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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1998-02-18 Conservation Commission Minutes Conservation Commission Minutes DPW Conference Room February 18, 1998 Members Present: Joseph W Lynch, Jr, Chairman, Beth Wescott, Robert Mansour and Scott Masse John Mabon arrived at 7 15 pm Albert Manzi Jr arrived at 8 05 p in Deborah Feltovic was absent Staff Present: Michael D Howard, Conservation Administrator and Karen A Fitzgibbons, Secretary Richelle L Martin, Conservation Associate was absent The meeting was called to order at 7 04 pm Minutes: February 4, 1998 On a motion by Mr Mansour, seconded by Ms Wescott, the Commission voted unanimously to approve the minutes of February 4, 1998 as amended General Business: 242-771 Modification to OOC Lot B-1 So Bradford St(J Zahoruiko N E En mg eermg Ben Osgood, Jr is present this evening proposing a modification to an existing OOC. The property is located on the right hand side of South Bradford Street just after Smolak's Farm coming in from Dale Street Mr Osgood stated that the previous plan was done thinking that sewer was coming It hasn't and the applicant would like to build a home with septic The lot is not in the watershed area and the septic will be placed outside of 100' of the wetlands There will be no infringing of the 25/50' Mr Osgood stated that some of the grading will be changed, he added a stone wall and brought the house up and forward a bit The driveway will be a little steeper Mr Howard stated there are no jurisdictional wetlands,he recommends a minor modification and reference the new plan of record On a motion by Mr Masse, seconded by Ms Wescott,the Commission voted unanimously to accept the modification as minor and reference the new plan of record 242-780 Violation to OOC @ Lot 15A Forest St (Bob Janusz)Neve Associates and 242-782 Violation to OOC A Lot 158 Forest St(Bob Janusz)Neve Associates Thomas Neve and Robert Janusz are present this evening These two DEP file numbers are in the same subdivision, therefore, they will be discussed in tandem In the members packets there is a letter dated 2/10/98 from Mr Howard to Mr Janusz that outlines the violations on the properties The Commission took a few minutes to read the letter (It is now 7 15 pm and Mr Mabon has just arrived) The no-disturbance, no-construction zones have been violated on both lots -- decks, 1 bulkheads and walls have been constructed Mr Lynch asked Mr Neve if he was prepared to acknowledge the violations, and Mr Neve replied yes, he called Mr Janusz immediately and they tried to construct some sort of damage control Mr Neve stated the man Mr Janusz hired just was not doing things correctly and Mr Janusz is present to try and put things right Mr Neve stated the homeowners live in the houses and rely on the decks and bulkheads that have been constructed Mr Lynch stated the Commission raises the question of decks at public hearings Mr Neve acknowledged the plans did not include the decks Mr Neve stated the property used to be the Janusz family old homestead and it had a cesspool The home was destroyed and in its place two new homes were built In the members packets are two letters (2/12/98 & 2/17/98) from Mr Janusz to the Commission chronicling Mr Janusz's ties to the community and background information on him Mr Howard asked who provides a copy of the Order of Conditions to the buyers when a home is sold, and he was told the real estate broker does Mr Masse informs Mr Lynch that the meeting is being tape recorded by someone in the audience Mr Lynch stated that public hearings can be taped, however, before discussion begins it must be stated that the meeting is being taped Ms Wescott asked what is the square footage of the porch at Lot 158 Forest Street and was told 12' x 10' built by Timberland Builders Mr Neve stated it is really an enclosed porch Mr Mansour asked wouldn't it be prudent to let the as-builts be done, look at what's done, then remedy the situation? Mr Lynch agreed Mr Neve stated he can have the as-builts done within a week Mr Lynch stated to the homeowners that the Town is charged with signing off on an occupancy permit, and when buying a house the attorney should be sure the Certificate of Compliance has been issued and that a copy of the Order of Conditions on the property is given to the clients Mr Howard disagrees, stating Timberland Builders is not a victim, they are responsible Jane Triano, owner of Lot 158 Forest Street, stated her home was purchased in May of'97 and that every two months an inspection by the Conservation Department should have been done Mr Masse stated that Mr Howard is only one person and cannot possibly inspect every home in North Andover) He further pointed out that Mr Howard is probably the finest Conservation Administrator in the state and does a remarkable job with the limited resources he has, Ms Triano (who now stated she is an attorney) stated that they were told about the Order of Conditions five minutes before the closing by Mr Janusz's representative, who they relied on, Mr Mansour stated the Order of Conditions should have been picked up by the attorney at