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PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES
DECEMBER 13, 2005
REGULAR MEETING
I. CALL TO ORDER
Chairman John Loomis called the regular meeting of the Planning Commission to order at 7:10 p.m. in the Main Meeting Room of the Simsbury Town Offices. The following members were present: Secretary Ernest Gardow, Susan Bednarcyk, Carol Cole, Gregory Piecuch and Mark Drake, with Ferguson Jansen arriving just after the call to order and Brad Mead arriving at approximately 8:25 p.m. Also in attendance were: Howard Beach, Conservation/Inland Wetlands and Zoning Compliance Officer; Emil Dahlquist, Chairman, Design Review Board; William Voelker, Consultant; Lou George, Chairman, Economic Development Commission (EDC); Austin Barney, Zoning Commission; as well as other interested parties.
II. APPOINTMENT OF ALTERNATES
Chairman Loomis appointed Carol Cole to serve as alternate until the arrival of Ferguson Jansen.
III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Secretary Gardow motioned to approve the minutes as amended for November 22, 2005. The motion was seconded by Chairman Loomis and unanimously approved, with Commissioner Piecuch abstaining.
Secretary Gardow motioned to insert an agenda item for a special presentation in appreciation of Colleen Fenn.
Commissioner Bednarcyk presented Colleen with a gift certificate on behalf of all the Commissioners in appreciation for her dedication and excellent minutes.
IV. LAND USE POLICY MAP
Chairman Loomis requested feedback and a critique from the Commissioners on the Saturday, 12/10/05 Special Meeting. He characterized it as a good exchange, and very helpful to have representation from Mr. Barney for the Zoning Commission, and Lou George from the EDC. Commissioner Piecuch also thought the meeting went well and progress was made, although there is still some unfinished business. He commended Mr. Voelker on his staff memos, including those done within this past month. He stressed the ultimate goal and task is to make policy recommendations and leave the drafting of the actual text to Zoning. Secretary Gardow indicated reasonably good progress has been made, especially on the North, Southwest and West Simsbury areas, with more work to be done on the Southeast. Commissioner
Bednarcyk agreed with what had been said so far and would also like to refine some language to correlate other items that are not covered in the mapping process, (i.e., impact analysis, square footage caps, etc.) as well as the half dozen or so other areas in Town that have not been discussed. Commissioner Cole stressed the value of having Zoning participating in the discussions and encouraged continuing that practice in the future. Mr. George concurred, indicating the communication among the various boards and commissions to the plan the future of Simsbury together is a very productive process. He, too, would like to expand the discussion to include long-range planning for additional areas such as Iron Horse Boulevard and the Dyno Nobel parcel. Mr. Drake referenced and emphasized Chairman Loomis’ idea of identifying and quantifying the actual tax benefit to the Town for each type of development (i.e., commercial versus industrial, etc.). Commissioner
Jansen also encouraged the continued cooperation among the boards and commissions and included West Street as an area that also still needs to be discussed.
Mr. Barney thought the discussions were useful and stressed the need for understanding the market as well as the developers do to achieve more proactive planning rather than just reacting to each application. He also suggested the more specific the Planning Commission is in providing their recommendations to Zoning (i.e., describe uses, scale, dimension, etc.) the easier it will be for Zoning to create the regulations needed to implement those ideas. Currently, if an application comes before Zoning that meets the letter of the law Zoning is compelled to vote for it, even if it is nothing near what the Town envisions for that particular parcel. He agreed with the need for a more thorough economic analysis and suggested that hiring a consultant to assist with that would be worthwhile. Commissioner Bednarcyk
suggested expanding the analysis to include other impacts such as aesthetics, traffic flows, etc. Chairman Loomis indicated that several individuals are pursuing the economic analysis and he is conferring with Town Counsel as to the legal implications of using that analysis as a basis of approving or denying an application. Mr. Voelker agreed strongly that a legal opinion is necessary. On the special meeting, Mr. Voelker described these discussion areas (i.e., North End, Southeast, etc.) as making up the real implementation side of the plan and provide a linkage to other elements of the plan (i.e., affordable housing, etc.) Mr. Dahlquist agreed, stressing the importance of giving equal weight to community, economic development and the environment when planning.
