ZONING
COMMISSION
P.O. BOX 308
Monday, January 3,
2005
7:00 p.m. Town
Hall
I.
CALL TO ORDER
Chairman Peter
Klein called the regular meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. Members Anita Calder, Peter Klein,
Robert Martin, Lise Wood, and Alternate Members Jill Conklin (seated for Marie
Burnette), and Jon Normand were present and constituted a quorum. Also in attendance: Peter Chipouras, Town Planner Patrice
Carson, and Zoning Enforcement Officer James Taylor.
A motion was made by Lise Wood, seconded by Robert Martin and unanimously voted to approve the Minutes of the November 15, 2004 meeting as written.
Because Rob Martin was absent from the December 7, 2004
meeting, Jon Normand was seated for him while voting on the Minutes of that
meeting. A motion was made by Lise
Wood, seconded by Jon Normand and unanimously voted to approve the Minutes of
the December 7, 2004 meeting as written.
III.
OLD
BUSINESS
There
was no old business.
IV.
NEW
BUSINESS
a.
Application for Renewal of
Special Use Permit for Flea Markets and Auctions, 430 South Road, Pleasant View
Farms Realty
Applicant
Jeff Lipton stated that each year since 1993 he had renewed his Special Use
Permit for flea markets and auctions at the above premises. He also holds special events such fund
raisers for Alzheimer’s research and last year a Jimmy Buffett benefit
concert.
Zoning
Enforcement Officer Jim Taylor stated that he had received no complaints during
2004 regarding any events at the site.
Mrs. Carson recommended that the public hearing on this permit be waived
as it had been in the past.
A
motion was made by Lise Wood, seconded by Rob Martin and unanimously voted to
accept the application for renewal of Special Use Permit, waive the public
hearing on the application, and approve the permit to be valid from January 1,
2005 through December 31, 2005.
A
motion was made by Lise Wood, seconded by Rob Martin and unanimously voted to
move Item IV b. to the end of New Business in order that Mr. Birkenshaw could be
given extra time to arrive at the meeting.
c.
Special
Use Permit Application for Home Occupation for Alterations Business, 8 Meadow
Lane, Morin
Mrs.
Morin presented a map she had prepared showing the layout of her home. She stated that she was applying to open
a sewing and mending business in her home, adding that her business would take
place either at her home or at her client’s home, depending on the nature of the
transaction. She expected to serve
one customer at a time. Mrs. Morin
stated that her driveway was paved and double width, providing easy access and
adequate parking. At the present
time, she had no plans for a sign, but in the event that she chose to erect one,
she would contact Jim Taylor. The
permit would stay with the property.
Patrice
Carson stated she could schedule the public hearing for the Zoning Meeting on
Tuesday, January 18th beginning at 7:00 p.m.
A
motion was made by Lise Wood, seconded by Rob Martin and unanimously voted to
accept the Special Use Permit Application, refer it to the Planning Commission
and set a public hearing for Tuesday, January 18, 2005 beginning at 7:00
p.m.
d.
Review
Bylaws
The
Zoning Commission members and other attendees reviewed the Bylaws and accepted
them as presented, with no changes suggested or made.
e.
Election
of Officers
A
motion was made by Lise Wood, seconded by Anita Calder and unanimously voted to
elect Peter Klein as the Chairman of the Zoning
Commission.
A
motion was made by Jill Conklin, seconded by Lise Wood and unanimously voted to
elect Robert Martin as the Vice Chairman of the Zoning
Commission.
A
motion was made by Rob Martin, seconded by Lise Wood and unanimously voted to
elect Anita Calder as Secretary of the Zoning Commission.
f.
Discussion: New Building
Code for Lighting
Mr.
Taylor presented a copy of the new State Building Code, Chapter 8, Design by
Acceptable Practice for Commercial Buildings for review by Commission
Members. He recommended that the
Commission amend the lighting requirements in the Zoning Regulations in order to
reflect the changes in the revised State Building Code.
After
some discussion, it was the consensus of Commission members to consider such an
amendment during a future public hearing.
It was noted that this code applied only to commercial buildings. Mrs. Calder asked how those impacted by
the regulation would gain access to a copy of it. Mr. Taylor stated that the Building
Inspector would have a copy.
