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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPB 2025-03-27 PB 3-27-25 APPROVED 1 Town of Dryden Planning Board Meeting Thursday March 27, 2025 Hybrid – Zoom Approved 4-24-25 Planning Board - 2025 Current Members I.P. Z Ex Ab Tony Salerno, Chair (2029) x John Kiefer (2027) x Frank Parish (2028) x Chris Morrissey (2030) x Craig Anderson (2025) x Bill Griffin (2031) x Brad Will (2026) x Alternate, vacant Alternate, vacant Other Staff or Board Members I.P. or on Zoom Ray Burger, Director of Planning (IP) Gina Cassidy, Planner (IP) Joy Foster - Recording Secretary (Z) Spring Buck (TB)(Z) Marie McRae (Z) Other attendees Fred Conner (Z) David Durett (Z) PB 3-27-25 APPROVED 2 Don Strick (Z) Jack Baker (IP) Ben Oway (IP) William Chen (IP) Angie Chen (IP) John Snyder (IP) 6:02 pm Call to Order 2:05 Welcome – Quorum Check AGENDA 1. Welcome – Quorum Check 2. Public Comment Period For items not on the agenda and limited to 3 minutes per person. 3. 82 Brooklyn Road - Road Frontage Area Variance Application review and recommendation to ZBA 4. 15 Cobb St – Sketch Plan Review for purposes of allowing second dwelling 5. 1968 Dryden Rd – Sketch Plan Review for new office 6. 933 Dryden Road – Expansion of Varna Auto Site Plan Review w/SEQRA and recommendations to TB(SUP) and ZBA 7. 2150 Dryden Road - Automotive Repair Garage SUP Application Site plan review for SUP w/Recommendation to Town Board 8. 2150 Dryden Road Solar Site Screening 9A - Comments on 2150 Dryden Road project (new item) 9. Zoning Rewrite Update10. Planning Department Update 11. Town Board Update 12. Minutes Approval – February 27, 2025 13A - Design Connect (new Item) 13. Executive Session (If needed) 8:00 Adjourn Next Special Meeting (Zoning Rewrite): April 3rd, 2025, 6:00pm (Conference Room) Next Regular Meeting: Thursday, April 24th, 2025, 6:00pm Agenda subject to amendment. PB 3-27-25 APPROVED 3 :45 #2) Public Comment Period – No comments offered. :59 #3) 82 Brooklyn Road - Road Frontage Area Variance Application review and recommendation to ZBA R. Burger – This is a variance request that will go to the Zoning Board of Appeals with your recommendations. This involves road frontage and subdivision. This property is just north of the Village of Freeville on the corner of Brooklyn and 38. It’s a 7-acre corner lot. The applicant would like to subdivide the lot with a house for a family member. They fall short 5-feet for frontage. And per New York State Law the ZBA needs a recommendation from the PB for anything involving a subdivision. The Board looks at the survey map. They confirm access to both parcels will be by the existing driveway. The flag lot entrance would be at a busy spot on the road, so it is not to be used to enter either parcel. There are no other questions. Motion: T. Salerno motions to recommend to the Zoning Board of Appeals that this variance [be approved because it] would not impact on the character of the neighborhood. And with the understanding that the 25- foot piece is not to be used to access the lot. Second: C. Anderson All in favor – Yes, unanimous 6:14 #4) 15 Cobb St – Sketch Plan Review for purposes of allowing second dwelling. R. Burger – Applicant is applying under the Section 270 - 6.7 to get approval for a second dwelling on the lot, which must be hypothetically subdividable, according to Code. This is a sketch review before the Planning Board. If you agree with the sketch, I then can make the determination to file and put on the title of record to be allowed to place a second dwelling. There are 8-acres and over 500’ft of frontage. This is Type II, Article 617.5 (c ) 11 action so SEQR is not needed. Applicants are requesting to put in a small 44’X27’ Double Wide for mother-in-law, with a separate driveway that’s already established. Separate septic and well. We don’t want to subdivide the lot because we have no intention of selling. Motion: Chair Salerno motions to waive further site plan review and to approve the sketch plan, with the Standard Conditions. Second: J. Kiefer All in favor – Yes, unanimous PB 3-27-25 APPROVED 4 10:33 #5) 1968 Dryden Rd – Sketch Plan Review for new office R. Burger - This is American Homes out on Route 13. Applicants are requesting a site plan review for a new office building. American Homes has been operating this site under a special use permit from the 90’s and they are now going to move to the office to a new building on the parcel that is more in keeping with current standards, including Town of Dryden Building Code and ADA accessibility. Applicant - With the current office being 28 years old and it's an old house we just want to put something new in, that’s new and up to the current code, with handicap ramps etc.... • Will be one of American Homes manufactured homes, a 30’X50’. • Will be built to NYS specifications. • The driveway exists and will be paved in front of the office. • The