Present: John Badger (Chairman), Eric Botterman (Town Council representative), Diane Hardy (Town Planner), Rick McMenimen (Alternate), Justin Normand, PeterRoy (Vice-Chairman), Adam Schroadter Alternate), Val Shelton,
Absent: Janice Rosa,George Willant
Chairman Badger called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m.
Pledge of Allegiance
Public Comments
Chairman Badger noted Justin Normand and Adam Schroadter would be sitting in for Janice Rosa and George Willant. Rick McMenimen will be sitting in for Eric Weston who has resigned.
Review and Approval of Minutes: 04/13/10
April 13, 2010
Rick McMenimen noted Justin Normand was not present at the April 13, 2010 meeting.
Vice-Chairman Roy noted on page 9, line 6, “slowed” should be “slowing.”
Rick McMenimen noted on page 3, line 19, “New Market” should be “Newmarket.” D. Hardy clarified that the program is referred to as the “New Market” tax credit program not to be confused with the place…Newmarket. It is correct as written.
Action
Motion: Vice-Chairman Roy made a motion to accept the April 13, 2010 meeting minutes as amended.
Seconded: Rick McMenimen
Vote: All in favor – Adam Schroadter abstained
Adam Schroadter abstained from the vote, because he had not been present at the meeting.
Regular Business
Appointment to fill vacant full Planning Board member seat, to expire May 2010
Chairman Badger noted Eric Weston has resigned from the Planning Board. RSA 673:12 allows the Planning Board to appoint a member until the next regular municipal election. Since elections have already passed, the person appointed to fill Eric Weston’s position will remain in that position until the next election when a successor is named.
Chairman Badger opened the floor for nominations.
Eric Botterman nominated Rick McMenimen to fill the remainder of Eric Weston’s term.
Vice-Chairman Roy seconded the nomination.
Chairman Badger closed the floor for nominations.
Vote on nomination of Rick McMenimen to the Planning Board: All in favor
Election of Chairman and Vice-Chairman
Chairman Badger opened the floor for nominations for Chairman of the Planning Board.
Val Shelton nominated John Badger for Chairman.
Eric Botterman seconded the nomination.
Chairman Badger noted he had hoped another Planning Board member would be interested in taking over the role as Chairman.
Vice-Chairman Roy asked if this decision could be postponed until George Willant was present as he has served as Chairman in the past and may be interested. Town Planner Diane Hardy noted she had spoken with George Willant, who indicated he did not have the time to dedicate to the position.
Chairman Badger closed the floor for nominations for Chairman of the Planning Board.
Vote on nomination of John Badger as Chairman of the Planning Board: All in favor – John Badger abstained.
Chairman Badger opened the floor for nominations for Vice-Chairman of the Planning Board.
Rick McMenimen nominated Peter Roy as Vice-Chairman.
Eric Botterman seconded the nomination.
Chairman Badger closed the floor for nominations for Vice-Chairman of the Planning Board.
Vote on nomination of Peter Roy as Vice-Chairman of the Planning Board: All in favor
Alternate Appointment to Expire May 2012
Chairman Badger noted Adam Schroadter’s term is expired, but he has graciously acknowledged he would be willing to do another term.
Action
Motion: Rick McMenimen made a motion to appoint Adam Schroadter as an alternate to the Planning Board for the term expiring May 2012.
Seconded: Vice-Chairman Roy
Vote: All in favor
Public Hearing to amend Title III: Land Use Code and Regulations, Chapter IV: Zoning Ordinance, in accordance with RSA 675:2 and 675:7. The purpose of these amendments is to bring Newmarket’s Shoreland protection regulations into compliance with the State Comprehensive Shoreland Protection Act, as set forth in RSA 483:B.
Chairman Badger noted Eric Botterman, Janice Rosa, Val Shelton and Town Planner Diane Hardy worked together as a group to make these amendments. Town Planner Diane Hardy noted Cynthia Copeland had also been instrumental in making these changes.
Town Planner Diane Hardy explained in 2008 the State Comprehensive Shoreland Protection Act (CSPA) regulations were completely overhauled. A subcommittee of the Planning Board was set up to bring Newmarket’s local law into compliance with the changes. Changes included the amount of impervious surface within the shoreland protected area and woodland buffer requirements. The ordinance before the Board is a result of several meetings of the subcommittee. She discussed the location of the Urban Exemption Zone, which was approved by the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES). The recommendation of the subcommittee is that certain requirements such as restrictions on fertilizer use, salt storage facilities, hazardous waste, junk yards and the use of best management practices to control erosion would still apply in the exemption area. Definitions have been revised to be consistent with the state law.
