Minutes Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Regular Meeting
Planning Board Agenda for Wednesday, January 14, 2009
7:00 PM Samuels and Associates-Modification to Special Permit and Special Permit A3 for Pharmacy Use at site of Buildings L and M
8:00 PM Joint Meeting with Harbor Development Committee
9:00 PM Continuation of Public Hearing on Proposed Zoning Amendments
Article A To rezone land in Bare Cove Park from Waterfront Recreation to Official and Open Space
Article C Ratification of Planning Board Approval of Article C
Unscheduled-Old/New Business
Minutes/Bills
Discussion of proposal to designate Martins Lane as a Scenic Road
Discussion of proposal for General By-Law limiting hours for construction noise
________________
Present: Planning Board Members, Chair, Sarah Corey, Judy Sneath, Clerk, Paul Healey, and
Susan Murphy. Also present was Planner Katharine Lacy.
RE: Samuels and Associates-Modification to Special Permit and Special Permit A3 for Pharmacy Use at site of Buildings L and M
Present for the applicant: Leslie Cohen and Mike Fitzpatrick, Samuels and Associates, and Rob Nagi, VHB.
Leslie Cohen appeared before the Board to describe the project. She noted that the Board had recently approved a modification for this site to accommodate a 9,000 s.f. daycare center and 4,500 sf bank. Unfortunately, the bank and daycare tenant pulled out of the deal, so at this point they are negotiating with CVS Pharmacy to see if they could develop a store at this location.
Samuels is proposing the development of a single 11,970 square foot building to house a CVS, which is smaller in size than the combined area of the bank and daycare. There are 60 parking spaces required for a store of this size per the Zoning By-Law, and 64 spaces are provided. The revised site plan will result in a decrease in sewer and water usage, and an increase in the overall amount of open space. In terms of traffic, the applicant’s traffic engineer VHB has calculated that the change will result in a decrease in trips during the morning and evening peak hours. There will be an increase as expected at mid-day and on weekends, but the increase will have no notable impact on the Level of Service (LOS) at the intersection of Shipyard Drive East and 3A. Overall stormwater run-off at this site will be due to a decrease in impervious surface and an increase in unpaved open space.
Ms. Cohen provided a landscape plan showing a planted buffer along the site boundaries on Route 3A and Shipyard Drive east. This landscaping is part of the overall shared infrastructure for the site, and has not changed from that shown on the approved plan for Building L and M. Additional landscaping is provided to screen the dumpster and loading area to the rear (north) of the building. She also showed a sectional view of the property through the building which showed that the land dropped down more than 5’ from 3A to the front of the building, which, with the landscaping will effectively screen the parking that will be located on the south side of the building.
Ms. Cohen indicated that they did not provide an elevation of the building, and would not be able to provide a final elevation until an agreement had been reached with the tenant. She committed to using a style consistent with the approved plans, and agreed to provide the board with a final elevation for review and approval prior to the issuance of a building permit.
Rob Nagi provided an overview of the on and off-site traffic impacts of the project. As shown on the plan, traffic would flow through the site in a clockwise pattern, entering from Essington Drive near its intersection with Shipyard Drive East and circling around the building to another entrance/exit further east on Essington. The drive-thru window will be located to on the east side of the building, and will include a pull-in area with two drive-thru lanes.
Mr. Nagi stated that the traffic impacts associated with the pharmacy will have minor beneficial impacts, with approximately 75 and 136 fewer vehicles trips in the morning and evening peak
hours. Trips generated by the use are projected to be around 35 trips per hour in the morning peak hour, and 100 cars in the evening peak hour. In general, the proposed change will have no change to the volume-to-capacity ratios, delays, and levels of service. Additionally, existing obligations with Mass Highway and the Executive Office of Transportation provide for monitoring and traffic signal timing as the project advances.
Mr. Nagi noted that the final layout plan reflects several modifications suggested by the Town’s traffic engineer, Jeff Dirk, including revisions to the truck/loading sequence, the drive-thru, and the configuration of the eastern site drive and its intersection with Essington Drive.
