TOWN OF SOMERS
ZONING
COMMISSION
P. O. Box 308
Somers, Connecticut
06071
ZONING
COMMISSION MINUTES
11/18/02;
7:00 p.m.
Town Hall
I. PUBLIC HEARINGS:
a. Special
Use Permit Application for Home Occupation for Hypnotherapy Practice, 85 Lance Drive, McKee
Chairman
Peter Klein opened the public hearing at 7:05 p.m. Secretary Marie Burnette read the legal notice for both public
hearings.
Sandra McKee, 85 Lance Drive, the applicant for this
Special Use Permit explained her proposed home occupation to the Commission.
Hypnotherapy involves working with people that have
behavioral patterns that they would like to change - such as smoking or
overeating. She works with them -
giving them positive suggestions as to how to eliminate these patterns from
their lifestyle.
She will use only (1) room of her house for these
sessions and has (4) parking spaces available.
No staff will be employed - she will work alone. Hours of operation would be from 10a.m.
until 3:00 or 4:00 p.m. There would be
no more than (3) or (4) clients per day.
This is a part-time job and she may close for the summer months.
Peter Klein asked if there were any positive or
negative comments from the audience.
There were none.
Patrice Carson said the Planning Commission
recommended approval of this Special Use Permit at their 10/24/02 meeting.
Lise Wood made a motion to close this public
hearing; seconded by Pat Jones and unanimously approved by the Commission. This public hearing closed at 7:08 p.m.
b. Application for Zone Change from A-1
to B, 87 South Road, Somers Crossing, LLC
Peter Klein opened this public
hearing at 7:08 p.m. The public hearing
notice has already been read by Marie Burnette, Secretary.
Chet Ladd, owner of the property at 87 South Road,
said this property currently falls into more than (1) zone - Business and A-1
Residential. He would like the entire
parcel to be zoned Business. He
appeared before the Planning Commission at their 11/14/02 meeting and Planning
recommended approval of this zone change.
Peter Klein asked the audience if there were any
negative or positive statements on this application.
John Cowles of Lindell Drive said he has no objections to this zone change but would like to know where this property is located. Patrice Carson told him the property location.
Patrice Carson said the Planning Commission
recommended approval of this zone change because it fit in with the Plan of
Conservation and Development which encourages a property to be all one zone.
Lise Wood made a motion to close the public hearing;
seconded by Pat Jones and unanimously approved by the Commission. The public hearing closed at 7:11 p.m.
II. CALL TO ORDER:
Chairman
Peter Klein called the regular meeting to order at 7:11 p.m. Members present were: Peter Klein; Pat Jones; Lise Wood; Marie
Burnette and George Sulikowski, and Alternates Roy Slater; Robert Martin and
Jill Conklin. Also present were: Patrice Carson, Town Planner and Jim Taylor,
Zoning Enforcement Officer.
III. MINUTES APPROVAL: November
4, 2002
Lise Wood made a motion to approve the 11/4/02 minutes, as written. This motion was seconded by Pat Jones and unanimously approved by the Commission.
IV. OLD BUSINESS:
a. Discussion/Possible Decision: Special Use Permit Application for Home
Occupation for Hypnotherapy Practice, 85 Lance Drive, McKee
There was no further discussion or
concerns from the Commission.
Lise
Wood made a motion to approve Special Use Permit Application for Home Occupation
at 85 Lance Drive; seconded by Pat Jones and unanimously approved by the
Commission.
b. Discussion/Possible Decision: Application for Zone Change from A-1 to B,
87 South Road, Somers Crossing, LLC
There were no further concerns from
the Commission.
Pat
Jones made a motion to approve the Application for Zone Change from A-1 to B,
87 South Road, effective the day after publication. This motion was seconded by Lise Wood and unanimously approved by
the Commission.
c. Discussion/Possible Decision: Site Plan Application for 2 Storage
Buildings, 60-A & 60-B Sunshine Farms Drive, Birkenshaw
Dave Birkenshaw produced a rendering of the two
buildings; one has a flat roof and the other roof is slightly peaked. One is a double sided unit and the other is
a single sided unit. A common driveway
will be used to access both buildings.
There will be no water or electricity in these
buildings. Mr. Birkenshaw has agreed to
put in three extra trees in line with existing trees. He said that these trees will probably be flowering plum trees.
