Loading...
The URL can be used to link to this page
Your browser does not support the video tag.
31B-192 91 King Street-PB Site Plan Approval-4-26-2011
Planning - DecisionCityofNorthamptonHearingNo.:PLN-2011-0007Date: April26, 2011 APPLICATIONTYPE:SUBMISSIONDATE: PBMajorSitePlan8/12/2010Applicant'sName:Owner'sName: NAME: NAME: SaintElizabethAnnSetonParishROMANCATHOLICBISHOPOFSPRINGFIELADDRESS:ADDRESS: 3ElmStreetKINGSTTOWN:STATE:ZIPCODE:TOWN:STATE:ZIPCODE: NORTHAMPT0NMA01060NORTHAMPTONMA01060PHONENO.:FAXNO.: PHONENO.:FAXNO.: EMAILADDRESS: EMAILADDRESS: SiteInformation:Surveyor'sName: STREETNO.:COMPANYNAME: SITEZONING: 91KINGSTCB(100)/ TOWN:ADDRESS: ACTIONTAKEN: NORTHAMPT0NMA01060ApprovedWithConditionsMAP:BLOCK:LOT:MAPDATE: SECTIONOFBYLAW: 31B192001Chpt. 350- 11: SitePlanApprovalTOWN:STATE:ZIPCODE: Book:Page: PHONENO.:FAXNO.: EMAILADDRESS: NATUREOFPROPOSEDWORK: Demolish2buildingsandconstructnew14,000sq. ft. parishcenterbuildingwithassociatedsiteimprovementsinclduing140+ spaceparkinglotwithtwo24' widecurbcuts. HARDSHIP: CONDITIONOFAPPROVAL: 1)Finalplansincorporatingconditionshereinshallbestampedandsubmittedpriortoanyworkonthesite. 2. Tomeetthecriteriain350-8.9F, twolandscapedislandsshallbeaddedtocenterparkingarea. Atminimum, thedimensionofeachoftheseislandsshallbethewidthofoneparkingspaceandthelengthoftwoparkingspaces (8.5’ x36’). 3. Fouradditionalstreettreesshallbeplantedalongthefrontage. TreesshallbeselectedfromNorthamptonTreeCommitteelist. 4. Treeprotectionmeasuresshallbeinstalledpriortoanysiteworkfortreesattheentrance. 5. WaterandsewerlineconnectionsshallbemadeinaccordancewithDepartmentofPublicWorksstandards. 6. Inordertoprovideseparated, safenon-vehicularaccessforparishionerstothissite, a6’ widebituminousconnectionfromtheparkinglottotherailtrailshallbeinstalled. ConstructionmaterialsandspecificationsshallbeinaccordancewithOfficeofPlanning & Developmentstandardsforrailtrailconstruction. Theconnectionshallbemadeeitherontheapplicant’spropertyor, atthepropertyowner’schoice, onabuttingpropertypriortocompletionofanyportionoftheparkinglot. 7. Approvalofthelayoutoftheparkinglotandthetwocurbcutsiscontingentontherailtrailaccessbeingprovided. Attheapplicant’schoice, iftheyfindtherailtrailconnectionimpossible, theycanrequestanamendedapprovalfromthePlanningBoardshowingnorailtrailconnectionbutinsteadshowingonlyonecurbcutandimprovedpedestrianandbicycleconnectiononthesite. 8. Theseapprovedplansincludeatrafficwaiverbasedonlimitedweekdayuseofthenewbuilding. IfthedaysoftheweekinwhichthebuildingisusedchangestofunctionsthatoccurduringthePMpeakperiodsMondaythroughFriday (foratleast50% ofthefunctions), trafficmitigationwillberequiredinaccordancewiththeincreaseinpeaktripsgeneratedasdescribedinthezoning. 9. Uponcompletionofparking, applicantshallsubmitastampedlightingplanshowingthatinstalledlightlevelscomplywithzoningandplansshownforCB. GeoTMS® 2011DesLauriersMunicipalSolutions, Inc. Planning - DecisionCityofNorthamptonHearingNo.:PLN-2011-0007Date: April26, 2011 10. Snowshallbeplowedtotherearofthesite. 