The Commission then reviewed the discussions on the North End, Southwest, West Simsbury and Southeast parcels.
North End
Mr. Voelker reviewed the current and recommended uses on the North end map, including the suggestion for moderate density housing consistent with current multi-family policy with a transition from the current R-15 to the higher density. Commissioner Piecuch stressed the desire for both a residential and a nonresidential component in order to avoid a so-called ‘zone-free’ zone, and requested guidance as to specifying the appropriate ratios. Mr. Voelker agreed to provide that guidance as well as model regulations. In response to Mr. Barney, Mr. Voelker elaborated on the proposed connector road which will seek to take the pressure off of Route 10 during peak commuting hours, as well as facilitating development within the property. He referred Mr. Barney to Mr. Sawitzke for further details. Chairman
Loomis requested Mr. Voelker provide an updated version of the North end map to include what has been discussed and agreed upon thus far.
As in other discussions, Mr. Dahlquist again suggested the Commission not replace the emphasis on use, but lessen the emphasis on it and shift the focus to developing specific characteristics for this site and what the desired outcome would be (i.e., mixed use with specifics on density, building typology, setbacks, streetscape, etc.). In his opinion, focusing in such a way, rather than just on use, would still allow for flexibility and creativity and yet provide more control over the ultimate outcome. He sees this area as a mixed use (i.e., office, residential, etc.) village setting where the existing infrastructure could be maximized and basic Smart Growth concepts such as redevelopment and infill would be applicable. Mr. Voelker agreed, also suggesting that a village would include some space of civic importance,
such as a branch library or transportation node. Further, he emphasized the need for regulatory triggers in order to achieve the outcome of good form. By the next meeting, Mr. Voelker and Mr. Dahlquist agreed to prepare sample bullet points for this area to include in the Plan that could be used for regulatory consideration, including desired characteristics of the site. Mr. Dahlquist envisions creating 4-6 such form districts within Town each with their own criteria. This would provide Zoning with the necessary basis on which to make decisions on various applications to achieve the desired outcome in those particular areas. Chairman Loomis agreed that although there is a sense of readiness to move on with the Plan, it is important to now work on integrating these form-based concepts that have been discussed all along. He welcomed any direction Mr. Dahlquist and Mr. Voelker can provide. In Chairman Loomis’ opinion, this is a real opportunity to proactively
inform the development community what the desired outcome is for these areas. Mr. Dahlquist also distributed an article which provides a good example of how a town in Kentucky has handled these very issues.
Southwest
Mr. Voelker reviewed the discussions regarding the Southwest area which include development of the small R-25 residential area south of Bushy Hill Lane to commercial use (i.e., smaller scale specialty retail), abandoning a small portion of West Mountain Road, and reconfiguring Bushy Hill Lane to include some small quiet public space. Mr. Voelker indicated one key here would be access management and he suggested discouraging curb cuts and keeping the parcel assembled. The car dealership and their needs (i.e., inventory space, auto body, service and pressure from car manufacturers themselves), also provides a unique situation in this area. Although he recognized the difficulty, Mr. George suggested working with McDonald’s on relocating their parking area to increase access to the site. In response to
Chairman Loomis, Mr. Voelker indicated the recommended use for this area south of Bushy Hill Lane could either be the current B-3 or some type of form-based zoning. The realities of the site and the access management issues would probably discourage any other type of recommendation. Mr. Voelker will work further with Mr. Sawitzke on the reconfiguration of Bushy Hill Lane.