traffic will not change, the customers will be coming to the office to view the homes displayed. • The access road is very wide, and the parking area will be paved and lined up, have approximately 10-14 spaces. • During the week there may be 30 customers for the week. And on Saturdays we may have 10-12 customers for the day. Hours are 9am to 6pm most days. Shorter hours are on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. • No additional lighting, each house has exterior lighting. • The existing models are temporary where the office will be on a crawl space foundation and permanent. The Board goes over the Short Form SEQR. Motion: T. Salerno moves this to be a negative declaration SEQR. Second: C. Anderson All in favor – Yes, unanimous Motion: C. Anderson moves the sketch plan to be the final plan for the site plan and with Standard Conditions. Second: C. Morrissey All in favor – Yes, unanimous PB 3-27-25 APPROVED 5 25:00 #6) 933 Dryden Road – Expansion of Varna Auto Site Plan Review w/SEQRA and recommendations to TB(SUP) and ZBA R. Burger –Varna Auto owners, Angie and William Chen, along with their architect, John Snyder, are here to request approval of a site plan for a 2,000 square foot addition to the automobile repair shop at this location. This request is part of a multi-board decision. In addition to the Site Plan Review request, the applicant is requesting two area variances of the ZBA, and a Special Use Permit of the Town Board. Tonight, your actions should be to declare yourself as lead for SEQR. And then to make recommendations to the 2 other Boards on how to proceed. Motion: T. Salerno moves to declare that the Planning Board is the leading agency for the purpose of a coordinated review and SEQR. Second: B. Will All in favor – Yes, unanimous Applicants show the revised site plan. • The lot across the Street on Dryden Road, Applicants are proposing making the entrances a bit smaller to create some green space. • We would like to move the bus shelter slightly to hopefully add a crosswalk. • The lot is established we want to just line things up better, will regrade with gravel. Minor work. No plan for additional lighting there are 2 street poles with lights would just keep those. • Lighting on the building would be wall packs and Dark Sky compliant fixtures. • We are working with Dave Sprout for Stormwater and don’t expect to find anything significant as we are just cutting back some of the gravel. • The condition will be that the 2-lots remain under the same owner, can’t sell just one need for the green space. • They are not changing the hours of operation. This business operates during the day. Will not be increasing the amount of noise and disturbing the neighbors. • Will return to this Board next month for the final site plan review. T. Salerno – to the Board, since we agree that we can do SEQR and say that it's contingent on concurrence from the other Boards, we will do Part 1. And then we will do the SEAF. Motion: T. Salerno moves this to be a negative declaration of SEQR, assuming concurrence of the other Boards. PB 3-27-25 APPROVED 6 Second: J. Kiefer All in favor – Yes, unanimous Motion: T. Salerno moves recommending ZBA approval contingent upon applicant’s submission of a landscape plan, better placement of garbage and dumpsters, and the applicant contacting the NYS DOT about moving the bus stop and creating a crosswalk. Second: J. Kiefer All in favor – Yes, 6 members. B. Will was out of the room for this vote Motion: T. Salerno moves the TB approve the SUP on the recommendations of, having a full landscape plan, garbage and dumpsters have a better plan. They have contacted DOT for moving of the bus stop and for a crosswalk. And a full Stormwater Plan Second: C. Anderson All in favor – Yes , 6 members. B. Will was out of the room for this vote. 57:30 #7) 2150 Dryden Road - Automotive Repair Garage SUP Application Site plan review for SUP w/Recommendation to Town Board This application is incomplete and, therefore, cannot have a full hearing. See item #9A for some PB comments on this project. 58:13 #8) 2150 Dryden Road - Solar Site Screening – Evan Carpenter - Speaker handles the. maintenance of the grass and weeds under the solar panels at 2150 Dryden Rd. at the back of the cemetery and on the speaker’s property off of Ferguson Rd. • The planned screening for the solar panels is not working where the animals have eaten most of them. • The liaison for the new owner is Demetrius McIntyre and we have researched on what planting may be better suited. Several different varieties of Hybrid Willow that will either grow really tall or low and bushy. They are not the deer’s 1st choice, but they will nibble on them, but once established they grow faster than the deer can eat them down. They are not Evergreen but if enough there they will be bushy and you won’t be able to see through them, like now. I would like to plant rows of the Willow along Rt. 