Town of Fitzwilliam, NH - Planning Board Minutes 09/15/09

Members present: Terry Silverman, Jason Hill, Mac Landy, John Tommila and Carmen Yon, Selectmen’s representative.

7:00 pm Public hearing: Mace and Mary Ann Wenniger application for a two lot subdivision of property located on Rhododendron Road, Map 13, Lot 5-1, Rural District.

Dick Drew, surveyor, presented the plan, reminding the Board that in 2004, a three lot subdivision was approved and lot 5-1 is the lot to be further divided. It is a 15 acre lot with a beaver pond covering most of it. A building lot, Map 13, Lot 5-4, of 2.9 acres will be carved out of it, leaving a 12 acre lot, which is designated as a non-building lot, Map 13, Lot 5-1. The Wennigers plan to merge the non-building lot with their other property, across the ClassVI road, on which they have a home. Mr. Drew said they are awaiting state subdivision approval for the 2.9 acre lot.

The boundary of the 2.9 acre lot includes 300 feet of frontage on the Class V Rhododendron road; it has 2.3 acres of contiguous upland and the western boundary is the high water mark of the beaver pond.

Map 13, Lot 5-1, on the preliminary plan, is designated as a non building lot. Mr. Drew said the lot has 250 feet of frontage on a Class V road and has 2.2 acres of contiguous upland, making it a legal building lot; however, this land borders the beaver pond and Mr. Drew says there is no place on it that could meet building, wetland, well and septic setback requirements, so it could not support buildings and therefore is not subdividable. The Board noted that the frontage is insufficient since two roads are needed to achieve frontage.

Silverman asked why the Wennigers didn’t want to do the voluntary merger now. Yon said it should be done before the subdivision. Merging the two properties, Map 13, lot 6 and map 13, lot 5-1 will insure no building on this lot. Silverman said Widow Gage Road will remain a public way.

The Newcombs, abutters across the street from lot 5-1 oppose the subdivision. They asked the Board to do a site walk to see for themselves that the land is too wet. Mr. Drew said he had done a test pit and perc test and found both to be acceptable. He said the water table is 60 inches down to ledge and it is a viable place for a septic system, adding that the wetlands are flagged. Mr. Newcomb said the water runs across the road onto their property as the beaver pond water level rises and falls.

Silverman said that for the Board, the issue is whether or not building a house on the property will exacerbate an existing problem. Mr. Newcomb said the area is all ledge and clearing the land for a building will make the problems worse. Drainage from the land will go into the wetlands and onto his property, or directly across the road onto his property. Mrs. Newcomb encouraged the Board to talk with the Road Agent to hear his assessment of the road and drainage conditions.

Silverman said the voluntary merger must take place prior to subdivision. Silverman moved, Landy seconded and the Board voted to continue the public hearing to October 20, 2009, at the Wennigers request.

7:20 pm Preliminary consultation: Paul Grasewicz to discuss a 4-lot subdivision of property located between West Lake Road and Webb Hill Road Map-11, Lot 5-1, Rural District.

Kevin, from Grasewicz Engineering, presented the plan. This is the second preliminary meeting with the Board, to update them on the plan prior to making application. The configuration of the proposed lots has changed to accommodate steep slopes and wetlands on the property. Two lots front on West Lake Road and two front on Webb Hill Road. Kevin said they need more topographical information before they can confirm that house sites meet the slope requirements.

Yon asked that the Class V and Class VI portions of Webb Hill Road be noted on the plan. The Board would also like to see proposed driveway access points that meet the 15% slope requirement on the plan.

7:45 pm Public hearing: Dawn Eklund application for a minor site plan review to operate a residential day care center located at 976 Route 119 West, Map 9, Lot 10-4, Rural District.

Ms. Eklund presented her plans for a day care center with three children. She indicated the rooms in her home to be used by the day care center, the fire extinguisher and smoke alarm sites, and the three exits, noting the windows open also. She showed the exterior play areas.

Nancy Carney, Deputy Fire Chief, indicated that the plan looks good, but said that once Ms. Eklund applies for a state license, Ed Mattson will have to sign off on it. Ms. Eklund said she plans now to wait until her two children are in school to apply for state licensing to care for more than three children. She also noted that the state has put licensing on hold while they re-organize their licensing process. Landy noted that if she wants more than 6 children at a time, she will need a special exception from the town in the rural district.

Silverman moved, Tommila seconded and the Board voted to approve the site plan for a child care center at 976 Route 119 West per the application for a maximum of three children.

7:30 pm Preliminary consultation with the Fire, Rescue and EMS Association of Fitzwilliam, Inc., a 501(c)(3), to discuss railroad depot building, Church Street, Map 29, Lot 18, Residential District.

Bill Prigge, Fire Chief, Warren Hall, Fire Ward and Nancy Carney, Deputy Fire Chief, reported on progress and plans for the restoration of the historic Depot railroad station. The exterior is nearly finished, and the building will be wired for electricity in the coming week. The interior will have a small kitchen and bathroom, community meeting room and museum.

They would like to open evenings for some old time card games and fellowship. They plan to conduct community classes and provide a warming room for snowmobile riders this winter. A composting toilet and holding tank for gray water will be installed.

The Board asked about parking and exterior lighting. There will be historically appropriate lights over each entrance and they will be shielded from upward illumination. There is some parking near the building but the parking lot for the public safety building can be used as well. All doors are ADA compliant and there is ramp access to one entrance. Mutual Aid will monitor the fire system. They have applied for a 911 address and telephone. A pellet stove will be used so people using the building can have heat and it can be turned on and off easily.

The Fire, Rescue and EMS Association of Fitzwilliam, NH is a 501(c)3 organization and they have been fundraising to add to an initial gift from Wendy Carney to restore this building.

Administration. Silverman briefed the Board on an offer from SWRPC to participate in a grant project to provide technical assistance to develop an ordinance regarding water quality related techniques contained in the Innovative Land Use Planning handbook. Silverman said he would like to participate to see if the town can better protect the lakes in town through local legislation that incorporates some of the state’s Comprehensive Shoreland Protection Act guidelines. He feels that a little more stringent protection might help the lakes maintain the quality of water.

Yon and Tommila expressed some reservation about duplicating or overlapping the state legislation. Silverman said local legislation is a little more useable than state legislation.

Minutes. The Board reviewed minutes of the September 2, 2009 meeting. Tommila moved, Yon seconded and the Board approved the minutes as written.