The Commission decided that the first
sentence of Section 214-17 Outdoor lighting should read:
“Any outdoor lighting for illumination of signs, spotlighting or floodlighting shall be full cutoff in compliance with the State Building Code and shielded so that the light source cannot be seen from adjoining properties or the street or produce an objectionable visual disturbance to obstruct scenic views.”
Mrs. Carson will make sure the appropriate referrals for the change in regulation are made.
b.
Modification: Site Plan Application, 60 Sunshine Farms
Drive, Birkenshaw
Mr.
Birkenshaw had not yet joined the meeting, but he had submitted his site plan
application which the Commission reviewed.
Mr.
Klein presented minutes from the Zoning Commission meeting held on November 18,
2002, and read the portion under Item B, Old Business, which pertained to the
original site plan application for 60 Sunshine Farms Drive. He quoted the following: “There will be no water or electricity
in the buildings”. He noted that
currently there are electrical lights on the buildings, in direct contradiction
to this statement.
Mr.
Taylor read a copy of a letter he had sent to Mr. Birkenshaw dated December 8,
2004, which noted the applicant’s failure to obtain a permit for lighting as
well as the failure to apply for a Certificate of Occupancy. The letter stated that legal action
would be taken if a modified site plan was not received prior to the
Commission’s January Meeting.
Subsequent
to sending the letter, the Town received the proposed site plan. Mr. Taylor added that the lights meet
current building codes, but need to be shielded.
Town
Planner Patrice Carson presented an email she had received from Angela
Koehler,
Sunshine
Farms Drive,
regarding the site. She stated that
all the light bulbs are visible and requested that they be
shielded.
A
motion was made by Rob Martin, seconded by Lise Wood and unanimously voted to
accept the site plan application from David Birkenshaw for 60 Sunshine Farms
Drive, and to refer it to the Planning Commission.
V.
STAFF/COMMISSIONER
REPORTS
Zoning
Enforcement Officer Jim Taylor presented his report for the Commission’s review
and comments. When asked why Items
7 and 8 involved the same violation, yet were treated differently, Mr. Taylor
stated that Colonial Tire had done additional paving to the area previously
paved, which he was unsure whether it was over the 60% coverage limit, although
Mr. Plumb was going to bring in a site plan. However, the Vono site had been newly
paved in areas not previously paved and it was not yet determined whether or not
the 60% coverage limit had actually been exceeded. In order to determine the exact
percentage, he had requested that a site plan be
presented.
Mr.
Taylor added that he had checked into Peter Charter’s situation and discovered
that the activity taking place pertained only to farming operations and had
little to do with the gravel pit.
Mr.
Taylor also asked the Commission Members if they were satisfied with the
procedures being used and actions being taken by him as Zoning Enforcement
Officer for the Town. Should they
prefer he make any changes, he requested that they tell him. Mrs. Calder stated that she feels that
he does a good job and she appreciates his ability to keep the work at a
business level rather than making it personal for all involved. It was the consensus of the Commission
that Mr. Taylor was doing a fine job as Zoning Enforcement Officer and they
expressed appreciation for his work for the Town.
Mr.
Klein showed two advertisements in the current issue of the North Central News
for new businesses operating in Somers, the owners of which had not applied for
permits. One was an insurance
business. Mrs. Carson stated that
she had recently spoken to the owner of the business who had not known the need
to apply for a permit to conduct business at a new location. The other was for McAvoy’s Martial Arts
at 64 Field Road, Unit 2C. Mr.
Taylor stated that he would look into the situation and get back to the
Commission. There was also an
advertisement for the storage facilities at 60 Sunshine Farms Road which does
not
have a certificate of occupancy.
Mrs.
Carson recommended that it might be a good idea to amend current regulations
with regard to the Modification of Site Plans. She stated that she had reviewed several
town’s including Enfield and East Granby’s regulations regarding this issue and
found that a distinction was made between major and minor changes and that staff
was able to handle minor things without presenting them to the Commission prior
to taking action. She also
suggested that a lower fee be added for modifications. It was the consensus of the Commission
that she draft wording for such changes and present them at the next meeting,
including them as an agenda item.