11. Lightsoffwithinonehourafterthelastfunction. Nomorethan4polelightsshallremainonduringthenight. FINDINGS: ThePlanningBoardapprovedthesiteplanforthelayoutofanew14,000squarefootfunctionhallandassociatedsitedevelopmentbya3- 2voteofeligibleplanningBoardmemberspresent. TheBoardbaseditsdecisiononthefollowingplansandinformationsubmittedwiththeapplication: 1. St. ElizabethAnnSetonParishRevisedSitePlanSubmission, datedMarch31, 2011byTheBerkshireDesignGroup, Inc. PlanSheetsEX, 1, 2, 3, SL-1B, A1. A. Therequesteduseprotectsadjoiningpremisesagainstseriouslydetrimentaluses. Ifapplicable, thisshallincludeprovisionforsurfacewaterdrainage, soundandsightbuffersandpreservationofviews, light, andair; Stormwatermanagementwillbecontainedonsiteandplantingswillbeaddedbetweenthenewbuildingandtheresidencestothenorth. B. Therequesteduse/site willpromotetheconvenienceandsafetyofvehicularandpedestrianmovementwithinthesiteandonadjacentstreets, minimizetrafficimpactsonthestreetsandroadsinthearea. Throughcondition, theconnectiontothebikepathwillaccomplishcompliancewiththisstandard. Ifapplicable, thisshallincludeconsideringthelocationofdrivewayopeningsinrelationtotrafficandadjacentstreets, accessbypublicsafetyvehicles, thearrangementofparkingandloadingspaces, andprovisionsforpersonswithdisabilities; ThePlanningBoardgrantedtherelocationandwideningoftwocurbcutsbasedonseparationofpedestrian/bicycleandvehiculartraffic. Theproject, includinganyconcurrentroadimprovements, willnotdecreasethelevelofservice (LOS) ofallareaCityandstateroadsorintersectionsaffectedbytheprojectbelowtheexistingconditionswhentheprojectisproposedandshallconsidertheincrementalnatureofdevelopmentandcumulativeimpactsontheLOS. Giventheoff-peaktripsanticipatedandnotedintrafficletterandassumingtherailtrailaccessconditionrecommended, staffbelievesthiscriteriahasbeenmet. C. Therequestedusewillpromoteaharmoniousrelationshipofstructuresandopenspacestothenaturallandscape, existingbuildingsandothercommunityassetsinthearea; Landscapedislandstobreakupthemassof82parkingspaceswillmeetthiscriteria. D. Therequestedusewillnotoverload, andwillmitigateadverseimpactson, theCity'sresources, includingtheeffectontheCity'swatersupplyanddistributionsystem, sanitaryandstormsewagecollectionandtreatmentsystems, fireprotection, streetsandschools. Theconstructionmaterialsandmethodsforwaterlines, sanitarysewers, stormsewers, fireprotection, sidewalks, privateroads, andotherinfrastructurewillbeinaccordancewithDepartmentofPublicWorksstandards. E. Therequestedusemeetsanyspecialregulationssetforthinthischapter. Therearenonespecifiedinthezoning. TheBoarddidapproveawaiverfromthestandard16' poleheightsto18' and20' duetothelimitedspaceavailableforinstallingnewpoles. Thelightswillbeonthesouthsideofthenewstructureandgenerallyscreenedfromtheresidences. F. Compliancewiththefollowingtechnicalperformancestandards: 1) Curbcutsontostreetsshallbeminimized. Accesstobusinessesshallusecommondriveways, existingsidestreets, orloopserviceroadssharedbyadjacentlotswhenpossible. Morethanonecurbcutshallbepermittedonlywhennecessarytominimizetrafficandsafetyimpacts. TheBoardapprovedthewideneddoublecurbcutsbasedontheconditionthatsafetyimprovementsfornon-motorizedaccesswillbecreatedattherearofthesitealongtherailtrail. 2) Pedestrian, bicycleandvehiculartrafficmovementonsitemustbeseparated, totheextentpossible, andsidewalksmustbeprovidedbetweenbusinesseswithinadevelopment. Adequateseparationandaccommodationforbicycles/pedestrianswillbemetthroughconditions. 