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Planning Board – Meeting Minutes
Tuesday, August 16, 2022 - 6:00 p.m.

Westerly Town Hall | Town Council Chambers

45 Broad Street, Westerly, RI 02891

A. CALL TO ORDER –

Mr. Hopkins called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.

B. ROLL CALL AND ATTENDANCE

Members present: Chair Justin M. Hopkins, IV, Vice Chair Richard W. Constantine, and Members Joseph M. Montesano, Andrew Delisio, and Tabitha Harkin, Auxiliary Member Karen Lentz Madison

Members absent: Secretary Christopher K. Lawlor and Member Kevin Lowther

Staff present: Assistant Solicitor for Planning & Zoning Atty. Scott Levesque, Town Planner Nancy Letendre, Information Technology Technician Lanny Fuller, and Minute Taker Stephanie J. LaSota

Town Council Liaison Phillip M. Overton was absent.

1. July 19, 2022 and August 2, 2022 – Mr. Delisio made a motion to approve as presented the July 19, 2022 and August 2, 2022 Planning Board meeting minutes. Ms. Harkin seconded the motion. The motion CARRIED by unanimous vote with no abstentions.

D. CHANGES TO THE AGENDA

There were no changes to the agenda.

E. OLD BUSINESS

1. 2022-MJLD-01 Florentine Realty, LLC. – Venice Restaurant Expansion, Major Land Development, Master Plan (165 Shore Road | Assessor’s Plat 140 Lots 19, 20, & 21) Public Hearing to review, discuss, and possibly act on an application for the merger of Lots 19, 20 & 21 and expansion of an existing restaurant at 165 Shore Road to include 34 hotel suites, a 290-seat banquet hall, pool, and fitness center and/or continuation to a future meeting by the Planning Board.

Attorney Elizabeth Noonan, of Adler, Pollock, & Sheehan, P.C., Providence, was present on behalf of the applicant, Florentine Realty, LLC., along with project engineer Anthony Nenna, principal of On-Site Engineering, Westerly, landscape architect Rebecca Nolan, project architect Peter Springsteel, and a traffic engineer Paul Bannon.

Atty. Noonan reviewed the details of the project and the procedural history of the application at the Economic Development Commission (EDC) and Architectural Review Board (ARB.) She explained there is not a difference in the change of use of the conference facility, but the applicant seeks to expand the operation of the business to a year-round venture. Two prior Zoning Board applications for the business were granted, a Special Use Permit for the hotel and a height Variance from 2012. Atty. Noonan explained the height Variance has expired and they also require some Zoning relief for parking, and they seek a positive advisory opinion from the Planning Board to the Zoning Board for this new application. She said they will request a Variance for 26 extra parking spaces due to calculations on the proposed banquet facility. She said the applicant will need a Department of Transportation physical alteration permit for the curb cuts on Shore Road as well as an On-site Wastewater Treatment System (OWTS) permit and a Rhode Island Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (RIPDES) permit from the Department of Environmental Management (DEM.)

Atty. Noonan summarized the changes to the application since ARB review. A modification was made to the front of the western side of the building that affected the easement of Via Roma. ARB had concerns with the western side of the plan where a retaining wall exists. Atty. Noonan said she believes they are compliant with all standards except for the two matters needing Zoning relief; height and parking. Atty. Noonan introduced the minutes from the May 5, 2022 ARB meeting as Applicant’s Exhibit 1 and the EDC meeting minutes of February 1, 2022 were marked as Applicant’s Exhibit 2.

Mr. Nenna reviewed the existing and proposed conditions of the project. He displayed an aerial map of the project area and described its location. Sheet C-1 displayed the existing conditions of the property. He described the 25-foot easement between lots 20 and 21. Sheet C-2 showed the project proposal. He said original parking in front of building B has been eliminated and redesigned as green space and further modifications reduce curb cuts on Shore Road from five to three, one of which is access only for an easement agreement. Mr. Nenna shared there was a request from the State Fire Marshall for the Town to add a hydrant. He reviewed the stormwater management plan for the site and said 146 parking spaces are planned. He said there was a hydraulic study by the Town on the proposed improvements. There is a requirement of 1,125 gallons per minute and the model can provide for just under 1,400 gallons per minute, he said, adding that the Water Department will submit this report to the Board. Mr. Nenna explained that the lighting specifications will be dark sky compliant soft light but the plan will be ready at the next submission phase.