Val Shelton noted she reviewed the proposed ordinance with the Conservation Commission at their last meeting and had some suggested changes. She discussed the proposed changes including erosion control measures and chemical use.
Action
Motion: Val Shelton made a motion to amend Section 5.02 Shoreland Protection Overlay District as presented and with the changes suggested by the Conservation Commission.
Seconded: Vice-Chairman Roy
Vote: All in favor
Town Planner Diane Hardy noted since this is a zoning change this will need to go before the Town Council for adoption. She will contact the Town Council Chairman to have this put on a future agenda.
New/Old Business
Appointment of Planning Board representatives to committees
Chairman Badger noted it would be appropriate to appoint Planning Board representatives to the required Boards and Commissions. He also suggested if the Planning Board representative to each of these committees is present tonight, an update could be provided.
Conservation Commission
Val Shelton noted the Conservation Commission finally has a full board. She felt the Commission is well rounded. The Conservation Commission is very involved in the upkeep of the parks and making new trails. Drew Kiefaber has been elected Chairman for the upcoming year. She expressed her interest in staying on as the Planning Board representative to the Conservation Commission.
CIP Committee
Vice-Chairman Roy noted there has not been a meeting since the conclusion of the budget session, but the Committee is anxious to get an early start this year as they have been doing for the past three years. He hoped the Committee would begin their work in July. He expressed his interest in staying on as the Planning Board representative to the CIP Committee.
Black Bear TIF Committee
Chairman Badger noted the Town has reached an agreement with developer, Mark Stevens, to build the railroad crossing. Mark Stevens is progressing with the work, supported by an ad hoc committee made up of Councilor Steve Minutelli, Town Council Chairman Eric Botterman, and Planning Board Chairman John Badger. An application with the railroad (Panama Railways) has been filed.
Advisory Heritage Commission
Chairman Badger reappointed Janice Rosa as the Planning Board representative to the Advisory Heritage Commission.
Downtown TIF Committee
Rick McMenimen expressed his interest in continuing to serve as the Planning Board representative to the Downtown TIF Committee. There has not been a meeting since last year.
Economic Development Committee
Chairman Badger explained the Economic Development Committee has been charged with rewriting Chapter 6 of the Master Plan. So far, the Committee has made 34 recommendations. The Committee controls no money and is not charged with conducting investigations or research. The Committee is advisory only and makes recommendations to the Planning Board.
Strafford Regional Planning Commission
Rick McMenimen noted he would be interested in continuing to be Newmarket’s representative to the Strafford Regional Planning Commission.
Lamprey River Nomination to the State of New Hampshire
Town Planner Diane Hardy explained the Planning Board had wanted to wait until the Conservation Commission had completed its review before making a decision. At the last Conservation Commission meeting, the Commission did make a decision and drafted a letter, which she has made available to the Planning Board.
Conservation Commission Chairman Drew Kiefaber noted the Conservation Commission had drafted a letter, which will be forwarded to the Nominating Committee and the NH Department of Environmental Services. He explained the Conservation Commission’s recommendation for nomination is contingent upon the change of classification of the river.
Eric Botterman asked what the process would be, if the Town decided to withdraw from this program. Town Planner Diane Hardy explained the Nominating Committee is asking for a letter of support from the Town. The Town is not being asked whether or not it wants to participate in the program.
Val Shelton explained the process of nomination. She explained the Nominating Committee under the RSA is soliciting letters of comments from Boards and Committees. The letters can be in support of the nomination, but can also contain recommendations and concerns.
Cynthia Copeland explained the Strafford Regional Planning Commission has worked on two nominations. Rochester had voted very closely not to support the nomination of the Cocheco River. The letter explaining their concerns was submitted as part of the application. The Town is not required to agree with the nomination of the river, but the Town does have a say on the Advisory Committee if the watershed is nominated.
Eric Botterman expressed his concern with this nomination impacting a lot of private property owners. Val Shelton explained if the river is listed as a designated river, by statute, it makes the river subject to the State Comprehensive Shoreland Protection Act. The Lamprey River and Piscassic Rivers in Newmarket, which are being discussed whether to nominate, are already subject to the State Comprehensive Shoreland Protection Act, as they are considered greater than 4th order streams. However, that is not the case in all communities within the watershed. She discussed the change in state permitting application process if the additional rivers and their tributaries are nominated. The advisory committee would have the ability to comment and would act in an advisory capacity.
Town Planner Diane Hardy referenced a memo from George Willant dated May 14, 2010 stating his support of nominating the Lamprey River to the Management and Protection program.