the closing and again recommends as-builts be completed Patricia Santoianni, 15A Forest Street, stated that she is very dissatisfied with Timberland Builders Ms Wescott asked Ms Santoianm when she closed on the house, and was told April 28, 1997 Mr Howard stated he does not enjoy being in this position, the people of North Andover voted in the 25/50' at Town Meeting and the Commission is charged with upholding it for them Mr Howard recommends as-built plans be done Mr Masse stated this is the very same problem the Commission had two weeks ago Mr Masse made a motion to enforce the 25/50' and issue an Enforcement Order with the time tables to be worked out between Mr Howard and Mr Neve Ms Wescott seconded the motion and Mr Lynch called for discussion Mr Mansour doesn't know if that's a remedy Mr Masse stated this is becoming a repetitive problem with encroachments into the 25/50' Atty Triano asked if the Enforcement Order translates into de-construction yet and Mr Lynch stated no Mr 2 Neve stated he can have as-built plans by next Wednesday and Mr Howard stated he needs flexibility on dates Mr Lynch agreed to allow flexibility on the dates Mr Mansour stated he agrees with Mr Masse, however, if the properties were not conveyed to the owners he wouldn't have a problem with this Ms Wescott agrees with Mr. Mansour The vote was taken on Mr Masse's motion, and it was unanimous to issue the Enforcement Orders Discussion to be continued at the March 4, 1998 public hearing Estimate of Escrow Account for Channel Buildmja Mr Howard stated that Channel Builders filed an NOI,the Citizen made an error with the legal notice and the Commission is unable to hold the public hearing tonight Mr Howard read a letter from Channel Builders (it is now 8.05 pm and Mr Manzi just arrived) requesting the Commission establish an escrow account and that Channel Builders will waive the three estimates and go with Cofer& Colantonio The proposal is for a 21,000 sq ft research and development facility On a motion by Mr Mansour, seconded by Ms Wescott, the Commission voted 5-0-1 (Mr Manzi abstained) to establish a$10,000 escrow account for Channel Builders Filing Fee Expenditure MACC Conference Mr Howard stated the annual MACC Conference is to be held at Holy Cross College on March 7, 1998 and Mr Howard is looking for the Commission to vote to expend the funds so that interested members can attend On a motion by Ms Wescott, seconded by Mr Masse,the Commission voted to expend up to $450 for the interested members to attend the conference Public Hearings (8:00 PM) Request for Determination of Applicability There are no RDAs this evening Notice of Intent(s) 242-885 Forest View Sub (Mesita Dev) MHF Design Consultants cont fr 1121198 Tom Laudam, Mark Gross and Dick Pelletier are present this evening Mr Howard stated the public hearing was continued to afford Mr Gross the time to prepare plot plans for lots 1,2,44,36,35,34,32,24,23 & 50 The plot plans were submitted to the Conservation Department, Mr Howard had a few problems with them and Mr Gross has made the changes for tonight's meeting Mr Gross stated that most of the issues had to do with the frost lines, and he has corrected the missing inverts. John Chessia was not concerned about the frost line in the gravel, they are all 6" above the bed bottom All units have a minimum of 6"above, some more Mr Howard stated the plot plans are stamped as he requested and there is an updated Operation & Maintenance Plan Mr Gross stated there will be no siltation from the roofs, maybe some from the shingles 3 The hay bales on lots 24 & 34 have been moved back Mr Lynch stated the hay bales on lot 1 need to be moved also Mr Gross stated we pulled the foundation back The groundwater elevation on lot 36 was corrected Mr Howard stated to the Commission that John Chessia was very pleased with the level of competency of Mr Gross and with that said, Mr Howard recommends closing the public hearing and issuing a decision within 21 days On a motion by Mr Mabon, seconded by Mr Manzi, the Commission voted unanimously to close the public hearing and issue a decision within 21 days 242-892 Walnut Ridge Subdivision (Copley Dev) Merrimack Eng cont fr 214198 John Soucy, Merrimack Engineering, was present this evening He stated they are working diligently and he would have new plans before the Commission at the next meeting Mr Soucy talked about the pedestrian access, walkway and ADA In '93 and '94 a committee was developed, guidelines done and a 400 page document released Mr Soucy asked the Commission what kind of recreational trail does it envisions Mr Howard asked if the Commission takes the most primitive approach, will it still meet guidelines Mr Soucy replied yes, a back country trail will be minimal in design using the natural surface of the ground Mr Lynch offered to discuss this with Mr Goriansky, Trails Committee Chairman The question was asked how do we handle the trail through Town property9 Mr Manzi stated no easement is needed, the Conservation Commission will manage it Mr Manzi stated trails must be wheelchair accessible Mr Lynch stated we need to define what the bridge will look like, showing