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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-30-17 APPROVED PB Minutes APPROVED Town of Lansing PLANNING BOARD MEETING Monday, October 30, 2017 6:30 PM PLANNING BOARD MEMBERS (*Denotes present) * Tom Ellis, Chairman Norman (Lin) Davidson, Vice-Chairman Larry Sharpsteen Al Fiorille Gerald Caward Deborah Trumbull Sandra Dennis Conlon Dean Shea, Alternate Other Staff Lynn Day, Zoning Officer Mike Long, AICP Sue Munson, Information Aide Edward LaVigne, Supervisor Guy Krogh, Esq. Doug Dake, Town Board Liaison Public Present (22)that signed in Melanie Malone John Young Dan Veaner Joseph Wetmore Connie Wilcox Rebecca Lovenheim Stephanie Behler Ellen Garcia Sue Ruoff Suzanne Hinderliter Maureen Cowen Donna Scott Ted Laux James Overhiser Rod Kearl Ken Kearl Linda Story Chris Williams Amy Bukowski Robert Bukowski Heidi Kallfelz Fran Kallfelz Chairman Tom Ellis called the Planning Board Meeting to order at 6:30 PM. FLOOR OPEN FOR COMMENTS/CONCERNS OTHER THAN WHAT IS ON THE AGENDA No Comments 1 I Page APPROVED MOTION TO APPROVE THE PLANNING BOARD MINUTES FOR OCTOBER 16, 201 Larry Sharpsteen made a motion to APPROVE THE OCTOBER 16, 2017 minutes. Lin Davidson seconded the motion: All in Favor - 7 Opposed - 0 SUMMATION OF THE PLANNING BOARD DRAFT PROCESS Comments by Dean Shea 10/30/2017 Regarding Town of Lansing Comprehensive Plan Review by Planning Board(July 2016 through April 2017): Some Planning Board Objectives Were: • Review work by other committees in the process and not write a new version of the plan • Reduce the size of the document to make it more manageable • Remove redundancies • Make spelling and grammatical corrections for ease of readability • Simplify language and in doing so remove emotional language and substitute more neutral language • Change specific"must do'items to"should consider' items (after all,this is a guide not a law) • Clarifying items currently being accomplished by the Town and Town laws • Include many specific items in broader categories • Make the document better from a grant proposal perspective including the right type of language/jargon and leaving open opportunities by being less specific • Make the document less dependent upon specific individual business rather than business types (some businesses sell,go out of business,move or change significantly over time) • Change specific items to a less restrictive language to add flexibility for future zoning law changes (change from"form based code" to"form based design guidelines"for example) • Update Data sets to the newest available(newest census) and discard those no longer relevant • Change visual reports to the clearest form or type and use that type consistently throughout the document • Focus on items and actions that are or could be under the purview of the Town • Ensure consistent structure and format between sections The Planning Board Process Included: • 13 Planning review sessions by the board at the town hall and open to the public between July of 2016 and April of 2017 • Board member contact information posted on the town website • Planning Board members individually looked at sections between meetings and came back to the next session with edits and corrections for discussion and changes 2 1 P a g e APPROVED • Inserting the up to date reports and data and visual reports and the final formatting continued after the Planning Board Review was done with their work on July 10,2017 to prepare a final draft ready to be presented to the Town Board Public Input: • Only 1 or 2 of the general public attended Planning Board sessions or meetings and gave no comments on or inquired about the process,progress or substance of the review during those sessions • The general public did not contact the Planning Board as a whole with comments on the process, progress or substance of the review until beginning on September 25,2017 with some comments being submitted as late as today,October 30,2017 at 4:20 pm • A few individuals did contact individual Planning Board Members during the review and their concerns and comments were relayed to the Board and were considered in the Boards review Written by Dean Shea,Planning Board Alternate Member since January 2017 MOTION TO OPEN PUBLIC HEARING ON THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN 7/10/2017 Jerry Caward made a motion to OPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING ON THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN 7/10/2017 at 6:40pm. Larry Sharpsteen seconded the motion. All in Favor - 7 Opposed - 0 PUBLIC COMMENTS RECEIVED ON THE PLANNING BOARD 7/10/2017 COMPRENENSIVE PLAN The Planning Board completed this version on July 10, 2017 and it has been available since that time for the public to see on