Ms. Letendre requested a written opinion about the plan from the State Fire Marshall. Mr. Nenna said the Westerly Fire Chief will provide him the required dimensions of the turning radius for the ladder truck so he has not yet determined the width of the front entry, but it should not increase by more than 4 or 5 feet. Ms. Letendre noted that the existing easement has a dimensional restriction for radii of 35 feet. Mr. Delisio asked if the easement for the rear property has a height limit. Mr. Nenna said fire personnel require a clearance of 13 feet and the project provides just over 19 feet. Mr. Montesano said he researched the easement, noted the regulations, and asked if the applicant has a letter of agreement from the affected neighbor. Atty. Noonan said there is not one now and the parties have more to discuss. She said they will post signage to deter the public from using the easement driveway. There was further discussion on the logistics of the project in relation to the easements. Mr. Nenna said DEM requires a denitrification system and in the rear of building B there are treatment pods. There was more discussion on fire department access to the site. Mr. Montesano suggested the loading and receiving area be included in the redesign of the site. He said they are not changing the kitchen location and the loading area will remain the same. He showed the existing delivery area. Ms. Letendre noted that there is a requirement to have a designated delivery area to ensure that site circulation is safe. Atty. Noonan said Mr. Bannon will review site circulation and traffic analysis.

Ms. Letendre shared that the Planning Office received a letter of opposition from a Via Roma resident and it was entered into the record as Board’s Exhibit A. A copy of the Via Roma easement deed recorded on April 30, 1998 was marked as Board’s Exhibit B. Ms. Letendre noted additional pertinent documents, entered as Exhibit C included; a 6-page Zoning Board decision on the issued Special Use Permit, June 2012, Zoning Approval of dimensional variance from August 2012, preliminary CRMC review from July 14, 2011, and a letter dated July 31, 2012 from Misquamicut Fire Department Fire Chief expressing concerns about the height of tunnel. She noted the former staff concerns about CRMC’s coastal requirements listed on page 3 of 3.

Atty. Noonan objected to the introduction of the plans and documents being introduced because they are different to the current existing plans and the applicant would have to go through point by point to describe the differences, so it is unfair to compare them. Ms. Letendre responded that they are anticipating they will need some answers at the Preliminary Phase about the differences between the plan now and the previous plan where CRMC concerns were raised.

Ms. Letendre noted that Board member requested the historical documents on past approvals. Ms. Letendre also submitted the Zoning Board meeting minutes from June 6, 2012 that discuss the Special Use Permit on page 3 and the August 1, 2012 Zoning Board Meeting minutes, with reference to the dimensional relief on page 2, as part of Board’s Exhibit C. Zoning Official Martin Loiselle’s opinion document dated August 12, 2022 was marked as Board’s Exhibit D and the Town Planner report dated August 12, 2022 was marked as Board’s Exhibit E. Atty. Noonan confirmed that the applicant did receive Mr. Loiselle’s opinion via email.

Atty. Noonan introduced Applicant’s Exhibit 3, a letter dated January 9, 2008 from Rhode Island CRMC. Ms. Madison left the meeting at 7:01 p.m. Scott Rabideau, a wetland biologist and principal of Natural Resource Services, Inc., Harrisville, Rhode Island, introduced himself to the Board and provided a review of the history of the CRMC wetland delineation or the rear of the property. He said there has been improvement in stormwater management on the site since the 2008 assent. A letter dated May 26, 2022 from Natural Resource Services to On-Site Engineering was marked as Applicant’s Exhibit 4. Mr. Montesano asked if there is a need to reassess the buffer. Mr. Rabideau said for the CRMC assent application he will have to re-delineate the wetlands and assess the wetlands to the rear and west of property, but that is not done for the Master Plan phase. There was extensive discussion on impervious versus pervious surface area ratios.

Architect Peter Springsteel introduced himself and presented the existing details of the property and the plans for the project. He said the easement opening helps to relieve some of the massing of the large building. He said he lowered the stair and elevator towers, so they do not project more than 4 feet above the main roof and he suggests they build out rooms within the roofline. There will be 34 hotel suite units to support the amenity packages that the business will provide. Mr. Springsteel said the tower rooflines were changed to a flat roof to maintain the four foot overhead needed to get an elevator into those shafts. Mr. Constantine asked if there was a conceptual design done with a 35-foot height and Mr. Springsteel said no, noting that the applicant has a sloping lot and that is considered with the height calculation. The conference facility on the second floor of the existing restaurant will be eliminated and replaced with suites. The center of the basement level will be a conference center, which is the existing hospitality room. Board members expressed concerns with the height and massing of the building design. Mr. Hopkins asked the architect to establish an occupant load for the four-story building. Ms. Letendre asked for concrete dimension on that and a professional opinion submitted along with the documents to the Zoning Board. Atty. Levesque clarified that the information the plan is based on seems to be different than some information shared tonight and asked the applicant to address this. Mr. Hopkins suggested moving the elevators inward, so they are part of the overall roof massing.