13 that will stay low at first and help block the view. Behind the cemetery we could put rows of large Willows that would help the screen. From the Ferguson side we can plant larger Willows as well. PB 3-27-25 APPROVED 7 Speaker requests permission to use willows for screening, despite this species not being on the Town’s approved species list. Motion: T. Salerno moves to recommend to the Town Board that they approve this amendment to the site plan. Second: B. Will All in favor – Yes, unanimous # 9A - 1:32:04 - 2150 Dryden Rd There was general discussion of the limitations placed on the use of the site during review and approval of the solar farm project. The Planning Board asked that information concerning the limitations (restrictions noted on subdivision plats, conditions of subdivision and SUP approval) be posted to the project web page. The Planning Board also noted that the garage is currently in operation in violation of town law. C. Anderson – When Distributed Sun came in, they had 5-lots on a private driveway. How does that fit into our zoning law? They were to have a locked gate with no real access. So how can we allow an auto business to have access? R. Burger - There are a lot of questions about the adequacy of the driveway, particularly related to fire department access. There is no new lot being created. I think the approval of the common driveway for the five lots is still standing. C. Anderson - Some concerns about this project would be: 1. There are already five lots on this private driveway. 2. Increased lots on this parcel seem to call for a rezoning to Industrial and for the driveway to be made into a road. 3. Approval of the SUP for solar facilities was contingent upon having a locked gate at Route 13 because the driveway crossed a wetland. 4. The automotive repair garage business would not be accessible to customers with a locked gate; therefore, the existing SUP for the solar facilities would require amending in order for this project to be approved, which would require a public hearing. 5. There is a Verizon cell tower on this site that should not be accessible to the public. 6. The preliminary site plan does not show required turn-offs from the driveway at every 300 feet, as required by NYS fire code. 7. Gasoline and oil runoff to the wetland necessitates a stormwater review. 8. The Short Environmental Assessment Form submitted is incomplete. PB 3-27-25 APPROVED 8 1:48:03 #9) Zoning Rewrite Update – T. Salerno • The Zoning Rewrite Subcommittee (ZRS)J K had one meeting and the next meeting will be April 3. • TB did approve our recommendations for a contract with CPEA to move forward. • J. Kiefer drafted a “straw man” project plan document. This will be distributed to PB members following today’s meeting.” and “ZRS is seeking input from other boards,” and “ZRS is arranging a dedicated space on the Town website for all zoning rewrite-related documents for easy public access.” • We want to get input from the Zoning Advisory group and from other Boards. • We are hoping to get a dedicated space on the Town Website to keep all the documents in one place for all to access. • J Kiefer will be the Chair for the April 3 meeting. 1:58:22 #10) Planning Department Update – Ray Burger • INHS has received approval for a $3.7K grant toward the Varna 5-9 Freese Road affordable housing project recently approved by the Town. The entire cost of the project is projected to be $16M. • The Village of Dryden was approved for a NY Forward grant of $4.5M. • The PUD at the end of Cardinal Dr. will be submitting an application. • Shelley Knickerbocker, one of the Code Enforcement Officers, has resigned. She was a good public servant that will be missed. Her new job is with TC3. • We are advertising a Full Time Code Enforcement Officer and a part time Code Enforcement Officer. • 2:00:55 #11 ) Town Board Update – Spring Buck The Town Board has approved a new contract with the original consultant (CPEA) for advice and assistance with the ongoing zoning code rewrite. All required bridge project documents have been submitted to the DEC, clearing the way to starting the bidding process for the Rail Trail Bridge. 2:05:26 #12) Minutes Approval – February 27, 2025, Minutes are yet to be reviewed by Board members.” Minute approval will wait till next month. #13A - C. Anderson – The Cornell, student-run Design Connect program is soliciting projects that give students practical experience in planning. Adopted projects come with a $600 stipend. The application is due Monday, March 31. C. Anderson and J. Kiefer will work on a proposal for feeder and connector trails to the Rail Trail project. C. Anderson will email a request to the Town Board for permission to submit this proposal with Planning Director Ray Burger’s signature. PB 3-27-25 APPROVED 9 Our next regular meeting is April 24th at 6:00PM The next special zoning re-write meeting is 4-3-25 at 6:00PM Meeting adjourned: 8:16 PM