the town web site, Lansing Library and Town Hall Offices and offer comments. As of 10/30/2017, the 21 individuals listed below have offer questions and comments. • Kenneth Kearl — Reviewed the "Future Land Use" map and proposed changes of his property to the center of the road the proposed Rural Agriculture (RA) designation (currently Residential Mixed Use (R3)). Connie Wilcox and Mike 3 1 P a g e APPROVED Long met with him and discussed several issues. He asked that his property remain the Rural Agriculture designated future land use as currently mapped. o Ken noticed that my farm had been modified from residential to Rural and Agriculture. When he understood the zoning, he is good with the change. • Mariano Garcia — asked about the proposed changes of Commercial Mixed Use on N. Triphammer — specifically the two triangle parcels across from Michaleen's at Hillcrest Rd. (see email with attached map). The Comp Plan Committee had designated the Future Land Use those areas as "Form Based Code" (FBC) as included within the Cornell Design Connect Study. The Planning Board determined that it would take time to create the FBC definitions and adopt Zoning Code changes, so they changed the area to the current zoning use of "Commercial Mixed Use" — both residential and commercial activities. • Melanie Malone Questions: o If we had pie charts about the land use percentages— Tompkins County Planning completed the maps and did not calculate the current vs proposed changes. (Could not complete this request) o Also, asked where were the Comp Plan appendices? The Planning Board version only changed text and updated the Future Land Use Map. The appendices are same as the Comp Plan Committee version. Mike Long met with her on Oct 5, 2017, gave her copies of the various maps and answered her questions. o Question to Ed LaVigne about the 2015 draft plan, map, and minutes. The Comp Plan version was 2016 not 2015, Mike Long met with her 4 1 P a g e APPROVED and gave her copies of the various proposed "Future Land Use Maps". Mike Long responded to a follow up email response. • Ella Holden — "Keep the Bell Station as a recreational area" It is privately owned by Avangard/ formerly NYSEG. — The Planning Board version of the Future Land Use Map kept the proposed uses the same as they currently exist on the 2003 Zoning Map (Lakeshore and Rural Agriculture). • Karl Kohlenberg — requested that his service station at the corner of Rt. 34B and Myers Road be considered Commercial Mixed Use — this property has been in existence for many years as a garage repair shop. The map was changed to Lakeshore in the 2003 Zoning Map. Verified it was changed on the May 2017 Planning Board "Future Land Use Map" as he had request. • Joe Wetmore — Expressed concern about IF the Planning Board would have enough time to respond to Public Comments at the October 30' Public Hearing by the Planning Board? o Submitted some clarifications regarding the content and purpose of the "Future Land Use Map". o Had some concerns with the location and availability of the comp plan. • Tom Butler — At the Informational Meeting requested the Future Land Use Map include the "NYSEG Future Parkland label as was on the Comprehensive Plan Committee map. What was the rational the Planning Board had used to determine NYSEG land should continue to be the same Lakeshore and RA designation. Tom also came to the Oct 16' Planning Board meeting and read a statement during the public comments. I have attached the Lansing Town Board resolution that confirmed NYS DEC if interested in this private property. Another question was regarding "what would happen to the land across the street — currently Commercial Mixed Use (former Town Center 5 1 P a g e APPROVED Land)— currently RFP for development proposal have focused on maintaining the trail system where ever possible. o Stephanie Behler — Speaking on behalf of her husband, Tom Butler thinks the comp plan is a good document. His concern is Belle Station and Trails, Greenways etc. o Where are the designated green spaces or trails? o Why was page 78 to designate a conservation advisory council removed from the planning board version? o Why so much commercial mixed use proposed for route 34? o Why was language on Cayuga Lake edited to omit potential harm that industry could do to the lake? o Why doesn't the plan recommend any limitations on heavy industry, including fracking? Sustainability portion has been watered down. Bell Station should still be labeled under Recreation. • Linda Story and Alfonso Torres—I believe they are questioning commercial development to the east side of North Triphammer Road / Cayuga Farms development. Same issue as identified with Mariano Garcia, Form Based Code /changed to Commercial Mixed Use with the Planning Board Future