commission would be holding an "informational meeting" on Thursday, September 23rd in the Community - Center to outline to Town officials, abutters and interested citizens the proposed land swap for the Batchelder property on Franklin Street, According to the information received, the present horse ring recreational area will remain intact and an area just west of this would be swapped for land north of Franklin Street, which is in close proximity to the Ipswich River watershed area. Ms. Rich and Mr. Messina will attend the hearing and seek information on the subdivision that was proposed for the Batchelder land and also what Board will have jurisdiction over this land. The Board deferred taking any action on this matter until such time as the Board members had a chance to report back to the full Board. The Conservation Commission requested a joint meeting with this Board to discuss the relevant issues in this matter. The Board Page 3 9/22/82 voted to schedule the Conservation Commission for Wednesday, October 6 --eb­aen 8 P.M. It should be noted to the Conservation Commission that this will be a meeting of 1/2 hour in length and any information they want reviewed should be presented to the Board beforehand so that questions can be raised and answered at this meeting. Town Meetinq Issues The By-law Committee has proposed wording adopted by the Law, Committee which states that the Law Committee will set regu- lations which will limit access to Town Counsel. The present by-law contains a paragraph which states that all Town officers will have access to Town Counsel. As Town Meeting members can be construed as Town officers, the By-law Committee would like to see the language tightened up. To date there does not seem to be an abuse of this access to Town Counsel.. A sub-committee has been designated to propose regulations for access to Town Counsel, The Warrant Article is not specific, but this sub- committee is to report to Town Meeting what the regulations on this matter would be. The Board members felt that since there is no abuse of the present access to Town Counsel, then regulations restricting that right to access a:te superfluous. The Board members also felt that since the regulations are not specifically contained within the Warrant Article, broad-based powers for regulating access to Town Counsel will rest with the YYyl-Law Committee's sub-committee,ftnd-Uhe Board members felt this to be too restrictive, Political Signs - Board members reviewed the revised Article pre-, pared by the By-law Committee and.felt that their previous vote not to support this Article still was valid. Meeting Schedule Wednesday, September 27, 1982 - 7-10 P.M.; Wednesday, October 6, 1982 - 7-10 P:.M, Housing Studies Ms. Rich gave a brief update on her report on accessory apartments as previously distributed. Ms. Rich.will prepare wording on draft proposals for a by-law in this matter. The Board requested that the Chairman obtain information from the Selectmen's office as to the "Housing Study" that their office is presently preparing;- Also, to inquire as to the current status of the EOCD agreement. Upon a motion duly made and seconded, the Board unanimously voted to adjourn at 10 P.M. Respectfully submitted, K.G.Messina, Clerk