3) Majorprojects, exceptintheCentralBusinessDistrict, mustbedesignedsothereisnoincreaseinpeakflowsfromtheone- ortwo- andten-yearSoilConservationServicedesignstormfrompredevelopmentconditions (theconditionatthetimeasiteplanapprovalisrequested) andsothattherunofffromafour- toten-inchrainstorm (firstflush) isdetainedonsiteforanaverageofsixhours. TheserequirementsshallnotapplyiftheprojectwilldischargeintoaCitystormdrainsystemthatthePlanningBoardfindscanaccommodatetheexpecteddischargewithnoadverseimpacts. Inaddition, catchbasinsshallincorporatesumpsofaminimumofthreefeetand, iftheywillremainprivatelyowned, agastrap. ADepartmentofPublicWorksstormwaterpermitwasissued. COULDNOTDEROGATEBECAUSE: FILINGDEADLINE:MAILINGDATE:HEARINGCONTINUEDDATE:DECISIONDRAFTBY:APPEALDATE: 9/2/20109/16/201010/14/20104/28/2011REFERRALSINDATE:HEARINGDEADLINEDATE:HEARINGCLOSEDATE:FINALSIGNINGBY:APPEALDEADLINE: 9/9/201010/16/20104/14/20114/28/20115/16/2011FIRSTADVERTISINGDATE:HEARINGDATE:VOTINGDATE:DECISIONDATE: 9/9/20109/23/20104/14/20114/26/2011SECONDADVERTISINGDATE:HEARINGTIME:VOTINGDEADLINE:DECISIONDEADLINE: 9/16/20105/30/20117/13/2011MEMBERSPRESENT:VOTE: AndrewWeirvotestoDenyGeoTMS® 2011DesLauriersMunicipalSolutions, Inc. Planning - DecisionCityofNorthamptonHearingNo.:PLN-2011-0007Date: April26, 2011 DebinBrucevotestoGrantKatharineG. BakervotestoDenyStephenGilsonvotestoGrantMarkSullivanvotestoIneligibletoVoteFrancisJohnsonvotestoGrant MOTIONMADEBY:SECONDEDBY:VOTECOUNT:DECISION: DebinBruceFrancisJohnson3-2ApprovedwithConditionsMINUTESOFMEETING: AvailableintheOfficeofPlanning & Development. I, CarolynMisch, asagenttothePlanningBoard, certifythatthisisatrueandaccuratedecisionmadebythePlanningBoardandcertifythatacopyofthisandallplanshavebeenfiledwiththeBoardandtheCityClerkonthedateshownabove. IcertifythatacopyofthisdecisionhasbeenmailedtotheOwnerandApplicant. NoticeofAppealAnappealfromthedecisionofthePlanningBoardmaybemadebyanypersonaggrievedpursuanttoMGLChapt. 40A, Section17asamendedwithintwenty (20) daysafterthedateofthefilingofthenoticeofthedecisionwiththeCityClerk. Thedateislistedabove. SuchappealmaybemadetotheHampshireSuperiorCourtwithacertifiedcopyoftheappealsenttotheCityClerkoftheCityofNorthampton. GeoTMS® 2011DesLauriersMunicipalSolutions, Inc. CarolynMisch From:simonetopal@yahoo.com Sent:Thursday, September 30, 20102:13PM To:CarolynMisch Cc:WayneFeiden; KarenBellavance-Grace Subject:Re: AnnSetonParishHallPlans Thank youCarolyn, Theproposed 5-8' plantings arenotlikely toblock outthe noise, light, andgarbage resulting from the twostory hallandarevastly inferior totheexisting stand ofhundred year oldtrees. Itisapaltry acknowlegment ofour existence atbest, and ismore likely afeeble attempt atsomelandscaping toappease theBoard. The proximity oftheWall-Mart sized building willdecrease theproperty andresale values ofourhomes. Thankyouforpointing thatoutthough. Simone Sent from myiPhone On Sep 30, 2010, at11:03AM, Carolyn Misch <cmisch@northamptonma.gov> wrote: Simone- Please seetheattached PDFthatshowsaportion oftheplanting planthatthechurchsubmitted aspart ofthesiteplanreviewprocess. Theproposed function hallhasvariable setbacks. Intheareathatabuts yourproperty, thesetbacks rangefrom15’ attheclosest to22’. Thelandscape architectswhodesigned theplantschemeselectedNorwaySpruce (columnarvariety) andArborvitae. Theheightuponplanting