CONSERVATION COMMISSION
P.O. BOX 308
Wednesday, January 5,
2005
7:00 p.m.
I.
CALL TO ORDER
Chairman Joan
Formeister called the regular meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Members Joan Formeister, Dan Fraro, Todd
Whitford and Lise Wood were present and constituted a quorum. Also in attendance: David Askew, Wetlands Agent.
There was no old
business.
III. NEW BUSINESS
A motion was made
by Lise Wood, seconded by Dan Fraro and unanimously approved to amend the
agenda by adding the election of officers as a New Business Item.
a.
Wetlands Application #513, 8-Lot Subdivision in Upland Review Area, Stafford
Road and Rocky Dundee Road, GCS Land Development Corp.
George Schoerber
of GCS Land Development Corp., and Mike Tarbell of Tarbell, Heintz and
Associates, presented the plans for an 8-lot subdivision consisting of 3 lots
on Stafford Road and 5 lots on Rocky Dundee Road. The wetlands were marked on the plan and shown to be outlined by
trees.
The soil tests had
been reviewed by Steve Jacobs and the applicant had addressed each of his
concerns.
An easement was
recommended along the roadway in order to provide a buffer zone.
Mr. Askew asked if
Mr. Strauss recommended anything with regard to drainage. Mr. Tarbell stated that in fact he had and
the foundation drains were to be moved to the front of the lots on Stafford
Road. There is an existing swale and
Mr. Strauss met with the Public Works Department and would like a culvert to
run under the driveways on Stafford Road.
Dave Askew stated
that he did not have many wetland issues regarding the application, as the
applicant has managed to keep fairly far away from them. He did request that wetland boundaries be
permanently delineated in the field with posts and identification markers.
Open space was
discussed briefly, even though the applicant was informed that this was an
issue to be presented with the Planning Commission. Mr. Tarbell showed the proposed area to be offered in lieu of
fee, which consisted of approximately 7.7 acres of the total 28 acres composing
the site
Mr. Tarbell added
that the Planning Commission wants to keep the view on Stafford Road open so
that Greystone Farm would be more accessible visibly. Because of this, one of the house locations has been moved 60
feet and may be moved an additional 15 feet.
The house has been set back and the septic moved to the front in order
to open up the view.
Joan Formeister
asked about the corner lot on Stafford Road and noted that everything appeared
to drain towards that. She expressed
concern that the future owner of the property may have a problem with the
drainage. The applicant stated that he
didn’t anticipate any problems. Todd
Whitford suggested that drainage easements be obtained and be stipulated on the
property deeds and on the plans. The
applicant stated that he would explore the issue further. The Commission had no other concerns.
b. Wetlands Application #514, Grading for
Residential Reconstruction in Upland Review Area, 99 Four Bridges Road, Gazis
Lasse Aspelin,
architect for the applicant, presented the plans for the proposed
reconstruction of the home situated at 99 Four Bridges Road. The current structure is condemned. When the applicant purchased the property,
it was anticipated that the home would be repaired, but this has proven
impossible to do. Instead, the
applicant would like to tear down the current structure and replace it with a
2-story house in the footprint of the current residence. There is currently an old shed on the
property that will be removed and not be replaced.
Mr. Aspelin has a
letter from the soil scientist regarding the location of wetlands, which are
shown on the plans. The septic system
meets current sanitary codes. With
regard to the flood plane elevations, the applicant has received a letter from
FEMA stating that the structure will be above the required height.
Mr. Aspelin stated
that the new home would have no basement.
Mr. Askew stated that
this Commission, as well as the other Commissions, is under no obligation to
approve this application regardless of its history and current status. He suggested that if and when a motion was
made to approve this application, it should be made clear in the record that
the approval is based on an “as is” condition for reconstruction of an existing
structure and that future proposals must be evaluated in a manner consistent
with prevailing regulation.
Mr. Aspelin asked
if the owner wanted to put up an impermeable surface (ie. patio) on the back of
the house so that a muddy surface could be avoided, would this be
permissible. Mr. Askew stated that it
may be possible but that it is important to include every item fully on the
plans presented before the Commission for approval.
Mrs. Formeister
recommended that the wetland area be permanently delineated on the site for the
benefit of future potential owners of the property.
c. Determination of Permitted Use of Right for
Logging Activity Within Wetland and Temporary Stream Crossing, 666 Main Street
(Lloyd/Guilbert Property), Quirk
Applicant Joe
Quirk stated that Dave Askew had been working with him on this and Mr. Askew
presented a map of the site. Mr. Askew
explained that he had walked the property and it consisted of a house with a
barn and a steep slope down to a stream.
Currently there is land that is being used as pasture. The property owner wants to remove some of
the trees in the flood plain area in exchange for logging on the remaining
property. There is a need to create 2 crossings over 2 streams and some trees
may need to be removed in order to get access to the higher logging areas. As far as logging goes, Mr. Quirk stated
that he is only interested in the high ground areas as that is where the
desirable species of trees are located.
He may remove a few trees from the wetland, provided he can cable them
out of the wetland.
Mr. Askew stated
that it appears that this meets the requirements for Permitted Use of
Right. He added that it was his
understanding that no trees were to be removed within 25 feet of the brook
because it is a trout brook and that all slash is to be removed out of the
flood plain. Mr. Quirk stated that no
trees would be removed with 25 feet of the brook and he would remove the slash
by adding his to the piles that already exist on the property and by burning
them.
Mr. Askew also
asked that the stream crossings be removed once the work is finished so that
there is no interruption to the flow of the stream.
The Commission
concurred that the plan as presented met the criteria of the Permitted Use of
Right.
d. Election of Officers
A motion was made
by Lise Wood, seconded by Dan Fraro and unanimously approved to keep Joan
Formeister as the Chairman of the Conservation Commission.
A motion was made
by Lise Wood, seconded by Dan Fraro and unanimously approved to keep Karl
Walton as the Vice Chairman of the Conservation Commission.
A motion was made
by Dan Fraro, seconded by Todd Whitford and unanimously approved to keep Lise
Wood as Secretary of the Conservation Commission.
e. Other
There was no other
New Business.
IV. AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION
There was no
audience participation.
V, STAFF/COMMISSIONER REPORTS
Wetland Agent
David Askew presented his report to the Commission for their review and
comments, briefly discussing each item.
A motion was made by Lise Wood, seconded by Dan Fraro and unanimously
approved to accept the report as written.
VI.
CORRESPONDENCE AND BILLS
The following bills were presented due the Journal Inquirer: $55.09, $47.22 (11/11/04),
$47.22
(11/19/04), and a bill due the Wetland and Erosion Control Agent: $4,750.00.
A motion was
made by Lise Wood, seconded by Dan Fraro and unanimously approved to pay the
bills.
Mr. Askew
received notification of a seminar on January 22, 2005 entitled “Integrating
Biodiversity with Local Land Use” as well as notice of a workshop entitled
“Connecticut Land Use Law for Municipal Land Use Agencies Boards and
Commissions” to be held on March 5, 2005.
VII.
MINUTES APPROVAL
A motion was
made by Lise Wood, seconded by Dan Fraro and unanimously voted to approve the
minutes of the November 3, 2004 meeting as written. A motion was made by Lise Wood, seconded by Dan Fraro and
unanimously voted to approve the minutes of the November 17, 2004 special
meeting as written.
A motion was
made by Lise Wood, seconded by Todd Whitford and unanimously approved to
adjourn the meeting at 8:09 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Lise Wood, Secretary
Robin Timmons, Recording Secretary
MINUTES ARE NOT OFFICIAL
UNTIL APPROVAL AT A SUBSEQUENT MEETING.