Drew Kiefaber explained Newmarket is at the receiving end of upstream activity. Although this nomination may provide an additional review of applications by the Advisory Committee and additional regulations for other communities, it will also provide additional water quality protection.
Action
Motion: Eric Botterman made a motion to draft a short, concise letter supporting the letter drafted by the Conservation Commission, to be signed by the Planning Board Chairman.
Seconded: Rick McMenimen
Vice-Chairman Roy suggested the letter of support be conditioned on the reclassification of the river, as suggested by the Conservation Commission.
Vote: All in favor
Chairman Badger asked Town Planner Diane Hardy to draft the letter for his signature.
Chairman Badger noted the Planning Board needs to appoint a Planning Board representative alternate to the CIP Committee. Rick McMenimen volunteered to be the Planning Board representative alternate to the CIP Committee.
Update on 3-4 North Main Street
Town Planner Diane Hardy noted she had asked for an update on the project proposed at 3-4 North Main Street. Mr. Landry submitted an email referencing the need to redesign the project due to wetlands that were recently delineated.
Mill Redevelopment Project
Town Planner Diane Hardy explained an extension on the conditional approval for the mill redevelopment project was granted at the last meeting, but there were certain conditions on the original approval in October 2009 that needed to be met by the end of this month. She met with Mr. Chinburg, Underwood Engineers and Severino Construction. Mr. Chinburg will be hiring Severino to do the work proposed within the public right of way. A cost estimate has been received for the work; the Town’s engineer is reviewing the estimate, which will become the basis for the performance bond. She has been working on the Developer’s Agreement, but there are a couple of issues that are still outstanding. She noted the Planning Board did not made a motion to levy the impact fees for the project. There are two types of impact fees in Newmarket; residential and non-residential. She referenced her memo discussing impact fees dated April 12, 2010 stating the process for determining the residential impact fee is straightforward because it is based on a per unit charge. It is more difficult to determine non-residential uses because it only applies to water and wastewater and is based on projected water flows. There are a number of methods used by engineers to determine the water usage based on projected gallons per day.
Eric Botterman noted he had read this before the meeting and agreed with the method used to calculate the daily water flow.
Town Planner Diane Hardy explained her process of arriving at the impact fee calculations of $302,394. The process she used is the process that was recommended by Bruce Mayberry, the consultant who had worked on the impact fee ordinance back in 2000.
Val Shelton asked if the Planning Board has the authority to assess impact fees under the expired ordinance. Town Planner Diane Hardy explained the ordinance did not “expire”. It is necessary to review and update the impact fee ordinance every five years. The Planning Board would need to hire a consultant to help with the review and updating of the ordinance. She discussed impact fee application for the mill redevelopment. Impact fees are assessed only on the net increased demand.
Eric Botterman noted it was not the past five years of data that was used to calculate the impact fees for the mill redevelopment. He suggested the wording should be changed to reflect the data is actually from the five-year period from 2003-2008, while the Suflex was operating at that location.
Vice-Chairman Roy expressed his concern with capping the amount of the impact fee, because of not knowing what the specific uses within the mill complex would be.
Eric Botterman expressed his concern with approving a “not to exceed” amount stating this will be a multiple year project. By the time the developer obtains the occupancy permit(s) for the project, the impact fees may have increased significantly. Val Shelton agreed referencing what had happen with the “water permits” for the Bennett Way and Cheney Apartments that were paid in advance.
Action
Motion: Eric Botterman made a motion to assess impact fees at the time of occupancy permit for Newmarket Mills, LLC redevelopment of Tax Map U2, Lot 365, 366, and 367 in the M1 Zone; impact fees are currently assessed at $302,394.
Seconded: Vice-Chairman Roy
Vote: All in favor
Town Planner Diane Hardy explained she is still working on the draft developer’s agreement. This document has been reviewed by Town legal counsel, the Town’s Engineer and the developer. The developer had some concerns relative to blasting requirements. She has sent a letter to Newmarket Fire Chief Rick Malasky asking for his opinion. Eric Botterman noted it is not uncommon to require pre-blasting surveys, but felt the 1,000-foot requirement was arbitrary.
Town Planner Diane Hardy noted the developer and engineer needed to review the performance bond requirements. The performance bond will cover off site improvements; it needs to be clarified what off site improvements specifically will be included.
She noted the developer was very excited to hear about the success for receiving the grant funding for the pedestrian bridge. The Planning Board thanked Town Planner Diane Hardy for her work and exceptional presentation to the State NH Department of Transportation on the grant application.
Adjournment
Action
Motion: Eric Botterman made a motion to adjourn at 8:30 p.m.