VI.
CORRESPONDENCE AND
BILLS
Mr. Klein stated
that he had received notification of a seminar on January 22, 2005 entitled
“Integrating Biodiversity with Local Land Use.”
Mrs. Carson
presented a notice she had received of a seminar to be held on March 5, 2005 at
Wesleyan University, Middletown, for Planning and Zoning entitled “Connecticut
Land Use Law for Municipal Land Use Agencies, Boards and Commissions”. Commission members agreed that it would
be good to have someone attend and it was decided that members would consider
attendance and discuss who should attend at the next
meeting.
Mrs. Carson also
received notification of a publication entitled “Better Models for Commercial
Development” for the price of $15.00.
No bills were
presented.
Lise Wood asked
if there would be any discussion in the future of soil based zoning. Mrs. Carson stated that this would be an
issue discussed at an up-coming POCD meeting.
VII.
ADJOURNMENT
A motion was
made by Robert Martin, seconded by Jill Conklin and unanimously voted to adjourn
the Zoning Commission Meeting of January 3, 2005, at 8:27
p.m.
Respectfully
submitted,
A.P. Calder,
Secretary
Robin Timmons, Recording Secretary
MINUTES ARE NOT OFFICIAL UNTIL APPROVAL
AT A SUBSEQUENT MEETING.
Town of Somers Zoning Enforcement
Officer
For the Zoning Commission Meeting of January 3, 2004
Covering the Weeks of 12/05/04 thru
12/26/04
Activities listed by Address
Zoning Permits issued
-----9
Certificates of Occupancy issued----5
Enforcement
activity:
1. 34 Egypt Rd. D. Birkenshaw.
Section 214-17 (Failure to properly screen outdoor lighting).On 11/22/04 the
Superior Court Ordered the shielding of the subject lights to be completed on or
before 12/22/04. 12/20/04, Shields Installed. Violation
Eliminated.
2, 57 Main St. D. Johnson.
Section 214-98 (Storage of Junk) Requested Compliance. Violation
Eliminated.
3. 12 South Rd. Subway Shoppe,
Section 214-58.7 (Display of banners over 2 weeks) Requested Compliance)
Violation
Eliminated.
4, 359 Mountain Road. Worthington Pond, LLC. Section
214-87.D. (Sales & consumption of alcoholic beverages .Issued Cease and Desist
Order. Cease and Desist Order has been appealed to the ZBA with a hearing set
for Sept 14, 2004. 9/20/04, The ZBA hearing has been continued to October 19,
2004. The ZBA voted to uphold the C&D order. Mr. Roulier has appealed the
ZBA decision to the Superior Court. Case Pending.
5. 60A & 60B Sunshine Farms
Drive, David Birkenshaw. Section 214-104 (Failure to obtain Certificate of
Occupancy). Issued Cease & Desist Order. Cease and Desist Order has been
appealed to the ZBA with a hearing set of Sept. 14, 2004. Mr. Birkenshaw has
withdrawn his appeal application to
ZBA. Situation remains unresolved. His right to appeal of the C & D Order
has expired. 11/2/04 Mr. Birkenshaw has indicated that he will apply to the
commission for Site Plan approval for the lighting that was installed on the
buildings without permits.12/27/04 No Change in status.
6. 20 Haas Rd. R. Olden,
Sections 214-101 (failure to obtain building permit) and 214-38 (housing farm
animals less than 200 feet from the property lines as required. Issued C & D
Order. 11/23/04 Referred file to Town Atty..
7. 112 Main St., F. Vono.
Sections 214-101 (Failure to obtain Site Plan Approval and 214-98A (Exceeding
Lot Coverage with Pavement). Issused C & D Order.
8. 160 Main St. Colonial Tire.
Section 214-98.A. ( Possibly exceeding lot coverage with paving). Requested Site
Plan to confirm actual lot coverage.
9. 106 Dillenback Rd., C.
Lallier. Section 214-89 (Non-compliant keeping of horses. Resolution
Pending.
NOTE:: Attached to the chairman’s copy of this report are
copies of the 9 signed zoning permits and 5 C.O.’s
Respectfully
submitted:
James R.
Taylor
Zoning Enforcement
Officer