isproposed tobe5’ – 8’. Regards, Carolyn Misch From: simonetopal@yahoo.com [mailto:simonetopal@yahoo.com] Sent: Wednesday, September29, 20101:04PM To: CarolynMisch Cc: WayneFeiden; KarenBellavance-Grace Subject: Re: AnnSetonParishHallPlans We arecurious toknow what kindofreplacement buffer isgoingtosurvive ina15ftwide alleyway between thenewhallandourhouses. Simone Sent from myiPhone 1 On Sep 29, 2010, at9:48AM, Carolyn Misch <cmisch@northamptonma.gov> wrote: Simone- There isnotanordinancethatcontrols theremoval oftreesonprivate property. The plansthatweresubmitted tothePlanningBoarddidshowareplacement buffertobe plantedalongtheEdwards Squareboundary, butdidnotenumerate thenumberof existingtreesonsite. Please letmeknowifyouhavefurther questions. CarolynMisch From: simonetopal@yahoo.com [mailto:simonetopal@yahoo.com] Sent: Wednesday, September29, 20109:00AM To: WayneFeiden Cc: CarolynMisch; KarenBellavance-Grace Subject: Re: AnnSetonParishHallPlans Thank youWayne. The church iscurrently destroying allthetrees around the main building. Weare worried they will proceed todestroy allthetrees beforethenextmeeting. Isthere anything thatcan bedone? Simone Sent from myiPhone On Sep 29, 2010, at8:39AM, Wayne Feiden <wfeiden@northamptonma.gov> wrote: Thanks verymuch. Wecan pass onyour comments tothe Planning Board attheir next meeting. Carolyn, can you forward totheemail tothem. 2 Wayne Feiden, FAICP Director ofPlanning and Development City ofNorthampton 210Main Street, Room 11 Northampton, MA 01060 http://www.northamptonma.gov/opd 413.587.1265 directions (Googlemap) From: SimoneTopal [mailto:simonetopal@yahoo.com] Sent: Tuesday, September28, 20102:13PM To: KarenBellavance-Grace Cc: CarolynMisch; WayneFeiden Subject: RE: AnnSetonParishHallPlans DearKaren, Thank you! Theletter isjust from me butrepresents agroup ofpeople who ownhomes onEdwards Square. The group ismeeting andorganizing amulti-pronged effort toincrease awareness and hopefully will have some effect. Thanks again, Simone Tue, 9/28/10, Karen Bellavance-Grace <kbellava@northamptonma.gov> On wrote: From: Karen Bellavance-Grace <kbellava@northamptonma.gov> Subject: RE: AnnSeton Parish HallPlans To: "Simone Topal" <simonetopal@yahoo.com> Cc: "Carolyn Misch" <cmisch@northamptonma.gov>, "Wayne Feiden" <wfeiden@northamptonma.gov> Date: Tuesday, September 28, 2010, 1:36PM DearDr. Topal, 3 Congratulations onyourfamily’sjoyousaddition – Mayor Higgins willbehappy tohearofitwhen she returns nextweekfrom afewdays awaywith her ownfamily. Iamtakingthelibertyofforwarding youremailtostaffintheOfficeofPlanning and Development who work withthePlanning Boardandcanensure thatyourconcerns are brought totheboardmembers’ attention. Thank youfortaking thetimetodetail andshare yourconcerns. Ihope thatCarolyn andWayne willbeableto provide youwithadditional information about howthisprocess maymoveforward. Best, KarenBellavance-Grace Aide toMayor Higgins From: SimoneTopal [mailto:simonetopal@yahoo.com] Sent: Tuesday, September28, 20101:04PM To: MayorofNorthampton Subject: AnnSetonParishHallPlans DearClare, Ihopealliswellwithyou. IhadababyboyonSept2--Jacob! ThisletteriswrittentobringtoyourandtheNorthamptonPlanningBoard'sawarenesstheconcernsoftheneighbors of theAnnSetonParish Church. 