MINUTES OF THE
BETHANY PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISION REGULAR MEETING OF DECEMBER 5, 2018 Page 1 of 14
The following Commission Members
were present:
Kimberly McClure Brinton, Chair
Michael Calhoun, Vice-Chair
Donna Shea, Member/Secretary
Bob Harrison, Member
Alex
Hutchinson, Member
Brad
Buchta, Alternate Member
Carol
Lambiase, Alternate Member
Eric McDonald, Alternate Member
Also present were:
Hiram Peck, Planning Consultant
Isabel
Kearns, Zoning Enforcement Officer
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Unanimous approval.
Unanimous approval.
BILLS
1.
It was moved by Calhoun and seconded by Shea to approve
the payment of $1,200.00 (monthly pro rata basis), for services rendered for November
2018, by Hiram W. Peck III, AICP, Planning Consultant.
Unanimous approval.
GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE
1)
Letter from Nancy McCarthy, Town Clerk, dated November
8, 2018, Re: Submission of 2019 Regular
Meeting Schedule with attached draft 2019 Meeting Schedule prepared by ZBA
Clerk.
Unanimous approval.
2)
Letter from Isabel Kearns, ZEO, to Lucia Dittmann,
dated November 8, 2018, Re: PZC
Application #2018-024 for Home Occupation Permit, need QVHD approval.
3)
Letter from Isabel Kearns, ZEO, to Peter Kaminski and
Julianne Stach of 41 Green Hill Road, dated November 15, 2018, Re: Cease & Desist Order, large tree trunks
being delivered and stored.
·
Proposed
amendment to the Town of Bethany Plan of Conservation and Development – Bethany
Center Village District –
At 7:18 p.m., Chair Brinton called the public hearing continuation
to order. Roll call was taken. Chair Brinton read the notice for the public
hearing continuation.
Hiram Peck, Planning Consultant,
briefly noted this is an amendment to be added to the Town Plan of Conservation
and Development Appendices and asked if the Commission had questions. There were no questions.
Chair Brinton asked if anyone from
the public would like to speak in favor of the proposed amendment or against
the proposed amendment. The following
residents spoke:
o
Kathryn Sylvester of 270 Wooding Hill Road
o
Elizabeth Appel of 11 Carriage Drive.
There being no further discussion
or comments, at 7:41 p.m. it was moved by Calhoun and seconded by Hutchinson to
close the public hearing on the draft amendment.
Unanimous
approval.
It was moved by Calhoun and seconded by Hutchinson to add
the following two new applications to the agenda under New Business for this
evening’s regular meeting.
Unanimous
approval.
NEW BUSINESS
1)
139 Lebanon
Road, Application #2018-025 submitted by Timothy O’Connor for a Home Occupation
Permit to operate a handyman business for home office –
Present for this application was Timothy O’Connor, applicant.
Isabel Kearns, ZEO, stated the applicant has received all
the necessary approvals from the Fire Marshal and Quinnipiack Valley Health
District.
Isabel Kearns, ZEO, prepared a draft resolution. Commission members reviewed and proceeded to
deliberate. It was moved by Calhoun and
seconded by Hutchinson to approve the following resolution for Application
#2018-025:
Whereas, Gail
Ridge, owner of 139 Lebanon Road, sent an email authorizing Timothy O’Connor to
apply for a permit to the Planning and Zoning Commission for a Home Occupation Permit
for a handyman business and associated home office located at 139 Lebanon Road;
Whereas, Timothy
O’Connor applied to the Planning and Zoning Commission for a Home Occupation Permit
for a handyman business and associated home office on December 5, 2018, located
at 139 Lebanon Road;
Whereas, the
Commission, at its regular meeting of December 5, 2018, considered the
statement of use, narrative, testimony and other pertinent application information
relating to this home occupation application;
Now Therefore,
the Commission makes the following findings of fact and decision regarding this
application:
1)
Lynn Fox, Quinnipiack Valley Health District
representative, signed off on the back of the application form on December 4,
2018, indicating her approval. She
stated, “Home office – no handyman/repair work on site.”
2)
Rod White, Fire Marshal, signed off on the back of the
application form on December 4, 2018,
indicating his approval of the application.