Land Use Map. • Lola Emily Winter - Future Land Use Map shows mixed use commercial east of North Triphammer. • Rebecca Lovenheim — Lansing Schools Cross Country Coach — concerns about Rochester's Cornerstone Group housing project and the continuation of using the Town Trails for Cross Country Meets, etc. 6 1 P a g e APPROVED o Thanks the Board for their time and efforts. Rebecca has concerns for the natural trail system in Lansing and that despite the traffic studies there is too much traffic. • Donna Scott — Speaking for Ruth Hopkins. Why no task force to design walking and bicycle paths? o Why change the area on N. Triphammer across from Michaeleen's? o Why change the zoning on the major road like E. Shore Drive and Ridge Road? o Why was the Conservation Advisory Committee deleted from the plan draft? o Please provide Legal assurance that the draft plan will support a decision by the Town Board to ban Natural Gas and Petroleum Exploration and Extraction Activities.... o Please provide goals in the draft plan that support using Village Solars as the model for large land areas in south Lansing. o Why was Bell Station proposed to be Lakeshore low density? • Amy Bukowski — Against changing the zoning on either of the two plots of land at Triphammer and Hillcrest. Worried about stormwater. • John Young — He is happy with the Comprehensive Plan and thinks it is very important. He owns the triangle by Triphammer Terrace and over by Waterwagon Road. He wanted to let the surrounding residence know that if he builds on the Triangle he would have to incorporate the stormwater in is design plan. All those who built before stormwater and currently have problems could retrofit their own yards to avoid future problems as well. He is limited to who wants to live there due to all three sides having road frontage. No one wants to 7 1 P a g e APPROVED build a house there. He doesn't have a plan yet for the property but has thought about mixed use on the lot. • Peter Parks—Would like to see the Density in the Town Center area. Triangle area seems to be a hot topic. He is concerned about the spot zoning. No happy with increasing the commercial density. • Connie Wilcox — Dean Shea gave a good summation on the changes for Bell Station. Thank you for striving to make this a good plan. You are never going to make everybody happy and you have to move forward. • Chris Williams — Thanks the Planning Board for moving forward with the plan. It represents a sense of Community and a sense of Place. I worked on the Economic Development Committee and feel the Planning Board has made the document stronger. I have studied other town's comprehensive plans, we have raised the bar within our region with our comp plan. The plan represents change and gives a navigation point. • Maureen Cowen — The value of the public input is important. Would like thorough explanation of the zones. Also, need an explanation of what is current and what is proposed. Would like the question or comments addressed and if the board is considering them or not. • Ellen Garcia — Thank you for all that you have done and for all your hard work. Is there any notification that goes out to neighbors who are near where the zoning may change? • Carrie Koplinka-Loehr — I applaud the long-term effort of so many people who worked to create a comprehensive plan for Lansing. I particularly support the emphasis on agriculture. Please Change new Industrial/Research zoning in the RA zone to AG (or back to RA). I disapprove of the Cargill parcel at 1001 Ridge Road being designated "Industrial/Research". Please designate green 8 1 P a g e APPROVED spaces and continue its efforts to incorporate connective trails and pathways where feasible. What is the status of the Conservation Advisory Council and Conservation Board? • Doug Baird—Feels the town did not do everything possible to generate public participation. The survey questions were to general and never asked residents if they actually wanted a town center it only included what should be included in the Town Center. Lansing needs more businesses not more housing. Doug would like the plan scraped (not even good for parts). Noted in Doug's additional example - per Jay Franklin at the Tompkins County Assessment Department admits: "The intention of the map is to show the parcels that receive an agricultural exemption — it is not intended to show how much of each parcel receives an exemption" • Andy Zepp—Both the Land Trust and the NYSDEC have reached out the Bell Station land owner (IBADROLLA/NYSEG) periodically over the past few years but they have indicated that They are not interested in selling the property at this time and they have declined to indicate why they had earlier expressed interest in a sale for conservation and changed their