4 MyfamilylivesinarenovatedVictorianhousethatwasconvertedintothreesmallcondounitsat13EdwardsSquare, nexttotheAnnSetonParishChurchonKingStreet. EdwardsSquareisaquietandprettyoasisofmostlyrenovated VictorianhousesoffofwhatyouknowislikelytheugliestandbusieststreetindowntownNorthampton. Thereisasmall stripoflargeold-growthtreesonthechurchpropertybetweenourhousesandthechurchwhichprovideshade, noise reduction, andabufferbetweenourhousesandthechurch. Redhawksnestinthesetrees. Itisremarkable tohavesuch aprettystandofsubstantialoldtreesintheheartofthecity. TheSpringfieldRepublicanjustpublished anarticleon9/26 thatnamedNorthamptonnumberoneinthestateforprogressive landdevelopment. SeveralofthehomeownersonEdwardsSquaregottogether Sundaynightoutofconcern regardinganew15,000foot parishhallthechurchplanstoconstructwithin15feetofourhouses, necessitating destructionofallthetrees. Avery largeoldhealthytreehasalreadybeendestroyedalongwiththedemolition oftheoldconventhouse. Thedemolition work occurredwithnowarning, andwasloud, dirty, dusty, andcontinuedlateintothenightuntilseveralpeoplecalledthe police. Weobtainedandexaminedtheplansforthehall, andwhilethenewbuildingisontopofourhouses, theparallel corridorbetweentherowsofparkingplacesonheothersideoftheproposedbuildingis35feetwide (anormalcitystreet is25feetwide). Asyoumaybeaware, thenewbuildingalsonecessitatesdestruction oftherectory, anhistorically significant building. Theplansforthenewhallrevealanunsightlyandverylargestructure. Theplansalsocallforpaving thevastmajorityoftheland, includingalltheexistinggrassylawninfrontofthechurch. Weareconcerned aboutthe noise, light, andproximity ofthenewbuilding, aswellasthenoiseandlengthoftimeofconstruction. Theplansalsodo notcomplywiththenewrezoningguidelines forKingStreet. Thechurchcurrentlydoesnothavethefundsavailable to buildthehall, buthasdemonstratedsomeurgencyinclearinganddemolishing theoldtrees. Weunderstandthatasa nonprofitorganizationthechurchisexempt frommanyregulationsregarding zoningbuthopethatitwouldshowsome consideration fortheneighboringcommunityandtheaesthetics oftheneighborhood. Thehallisproposed "toaccommodatetheneedsoftheparish". Currentlytheparishoners Iknowandhavespokento havenodifficultyfindingparking. Theparishoners Iknowalsohavenotbeenapprisedofanyconstruction plansandare notpushingforanewhall. Itisourunderstandingthethenewhallwillhaveagiftshop, offices, and300-person banquet/bingohallasamoney-generatingenterpriseforacash-strappedchurch. Thedirectivesfordemolition and constructionhavecomefromtheBishopinSpringfield. Thelocalpriesthasbeenindialogue withusbutisapparently just followingorders. Wefeelthattheplansweredrawnupwithabsolutelynoconsideration fortheneighboring community. Ourhopeand requestofthechurchandtheNorthamptonPlanningBoardisforasmallbufferzonebetweenourhousesandthe hall/parkinglotthatincludestheexistingoldgrowthtrees. Wesuggestmakingthelanesbetweentherowsofparkedcars smallertoenablemovingthehall/parkinglotfartherfromourhousesandpreservethetrees, orperhapsmakingthehall narroweraswell. Anothersuggestionistomovethehalltotheothersideofthechurch, nexttothebank, afterthe planneddemolition ofthehistoricoldhalltakesplace. Thankyouforlistening tous. Simone SimoneTopal, MD 13Edwardssquare 5 Northampton, MA01060 4136953199 Church.pdf> 6