PLANNING BOARD MINUTES

August 10, 2022, 6pm

Town Council Chambers – Town Hall

350 East Main Road

Middletown, RI 02842

 

Board members present:

Paul Croce, Chair                                                   Ron Wolanski, Town Planner

Michael Fenton, Secretary                                              Michael Monti, Assistant Town Solicitor           

Art Weber                                                                        Anita Guo, Principal Planner                                   

B.J. Owen

John Ciummo           

Joe Pierik

 

Members absent:

Bill Nash, Vice Chair

Mr. Croce called the meeting to order at 6:00pm           

1.            Approval of minutes

a.    July 14, 2022 regular Planning Board meeting, Motion by Ms. Owen, seconded by Mr. Ciummo to approve. Vote: 6-0-0

b.    July 11, 2022 special meeting, Motion by Mr. Fenton, seconded by Ms. Owen to approve. Vote: 6-0-0

2.            Correspondence

a.    None

3.            Continuances

a.    None

4.            Old Business

a.    None

Mr. Croce asked for a reordering of the agenda items.

5.            New Business

a.    Public Hearing - Application of Aquidneck Group LLC for Development Plan Review for construction of a new commercial building and associated site alterations on an existing commercial property, and including request for waivers from certain design standards of Section 521 of the Middletown Rules and Regulations Regarding the Subdivision and Development of Land.  Property located at 99 East Main Rd., Tax Assessors Plat 107SE, Lot 106.

                                          i.        Mr. Croce requested this application to be continued to the next planning board meeting after a review of the traffic study is conducted.

                                         ii.        Motion by Ms. Owen, seconded by Mr. Ciummo to refer to the Town’s consulting engineer for review of on-site traffic conditions that would result from the development. Vote: 6-0-0

                                        iii.        Motion by Ms. Owen, seconded by Mr. Ciummo to continue the matter to the September 14, 2022 regular Planning Board Meeting. Vote: 6-0-0

b.    Public Hearing - Request of Bisbano & Associates, Inc., on behalf of Citizens Bank for waivers from certain design standards of the Middletown Rules and Regulations Regarding the Subdivision and Development of Land Section 521 for proposed renovation of exterior siding of an existing commercial building located at 25 East Main Rd., Assessor’s Plat 107SE Lot 106.

                                          i.        Mr. Croce pointed out that this application does not trigger a full development plan review; thus, the Planning Board is only considering only the waiver request.

                                         ii.        Motion by Mr. Weber, seconded by Ms. Owen to open the public hearing. Vote: 6-0-0

                                        iii.        The applicant was represented by Erin D’Allesandro from Bisbano & Associates, Inc. Ms. D’Allesandro reviewed the plans and explained the request is to replace the existing siding on the face of the commercial building with a composite siding called NewTechWood. The proposed siding mimics wood and has a wood grain pattern.

                                       iv.        Mr. Croce opened the floor for public input. There were no members of the public wishing to speak.

                                         v.        Motion by Mr. Weber, seconded by Ms. Owen to close the public hearing. Vote: 6-0-0

                                       vi.        Motion by Mr. Ciummo, seconded by Ms. Owen to make the required findings and to grant the waiver from Section 521.2.C.1 of the subdivision and land development regulations to allow the use of non-traditional exterior building materials. The approved siding material is NewTechWood, a composite siding. Vote: 6-0-0

c.     Request of Hoppin House, LLC for Preliminary Plan approval of a 3-lot minor subdivision. Property located at 120 Miantonomi Ave. Assessor’s Plat 108SE, Lot 57.

                                          i.        The applicant was represented by attorney David Martland and engineer Eric Offenberg.

                                         ii.        Mr. Martland reviewed the property and the subdivision request. Mr. Offenberg reviewed the survey process and site plan. He noted that the proposed new lots would meet all zoning requirements. All lots will have access to utilities and will have adequate street frontage.

                                        iii.        Mr. Fenton asked about access to the new lots. Mr. Offenberg explained that Lot #2 will have access on Miantonomi Avenue and Lot #3 on Fenner Ave. Mr. Martland added that they have spoken with the abutter at Plat 108SE, Lot 52 regarding the potential Lot #2 driveway on Fenner Ave and the abutter had no objections. Lot #1 will retain the existing driveway on Collins Terrace and new access on Miantonomi Avenue is under consideration.

                                       iv.        Motion by Mr. Weber, seconded by Mr. Ciummo to make the required findings and to grant preliminary plan approval subject to the recommended conditions:

1.    Future development on the new lots will have to comply with Chapter 151 of the Town’s Zoning Ordinance for Construction Site Runoff Control and Chapter 153: Stormwater Management. A note to this effect must be added to the plan.

2.    Future development on the new lots is subject to the Town’s development impact fees. A note to this effect must be added to the plan.