position. We will continue to check in with them on a periodic basis. The summary above along with the full comments of those who submitted their comments are located on the town's web page www.lansin2town.com under current planning board documents. MOTION TO CLOSE PUBLIC HEARING ON THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN 7/10/2017 Sandy Dennis Conlon made a motion to CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING ON THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN 7/10/2017 at 7:58 pm. Jerry Caward seconded the motion. All in Favor - 7 Opposed - 0 9 1 P a g e APPROVED PLANNING BOARD DISCUSSION AND PRELIMINARY REVIEW OF QUESTIONS • The Comprehensive Plan does not immediately change the zoning. o Any zoning that is in the process to be changed requires a Public Hearing. o Public Notice of the Public Hearing will be posted in the Ithaca Journal at a minimum of 10 days prior &Posted on the Sign Board right outside of the Town Clerks office inside the Town Hall located at 29 Auburn Road (required by municipal law). o As a courtesy,we post on the Towri s Webpage: www.lansingtown.com under Public Notices. o The Planning Board will also include a mailing to the Public who are within 600' of the proposed zoning change. • Reminder to the public that this is not the last public hearing on the Comp Plan. o The process will continue onto the Town Board level. o The Town Board will review and possibly make changes. o Then schedule another Public Hearing. o From there, the process of reviewing the Land Use Ordinance will take place. This could take up to two years or more. o It is important that the public follows or periodically checks into the town's web page or attends meetings. All the meetings are open to the public. • How does Zoning change? There are dozens of ways it can change. Below are a few examples: o Land Owners have the right to petition a zoning change to their property. o Land Owners have the right to petition a zoning change in their area. o Municipalities have the right to issue changes in zoning on their own initiative. ■ It would be issued by an Ordinance or by Local Law ■ NYS Law prescribes certain minimum requirements for adopting either of those pieces of legislation. o The process can vary greatly depending on the size of the project. 101Page APPROVED • Bell Station-Has been discussed in depth and nothing has changed. It was only suggested in the original draft to change the zoning to recreational use. It's not necessary, as recreation is an allowed use in the current zoning. o The upper area that is currently being used as agricultural use should remain as agricultural use. o The lower area could be quite a draw for recreational use,and recreation is an allowed use in the current zoning for that area and should remain so. o The Town does not own the property. A corporation owns it and it is not for sale at this time. They should be able to do what they want with it as long as it is in the confines of what is legal. • The Triphammer Triangle area-The Planning Board is looking into the form base zoning tools to assist in the planning process. The state is encouraging towns to reduce vehicular traffic by making neighborhoods with services that are within walking distance. The Cornell Design group who has done some consulting for the Town of Lansing has also recommended neighborhoods with services. They are not talking about a McDonald's. It would be low impact for example, a home based business, small office, small coffee shop or medical office with lite traffic. • Trails and Pathways-Deborah Trumbull is working on the Town Center Trails and with the Planning Board on the natural trail systems. The Planning Board continues to urge the developers to include community trails. The developers have been very cooperative. • Public Transportation-The Board has been reaching out to TCAT and sadly,they are not ready to add additional bus stops in Lansing at this time. o Cornell has a team working on busing issues,ID cards and bus routes. The Planning Board will review the remainder of the questions and comments from the Public Hearing and present a review of the public concerns along with a recommendation to the Town Board at the next meeting on November 13,2017 meeting. MIKE LONG REVIEWS PLANNING UPDATES Cell Tower-Crown Castle • SEQRA Review on November 13, 2017 meeting. Comprehensive Plan • Site-Plan Approval on November 13, 2017 meeting. Rochester Cornerstone Group • On the Agenda November 13, 2017 meeting • SEQRA/Site Plan Approval on November 27, 2017 meeting. Cargill - Shaft #4 Surface Site Plan Improvements 11 IPage APPROVED • Site-Plan Approval on November 13, 2017 meeting. Larry Sharpsteen made a motion to adjourn at 8:23 PM. Lin Davidson seconded the motion. 121Page