Peter Klein asked Dave Birkenshaw if he would be
planting evergreen trees. Dave said
evergreens are high maintenance trees and he does not plan on using them in his
landscaping plan.
The Planning Commission was concerned about drainage
calculations. Dave Birkenshaw submitted
drainage calculations to Merv Strauss who was satisfied that the drainage plan
met requirements. There is one drainage
system for the parking lot and another for the buildings. Mr. Birkenshaw does not propose a gate but
the area is all fenced.
Patrice Carson said the Planning Commission
recommended approval of this Site Plan Application at their 11/14/02 meeting,
noting that this is a quiet use for this industrial site.
Pat Jones made a motion to approve the Site Plan
Application for two storage buildings 60-A and 60-B Sunshine Farms Drive. Lise Wood seconded the motion which was
unanimously approved by the Commission.
d. Discussion/Possible Decision: Site Plan Application for Manufacturing, 60
Sunshine Farms (Units A & B), Vortex Manufacturing Company
Dave Birkenshaw said Vortex
Manufacturing would occupy Units A & B - the two units near Egypt
Road. Unit C is currently unoccupied.
The owner of Vortex Manufacturing presented a
Statement of Purpose that met with the Planning Commission's approval. He said his business manufactures aircraft
parts out of aluminum and stainless steel.
The machines used for these parts are self-contained and
computerized. Noise from this
manufacturing operation will not be heard outside the building. A conversation could be carried on right
next to a machine that was in operation.
It is required that these aircraft parts are
manufactured at a temperature of between 68 and 70 degrees. Therefore, the building will be air
conditioned and the doors will be closed both during the winter and summer
months. Roy Slater remarked that the
operation is not noisy.
Employees for this business are all family members
and would number no more than four people.
No chemicals will be used and the metal shavings are
collected and sold. Lighting to the
outside is shielded and does not reach beyond the boundaries of the
property. Trucks will access and exit
the property in the back. No dumpsters
or loading dock will be on the site.
The Planning Commission recommended approval of this Site Plan at their
11/14/02 meeting.
Pat Jones made a motion to approve the Site Plan
Application for Vortex Manufacturing Company, Units A & B, 60 Sunshine
Farms. Lise Wood seconded the motion.
Roy Slater asked where the air conditioning units
would be and Dave Birkenshaw said they would be on the side of the building -
farthest from the residential area.
The vote was unanimously in favor of the motion.
Pat Jones made a motion to consider agenda item (e)
Old Business after New Business. This
motion was seconded by Lise Wood and unanimously approved by the Commission.
V. NEW BUSINESS:
a. Special
Use Permit Application for Boy Scout Hall, 78 Battle Street, Cowles
John
Cowles presented a rendering of the proposed building and surrounding area to
the Commission for their review. The
building is a log cabin 24' x 58' with a full-length front porch. There is a 50 foot right-of-way so that Fred
Meyers can access his property in the back.
The building will be used for weekly Boy Scout meetings, den meetings,
social functions associated with scouting and maybe a camp-out in the back of
the building during the summer. The
building will be 50' back from the road and is at least 15' off the property
line. The rendering shows a parking
area and the property will be enclosed by a chain link fence to keep the scouts
on their own property.
There will be a handicapped ramp. No permanent lights outside - just motion
detection lights. The parking area will
be illuminated by lights on the back of the building.
Jim Taylor suggested lower intensity lighting on low
poles in the back of the building and have the lights shine down only on the
parking lot. The lights should not be
seen from other properties. Mr. Cowles
will work with the ZEO to modify the lighting plan - as per ZEO's suggestions.
Lise Wood made a motion to accept this Special Use
Permit Application and forward it to the Planning Commission for their review;
also, to set a public hearing date for this application for January 6, 2003 at
7:00 p.m. Marie Burnette seconded the
motion.
Patrice Carson asked that a lighting plan be
submitted to Staff for review. There is
no requirement for notifying abutters.
The vote was unanimous for approval of the motion.
The Commission returned to the regular order of
business.