Now Therefore Be It
Resolved, that pursuant to Section 4.3.E.4.b. of the Town of Bethany Zoning
Regulations, amended to December 1, 2017, the Bethany Planning and Zoning
Commission approves the application of Timothy O’Connor for a Home Occupation
Permit to operate a handyman business and associated home office located at 139
Lebanon Road (#2018-025), as presented in the application, as outlined in the
Statement of Use dated December 4, 2018 and testimony and with the following
condition:
1)
There shall be no outside storage associated with said
business.
Unanimous
approval.
2)
32 Hatfield
Hill Road, Application #2018-026 submitted by Montanna Sage Equine LLC for a
Special Exception Permit for a riding arena and boarding stable –
No one was present for this application.
There was no site plan submitted by the applicant. The Commission requested more information be
submitted before scheduling a public hearing.
Further discussion and appropriate action on the application
was deferred until the Commission’s next Regular Meeting scheduled for January
2, 2019. Tabled.
1.
789
Litchfield Turnpike, Application #2018-024 submitted by Lucia Dittmann for a
Home Occupation Permit to establish a dog treat bakery –
No one was present for this application.
Isabel Kearns, ZEO, stated she has attempted to contact the
applicant and mailed letters and has had no contact with applicant. The applicant did not receive approval from
Quinnipiack Valley Health District which is required for the Commission to act
on said application in the 65-day time frame.
Commission members discussed and proceeded to deliberate. It was moved by Calhoun and seconded by Shea
to deny, without prejudice, Application #2018-024, for a Home Occupation Permit
to establish a dog treat bakery, submitted by Lucia Dittmann at property
located at 789 Litchfield Turnpike, due to lack of required information.
Unanimous
approval.
2.
Continue
discussion with Dr. Gale Ridge of the Bethany “Environment” Committee regarding
Wind Study at Airport and “Sustainable CT” – Tabled.
3)
Proposed
amendment to the Town of Bethany Plan of Conservation and Development – Bethany
Center Village District –
Commission members discussed and proceeded to
deliberate. It was moved by Harrison and
seconded by Hutchinson to approve the following draft to be added to the
Bethany Town Plan of Conservation and Development as Appendix F – Bethany
Center Village District:
APPENDIX F
Bethany Center Village District
It is the intent of this amendment to the 2010 Bethany POCD
to supplement and complement
Section 5: Economic and Fiscal Development of the existing
POCD. It has become increasingly apparent that Bethany needs to consider the
potential for creation of a Village District which is compatible with other
development in Bethany, but which would be capable of providing goods services
and activities which would complement existing such facilities and even provide
other desirable development in a location which is acceptable and which would
be beneficial to many of the residents of Town.
It is important to know that the Commission has carefully
considered the potential for impacts, both positive and negative, associated
with a Village District type development. These impacts include the following:
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Potential positive impacts:
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Potential negative impacts:
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Economic Development
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Traffic congestion
|
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Fiscal Impact
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Environmental concerns
|
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Creation of desirable character
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Rural character loss
|
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Sustainability increase
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Impact on services
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Resilience increase
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Maintenance issues
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Other
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Other
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The Conservation and Development Policies Plan for
Connecticut states with regards to rural lands encourages “development in Rural
Community Centers Lands of a form, density and location compatible with the
carrying capacity of the natural environment and which avoids the need for
large scale and costly urban infrastructure for water supply, waste disposal
and transportation.”
Against this clear backdrop, the Commission also considered
the appropriate location, density and design of Village Center or Village
District type development that could complement existing development with an
eye toward improving the design and sustainability of new development, with
clear awareness of potentially unacceptable impacts as well.
The Commission strongly believes this balance can be
achieved if a carefully crafted Village District Zoning Regulation is adopted
and implemented with proper design, density and location considered.
The 2010 POCD specifically states that the Town should
“Consider using CGS 8-2j to establish Village Districts in acceptable areas of
Town where small scale mixed use development would be appropriate.”
In order to carefully implement this development measure and
recommendation, the Commission should consider adopting a Village District
Zoning Regulation which is crafted in such a way as to provide incentives for
development, but which also provides a process which is transparent and which
provides enough protection to the Community to prevent unwanted development
which is clearly not compatible with the generally desired character of the
Town.
It is
important for the Town residents and the Commission to keep in mind and balance
the following items:
·
Preserving community character, and