Vote: 6-0-0

                                         v.        Motion by Ms. Owen, seconded by Mr. Weber to delegate Final Plan review and approval to the Administrative Officer. Vote: 6-0-0

d.    Public Hearing - Application for Development Plan Review by A-1 Roofing & Construction, LLC including request for waivers from certain design standards of the Middletown Rules and Regulations Regarding the Subdivision and Development of Land Section 521, for modifications to the design of a previously approved new commercial building on property fronting on Aquidneck Avenue, Plat 114, Lot 507.

                                          i.        Applicant was represented by attorney David Martland and architect Dan Herchenroether.

                                         ii.        Mr. Martland explained that this plan was previously approved by the Planning Board; however, the applicant has submitted another application due to design modifications of the second building in the rear of the property.

                                        iii.        Mr. Wolanski noted that the decision should carry over the conditions from the prior approval. This application focus on the changes to the proposed rear building and a waiver request for the use of non-traditional siding materials.

                                       iv.        Mr. Fenton asked about the visibility of mechanical equipment from the road which Mr. Martland addressed will not be visible and will be screened.

                                         v.        Mr. Croce asked about the stories of the new building and roof design. Mr. Martland confirmed that the proposed building has the same footprint as the previous design and is a single-story building with a higher height. Mr. Herchenroether stated that the new design is for a pitched roof with asphalt shingles.

                                       vi.        Motion by Ms. Owen, seconded by Mr. Ciummo to make the required findings and to approve the application with the requested waiver listed below and subject to one condition of approval, in addition to carrying over the ten conditions from the previous approval. Vote: 6-0-0

Condition of approval:

1.    The roof materials, asphalt shingles, will be specified on the plan.

Waiver granted:

521.2.C Building exteriors and roofs constructed of traditional materials such as wooden clapboards, shingles, patterned shingles, brick, or stone (synthetic materials require Planning Board approval). Asphalt shingles are proposed for the rooftop and the approved siding material is Hardie Plank or similar cement fiber board siding.

6.            Updates

a.    Status Report on Planning Board Action Items.

                                          i.    Ms. Owen asked about the status on the airport zoning. Mr. Wolanski shared that a public workshop meeting was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Board asked Mr. Wolanski to schedule a public workshop.

                                         ii.    Mr. Croce asked about the status of application fees amendments and noted that application fees have not been adjusted for some time. Mr. Wolanski shared that the Planning Board sent a proposed, revised fee schedule to the Town Council back in February 2019, but it was referred back to the Planning Board and Finance Department for additional study to ensure all overhead costs are included in the fees. Planning Department staff met with the Finance Director to discuss overhead costs to be incorporated in the new fee schedule but is awaiting additional information from Finance office to complete calculations.

1.    Motion by Mr. Weber, seconded by Ms. Owen for the Planning Board to send a memo to the Town Administrator to request required information so a complete calculation of all overhead costs could be done for an updated fee schedule. Vote: 6-0-0

                                        iii.    Mr. Croce asked the Board members to review a memo from Mr. Wolanski providing a status report on implementation of actions items form the 2020 Crossman build-out report. Mr. Weber spoke about the importance of public water on the east side of Town and asked whether it is included as an action item from the full-build impact study. Mr. Wolanski clarified that the report is a status update of the highest priority items identified by the Town Council. Public water to the east side of town was not identified as a high priority item. Mr. Wolanski stated that the Town Administrator has received the report and will delegate tasks to the proper departments. The Board requested quarterly status updates on these items.

b.    Committee reports

                                          i.    Tree Commission – Ms. Owen stated that the commission reviewed the Rosebrook Commons and the Aquidneck Group LLC projects and will provide their comments. She also shared that a video of Middletown Valley Park will be released soon.

                                         ii.    Open Space and Fields Committee – Mr. Fenton shared that the committee met to discuss potential fields to replace the ones that may be lost due to new developments.

                                        iii.    Conservation Commission – Mr. Pierik shared that the commission reviewed the Rosebrook Commons project and voted to send a favorable recommendation to the Planning Board.

                                       iv.    Affordable Housing Committee – Mr. Weber shared that the committee received project updates on the West House II project. The committee discussed potential affordable housing projects at Oliphant School and Berkeley-Peckham property.

c.     Upcoming meetings:

                                          i.    August 31, 2022, 6pm – Special Planning Board meeting: Rosebrook Commons affordable housing comprehensive permit application, Preliminary Plan.

                                         ii.    September 8, 2022, 3pm – Use Table Subcommittee meeting

                                        iii.    September 14, 2022, 6pm – Regular monthly Planning Board meeting.

Motion by Ms. Owen, seconded by Mr. Ciummo to adjourn. Vote: 6-0-0

 

Meeting adjourned at approximately 6:45pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Mike Fenton, Secretary