IV. OLD BUSINESS:
e. Discussion/Review of Proposed Amendments
to the Zoning Regulations for Age-Restricted Housing (ARH) Regulation
Patrice Carson said she received a
reply from the Town Attorney which stated that ARH complexes would not be
subject to lawsuits from other developers who may want to put up similar
developments without the age restriction.
There is also a Connecticut General Statute which states that having
developments for people that are 55 or older does not constitute a violation of
fair housing practices.
Patrice Carson said she would update the draft with
all of the suggestions of the Commission incorporated into it and pass the new
draft out at the next Zoning meeting.
Peter Klein remarked that the legal aspect of the
ARH regulation seems to have been resolved.
George Sulikowski said he is still not in favor of
turning the control of a Special Use Permit over to the Planning Commission.
Peter Klein said the Planning Commission is better
equipped to handle a Special Use Permit for an ARH complex because it is very
similar to a subdivision application - which the Planning Commission handles
all the time.
George Sulikowski said that a developer that meets
with the Planning Commission on an ARH complex runs the risk of spending a lot
of money on Planning requests and then go before the Zoning Commission and have
their permit denied.
Patrice Carson said that Jim Taylor would still be
the Zoning Enforcement Officer for the Zoning Commission - the Planning
Commission would just issue the Special Use Permit.
Lise Wood said she feels this is a very important
regulation which has to be put in place in the Zoning Regulations. She does not want the Planning Commission to
take complete control of it.
Patrice Carson said Zoning has to give Planning (35)
days to make a recommendation on a Special Use Permit. This can not be extended. If the Planning Commission does not make a
recommendation within (35) days, the Zoning Commission can assume that the
Special Use Permit has approval from the Planning Commission. A review by the Planning Commission of a
Special Use Permit for an ARH complex could take 2-3 months before Planning has
enough information to make a recommendation.
Lise Wood said that the draft uses the word "Commission" in several places. She said these should be changed to "Planning Commission" or "Zoning Commission" for clarification. Patrice Carson said she will do these changes when she is preparing the new draft.
Roy Slater suggested several changes on Page 3,
under Use Regulations, to make the wording less confusing.
Under "A", add the words "equals one
unit".
Under "B", add the words "equals two
units".
Under "C", add the words "equals four
units".
Lise Wood asked that the following be added to the
draft.
"ARH complexes will be allowed in all zones
except the "A" residential zone and the "I" industrial
zone."
Patrice Carson will make all the necessary
corrections and additions to the draft.
Lise Wood made a motion to forward the corrected
draft to the Planning Commission and to CRCOG for their comments and
recommendations. This motion was
seconded by Pat Jones and unanimously approved by the Commission.
VI. STAFF/COMMISSIONER REPORTS:
Jim Taylor reported that he has certified (10) applications for zoning permits or certificate of occupancy. He initiated and resolved two enforcement actions. Jim said he will investigate the possible lighting problem at the Plaza.
VII. AUDIENCE COMMENTS:
Len Slaga, 37 Bobolink Lane reviewed
the activities of the Age Restricted Development Committee over the past months
to finally get to the point where an amendment to the Zoning Regulations
appears to be imminent.
He was pleased to report that 40 more units will be
added to the income assisted homes at Woodcrest on Battle Street.
He said that many older adults would like to remain
in Somers and downsize to a smaller home that would be maintenance-free.
Len Slaga said that Jim Burgess from the Senior
Center has asked for an update on the ARH regulation. Everyone at the Senior Center is pleased that this project is
moving forward.
The regulation will go to Planning and CRCOG and
they have (35) days to comment or make a recommendation. Then a public hearing will be scheduled
probably at the latter end of January, 2003.
Then it is up to the Zoning Commission to make a decision.
George Sulikowski remarked that after these ARH
complexes are built, there is no guarantee that all units will be occupied by
Somers residents. There will be nothing
to prevent people from moving in from other towns.
Betty Stevenson, Mountain
Road asked
where the parking will be for the Boy Scout Lodge. She was told the parking will be located behind the building.
VIII. CORRESPONDENCE AND BILLS: There
were none.
IX. ADJOURNMENT:
Motion to adjourn was made by Lise Wood; seconded by Pat Jones and unanimously approved by the Commission. The meeting adjourned at 8:05 p.m.
Respectfully
submitted,
Marie
Burnette, Secretary
Connie
Carenzo, Recording Secretary