Sarah Corey requested a detail of the dumpster, and additional information about the screening.
Ms. Murphy asked about site drainage. Ms. Cohen responded that the general drainage scheme for the CVS was pretty much the same as that approved for the Bank and Daycare, though there would a decrease in run-off due to the decrease in impervious surface. She stated that a final grading and drainage plan would be provided for the Board’s review prior to a request for the issuance of a building permit.
Paul Healey asked about site lighting. Ms. Cohen noted that the parking lot lighting would be consistent with the overall lighting plan previously approved for the Shipyard. There would also be wall-lighting mounted to the outside of the building
Ms. Lacy asked whether it would be possible to walk safely from the adjacent Avalon development to the new pharmacy. Ms. Cohen traced the route showing that sidewalks and cross-walks were provided.
Brian Curtis, owner of Curtis Realty Trust, asked about the potential impact of this CVS on the viability of the existing CVS in Hingham Square. Ms. Cohen indicated that they had no information about this. Board members concurred that it would be bad if the CVS in the Square were to close, but that this concern could not fairly be taken into account as part of a site plan review.
Board members went over each one of the Site Plan Review criteria as set forth in the Zoning By-Law, and identified necessary conditions required to comply with these conditions.
It was moved, seconded, and SO VOTED, unanimously, by those present to approve the request to modify the Site Plan for the Hingham Shipyard to accommodate the construction of a 12,000 s.f. pharmacy at the former site of Building L and M at the Hingham Shipyard as shown on the “Concept Plan A-2, Lots P6A-P6B dated January 14, 2009”, and the Landscape Plan #02-07, Open Space Plan and Parking Designation Plan, both revised January 2009, subject to the following conditions:
Prior to the issuance of a building permit, the applicant must submit to the Planning Board for review and approval
1. an updated grading, drainage and utility plan including information on parking lot lighting and
2. architectural elevations for the building including information on the type and placement of wall-mounted building lighting, and provisions for dumpster screening.
The hearing was closed.
RE: Joint Meeting with Harbor Development Committee
Judy Sneath of the Planning Board and Nick Amdur of the Harbor Development Committee served as joint chairs for this meeting. The two boards were joined by the Hingham Development and Industrial Commission, Peter Fee of the Trustees of the Hingham Bathing Beach, Harbormasters John Souther and Ken Carlson, Selectmen John Riley, and numerous members of the public.
Ms. Sneath noted that the purpose of the meeting was to initiate a longer term discussion to address the following goals:
A. Seek consensus on vision, priorities and mechanisms for Hingham Harbor.
B. Build upon the Master Plan of 2007, but with particular attention to public input and involvement from all stakeholders.
C. Present an agreed-upon set of recommendations to Selectmen and, appropriate, to Town Meeting.
In terms of identifying a preferred vision, the two groups considered options ranging from a passive, park-like open-space, and letting the harbor fill in, to a much more intensively used harbor with more boats and additional slips. In summary, the group concurred that the ideal solution was somewhere in between, with a mix of recreational uses, park space, and commercial development linked by a harbor walkway. Discussion moved towards the condition of the Bathing Beach, and whether it could be improved to increase usage. Mr. Fee provided an overview of the use patterns and operations at the Bathing Beach. Ben Wilcox at the HDIC made the point that one of the primary goals of the HDIC was to create a better link from the downtown to the Harbor, and support uses on the Harbor that would draw people to Town. Harbormaster Charles Souther noted that along with the boating and beach opportunities, the Harbor was also the location of an active shellfish bed, which served to keep the harbor clean.
The group next sought to identify short-term improvements that would help draw people to the harbor. These included:
Creation of pedestrian walkway linking all of the uses in the harbor
Creation of public restroom in close proximity to the marina operations
Removal of goose droppings to enhance use of park area
Creation of Harbormaster’s office
Development of outdoor food/eating opportunities (temporary or permanent)
Placement of additional picnic tables/benches
Running a trolley from a location downtown to the Iron Horse area
Mr. Amdur pointed out that a huge barrier to any commercial development in the Harbor was the location of Route 3A, and the difficulty crossing the street. This reduces foot traffic to the area which, in turn, would make it difficult to generate business.