it is premature There were no abutters present Mr Howard recommends continuing until the March 4, 1998 meeting On a motion by Mr Masse, seconded by Mr Manzi, the Commission voted unanimously to continue the public hearing until the March 4, 1998 meeting 242- 122 Boxford Street (Fred Chaput) S& W Landtech Patrick Seekamp was present and will present this item tonight as S& W Landtech are unable to attend Fred Chaput is also present Mr Seekamp gave the Commission proof of mailings and handed out revised plans Mr Seekamp stated the wetlands have been flagged and the BVW area is to the west and across Boxford Street The repair is proposed essentially where the present system is There is an area of ledge in the north corner and a well in the back of the property Mr Seekamp stated that a septic system cannot be placed within 100' of a well A retaining wall will be installed Mr Howard stated the Board of Health has approved the plan Due to the lack of a DEP file number, Mr Howard recommends the public hearing be continued until 3/4/98 Mr Lynch pointed out that the NOI should read Boxford Street, not Road and the applicant is to provide two sets of revised plans and eight copies of the front page of the NOI changing Boxford Road to Boxford Street Mr Lynch stated he has no issues with the septic design On a motion by Mr Manzi, seconded by Mr Masse, the Commission voted unanimously to continue the public hearing until 3/4/98 242-897 So Bradford Street (Cameron Deery) Neve Associates 4 Tom Neve was present and gave proof of mailings to the Commission The applicant is seeking permission to construct one house on 9 plus acres in the watershed of Lake Cochichewick The property is all wooded and located 500' past Smolak's Farm on the left hand side of So Bradford Street An RDA was applied for and the flags have,been verified Flags N2, 3 & 4 are off site Mr Neve stated they are applying to the Planning Board for a watershed special permit and will be looking for a variance from ZBA from 175' down to 75' Mr Neve stated the house will be designed to fit the property, not the other way around The foundation dram will be to the right of the property The lot has a crown to it and the house will have a walk out basement Mr Lynch asked if the proposed grades are existing grades and Mr Neve replied yes Mr Neve stated they don't anticipate a lot of stockpiling, but what they have will be placed on the upper left hand side of the property Mr Howard asked Mr Neve if, under the wetland bylaw,will you be asking the Commission for any waivers and Mr Neve replied we will not be asking for any waivers from the Commission Regarding the swale, Mr Neve acknowledges there is a swale present, but no ditch Mr Neve was told the Commission would like a cross section of the swale John Litle, 187 So Bradford Street, stated the area of the swale can be large and he expressed concern about the applicant moving the water Mr Howard suggested to Mr Neve that he really look hard at the existing swale and report back to the Commission Mr Neve stated if it needs to be culverted we will do it At this time it was pointed out to the chairman that it appears a Steven Weeks was not notified of the meeting Mr. Lynch asked if Mr Weeks was present and he was not His address is 148 Bridle Path, and Mr Neve was told to notify him Sam Messina, 129 Winter Street, expressed concern about the water drainage as he claims it drains to the back of his property Mr Lynch stated the Commission recognizes that An unidentified abutter asked when sewerage will be going in and was told maybe next spring Mr Lynch asked if the property falls into the west interceptor and Mr Manzi replied,based on the map before me"no " Mr Howard recommends continuing the discussion at the March 18, 1998 meeting On a motion by Mr Mansour, seconded by Ms Wescott, the Commission voted unanimously to continue the public hearing until March 18, 1998 Decisions: 242-896 Lots 1 & 2 Summer Street(Copley Dev)Merrimack Eng Services, Inc Mr Howard had a draft Order of Conditions prepared for the Commission to review Mr Masse suggested that the owner, prior to conveyance,must sign an affidavit and notify Mr Howard that they understand the Order of Conditions placed on the property Mr Masse feels that if the Commission doesn't place more responsibility on the owner there will be more problems in the future Mr Masse offered to draft the language and fax it to the Commission Office Mr Manzi made a motion, seconded by Mr Mansour, to adopt the draft amendment prepared by Mr Masse and it is to be incorporated into all Order of Conditions from this point forward The vote of the Commission was unanimous On a motion by Ms Wescott, seconded by Mr Mabon,the Commission voted unanimously to approve the draft Order of Conditions, as amended, for DEP#242-896 5 L At this time,the Commission cleared the room and a poll vote was taken to enter Executive Session for the purpose of discussing litigation strategy regarding Lot 13 Beaver Brook Road and the Toll Brothers fine The result of the poll vote is as follows Mr Lynch yes Mr Manzi yes Mr Masse yes Mr Mabon yes Mr Mansour yes Ms Wescott yes Joseph W. Lynch, Jr 6