Landscape architect Rebecca Nolan, office at 44 Water Street, Mystic, shared that she submitted revised plans dated May 24, 2022 as a result of the ARB meeting. She displayed Sheet L102. There is room for parking in front of the building on Shore Road but to bring the scale of the building down, green space is planned for the front of building B, she said. About 5,200 square feet of green space was created. Landscaping proposed at building B and building A was not fully shown. There was discussion of the landscape details and species to be used. Ms. Harkin asked for a maintenance plan for these rain garden and buffers.

There was some brief traffic discussion. The applicant agreed to a 60-day continuance with a 35-day extension to the time frame to render a decision to the October 18 Planning Board meeting.

Dean Pons, of 22 Via Roma Road, owns an abutting property to Venice Restaurant and was the author of Board’s Exhibit A. He shared his concerns that the bulk of the project traffic is being directed to the rear of the building and other have shared concerns about Shore Road but not the view on Via Roma. He said he has owned his property more than 30 years and Venice events have caused overflow parking on Via Roma so he questions how they will accommodate more people with an even larger venue. He said the original 1998 agreement was for an Italian restaurant and this project has overgrown the site.

Mr. Montesano made a motion to continue the Venice case to the October 18, 2022 meeting with the applicant’s agreement for a 60-day decision extension. Mr. Constantine seconded the motion. The motion CARRIED by unanimous vote with no abstentions.

The Planning Board took a recess and reconvened at 8:35 p.m.

2. Westerly’s Resilient Riverfront Renewal Southern Rhode Island Conservation District (SRICD) will provide an update on the Resilient Riverfront Renewal (Westerly’s downtown stormwater project) and the Planning Board will discuss next steps in the project, including Planning Board review of development plans.

Gina Fuller, SRICD district manager, was present along with Renee Stoops, SRICD Conservation Specialist and Municipal Resilience and Outreach, and Beth Greenleaf Kirmmse, project manager with Fuss & O’Neil, Manchester, Connecticut. Ms. Fuller reviewed that SRICD recently received a $500,000 Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank (RIIB) grant and they also have a $300,000 grant application pending right now. If they receive the latter grant, SRICD will have about $1.5 million for this project, Ms. Fuller said. Ms. Kirmmse shared an overview of the project. They reviewed major locations where pavement may be curtailed, and green infrastructure implemented. Ms. Kirmmse said they are thinking of other opportunities on the Main Street corridor. The St. Pious School Street lot was referenced as an opportunity to treat water before it even hits the Main Street corridor. Ms. Fuller said Westerly is the first town in South County where RIDOT could reach their maximum funding. There is a potential opportunity to bury utility lines if funding is received and the project moves forward. There was a review of possible tree use.

Ms. Kirmmse explained the project phasing and the ranking system developed for properties. Ms. Letendre noted the phasing was new information for her and staff will look at that and what it entails to create a package for Planning Board for approval. There was discussion on the sidewalk plans. Ms. Kimmrse explained the intention to create a buffer between the street and sidewalk which may involve a change to the street configuration and will create a snow shelf. Ms. Harkin showed support for the project and commented that more towns should do this. Mr. Hopkins agreed and said an opportunity for buried utilities would be amazing. Hazard mitigation funds would be needed for that, Ms. Letendre said. There was discussion about local historical maps with locations of aqueducts. Frustrations were shared about difficult winter pedestrian circulation. There was extensive discussion on the logistics of planting trees under sidewalks.

F. ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER’S REPORT

1. Administrative Actions – None to report.

2. National Water Quality Month – There was no discussion.

3. Development Project Status Report (updated 8/9/2022) – There was no discussion.

G. SOLICITOR’S REPORT

Atty. Levesque reported that every Board member must do a three-hour long introduction to planning course within two years of being a member. An annual one-hour update course is also required. He added that a two-hour course on sea level rise is required every two years. Board members must file a compliance statement with the Town Clerk. Atty. Levesque also provided an update on the State’s affordable housing guidelines.

Atty. Levesque said that the State statute changed so the Board no longer requires a majority of the membership to approve an application, but a majority of the quorum is sufficient. A quorum of the Board is four members.

H. CONFIRMATION OF QUORUM FOR NEXT REGULAR AND SPECIAL MEETING

1. September 20, 2022 Regular Meeting Members of the Planning Board are asked to notify the Administrative Officer if they will not be present at the next regular meeting. The following topics are anticipated to be discussed (pending completeness review):

There was discussion on September’s agenda.

· Florentine Realty, LLC. – Venice Restaurant Expansion, if Cont’d (Continued to October 18, 2022)

· 79 Watch Hill Road – Westerly Museum of American Impressionism

· Planning Board Annual Report

· Discussion of Priorities for 2023

I. ADJOURNMENT –

Mr. Delisio made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 9:33 p.m. Ms. Harkin seconded the motion. The motion CARRIED by unanimous vote with no abstentions.

Respectfully submitted,

Stephanie J. LaSota

Minute Taker

Approved by vote of the Board on TBA