Selectmen John Riley noted that, as a Selectmen, his other concern would be to use the Town’s resources in the Harbor to generate additional revenue. A variety of alternatives were identified, including
Institute a charge for parking
Increase mooring fees/excise tax
Leasing town-owned land for parking/development
Increasing number/intensity of boats/slips
Modifying zoning to allow for revenue generating uses (restaurants, retail)
Mr. Amdur also brought up the idea of switching to an enterprise fund model to target funds collected by mooring fees and excise taxes for improvements specific to the Harbor rather than sending them to the General Fund.
In terms of next steps, Ms. Sneath noted that it was important to share all of these ideas with the general public in order to get their input on which alternatives had the most support. She noted that it would be useful for the Harbor Development Committee to create a subcommittee, which could meet regularly as part of the HDIC’s monthly meeting, including stakeholder representatives to focus on 1) getting further input from the Town residents on what they wanted to see at the Harbor, and 2) implementation of some of the short-term improvements identified in the Master Plan and at this meeting. Mr. Amdur concurred.
RE: Continuation of Public Hearing on Proposed Zoning Amendments
The Board was joined by Advisory Committee Liaisons Jerry Seelen and Richard Innis.
Article A
This article would rezone approximately 13-acres of land in Bare Cove Park from Waterfront Recreation to Official and Open Space. Ms. Lacy reported that she had met with the Bare Cove Park Committee on Monday evening, and they indicated that they did not want to proceed with the article this year.
It was moved, seconded and SO VOTED, to withdraw this article from consideration as an amendment to the Zoning By-law at the 2009 Town Meeting.
Article C
This article would remove the definition of Planned Unit Development from the definition section (VI) of the By-law. At the last hearing the Board voted to recommend that Town Meeting vote favorably on this article subject to a final search to make sure that the term did not appear anywhere else in the By-Law. This search has been completed, and the term does not occur elsewhere in the By-law.
It was moved, seconded and SO VOTED, to ratify the Board’s favorable recommendation on this article.
Article K
Ms. Lacy reported that Mr. Devin has written a letter asking to withdraw Article K. This article (which is NOT the CVS rezoning article) would have re-zoned two parcels of land across from Derby Street Shoppes from Residence C to Industrial Park.
Susan Murphy and Jerry Seelen discussed whether a petition article could be withdrawn from the warrant once submitted. Board members determined that they could vote “No Action” and that would not preclude Mr. Devin from petitioning the Selectmen to withdraw the article.
It was moved, seconded, and SO VOTED, unanimously, by those present to recommend that Town Meeting vote “No Action” on Article K.
Unscheduled-Old/New Business
Minutes/Bills
It was moved, seconded and SO VOTED, unanimously, by those present to accept the minutes of January 5, 2009.
Request to Designate Martins Lane a Scenic Road
Ms. Priscilla Seddon submitted a request to the HDC, Conservation Commission and Planning Board to designate Martins Lane as a Scenic Road. Planning Board members acknowledged the scenic qualities of Martins Lane, but were reluctant to sign onto this effort for this year’s Town Meeting. First, it was unclear if Ms. Seddon was acting on her own, or if anyone else on Martin’s Lane was in support of this article, Secondly, Martin’s Lane is the single point of contact for a fairly large neighborhood (as well as World’s end) and could really benefit from a sidewalk or bike lane, Board members were concerned that the Scenic Rd. designation could prevent such improvements.
Ms. Lacy explained that Ms. Seddon seemed very concerned that “the State” was in there measuring and planning to widen the road. It was unclear to the Board what, if any, jurisdiction the state had on this town road, and whether there was any basis to this concern.
Sarah Corey was a dissenting voice in this discussion, and was in favor of the Scenic Road designation.
In summary, while the Board would be glad to take this up for the 2010 Town Meeting, they felt that it was too rushed to have to gather the information needed before the January 20th deadline for general warrant articles.
The meeting adjourned at 9:50 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Katy Lacy
Town Planner