West Simsbury
Mr. Voelker indicated the difference in this site from the others discussed include the fact it is an existing character place and contains many historic buildings. The recommendation for West Simsbury is to enable the frontage properties to expand and enhance their existing character while maintaining the scale and quality of what already exists. There are aquifer protection and access management issues here that need to be considered. Mr. Dahlquist and Mr. Voelker provided a draft regulation of a variety of uses, including professional office as well as allowing for residential on the second floor. In response to Chairman Loomis, Mr. Voelker indicated although restaurants are listed as a possible use, that does not include drive-thrus. In fact, his goal in the overall Zoning regulation update is to
handle drive-thrus separately and require them to be done through special exception.
South End
Mr. Voelker reviewed the 60-acre piece divided by the CL&P building and bordered by residential and office uses and the state conservation area. Mr. Dahlquist suggested the importance of this area is its gateway characteristic into Simsbury. He further suggested that open space is much more critical here than in the North End and the mountain range vista needs to be maintained. Rather than just focus on this parcel, the whole area from Avon to Route 185 needs to be considered. In order to maintain some clear views of the mountain, he envisions a cluster of less intensive mixed-use developments along Hopmeadow Street with broad setbacks and some foreground meadow type approaches. He would also like to see some access to the river included. Mr. Voelker clarified that the site geometry and
land constraints may lead to a different outcome (i.e., wetlands and narrower building lots). Commissioners Drake and Mead suggested creating some type of office park zoning rather than retaining it as I-1. Mr. Voelker and Mr. George both suggested that zoning the parcel for office will not guarantee the developers will come. Mr. George recommended some type of mixed use as the forecast for the market does not necessarily include a demand for those types of office park developments. He further indicated this area has many positives, including its unique relation to Route 44 and existing infrastructure. He agreed with Mr. Dahlquist regarding some type of design district that includes visual components to the ridgeline and access to the river. The Commissioners then discussed the impact development in this area would have on the Town Center and quality of life (i.e., traffic issues, hours of operation of larger retail). Mr. George suggested the
desire is to increase the commercial tax base and this parcel lends itself well to being developed in such a way that fits within the character of the area. The Commissioners agreed the goal is to find a way to provide for the highest financial return to the Town yet with the lowest development impact (i.e., office use, mixed use, setting up retail square footage caps). Mr. Barney suggested there may be less design control with the larger retail chains as they tend to rely less on input from the town.
As with the North End parcel, Mr. Voelker and Mr. Dahlquist will provide a form-based framework for this area to present to the Commission for discussion. However, Mr. Dahlquist emphasized the need for much more public input on this area and hesitated to finalize decisions prior to that input. For the next meeting Chairman Loomis also suggested the Commissioners consider current and possible uses for this area, specific percentages of uses within a mixed use format, as well as review the material distributed by Mr. Dahlquist.
V. DISCUSSION OF COMPLETION OF PLAN DRAFT
Chairman Loomis suggested adding a special meeting in January on the 17th, in addition to the 2 regular meetings on 1/10 and 1/24. Also, he suggested having 3 meetings in both February and March, of which the specific dates will be determined. After holding another joint Saturday morning meeting with the Zoning Commission, the goal is to close out the draft of the Plan by the end of March.
VI. STAFF REPORTS
Mr. Beach requested an action item be added to the agenda to discuss and vote on the release of the Avery Way construction bond.
Commissioner Piecuch motioned to add consideration of the Avery Way construction bond to the agenda. The motion was seconded by Secretary Gardow and unanimously approved.
• Consideration of the release of the construction bond for the approved road in the Avery Way subdivision.
Secretary Gardow read into the record a letter from Richard Sawitzke, Town Engineer, explaining the Avery Way construction bond details for the approved road, including his recommendation that the bond be released.
Secretary Gardow motioned to approve the release of the Avery Way construction bond. Commissioner Jansen seconded the motion and it was approved unanimously.
VII. CORRESPONDENCE
Chairman Loomis volunteered to attend the January 19, 2006 CRCOG meeting. The coverage for the rest of the meeting dates will be discussed at the next meeting. Also for the next meeting, Chairman Loomis requested from Mr. Voelker an update on the technical documents.
VIII. ADJOURNMENT
Commissioner Jansen motioned to adjourn the meeting at 10:05 p.m. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Piecuch and unanimously approved.
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