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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1997-10-01 4 9 3 1 Planning Board Minutes Public Hearing - Rice October 1 , 1997 TOWN OF DANBY PLANNING BOARD MINUTES PUBLIC HEARING - RICE LANDSCAPING October 1 , 1997 PRESENT : Chairperson Kenneth Horst Planning Board Members : Gerald Catlin, Arch Dotson, William Farrell , Linda Hansen, Bob Roe, Nancy Weitzel • Others Present : Carol Sczepanski - Town Clerk Susan Beeners - Code Enforcement Officer Nancy Rice and Karl Kayser - Rice Landscaping Representatives Members of the Public : Suzanne Hiney, Judy VanDemark, Toni McBride Public Hearing Declared Open : Chairperson Horst declared the Public Hearing open at 7 : 32 P . M . and read the following Notice of Publication : "NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN, that a Public Hearing will be held by the Planning Board of the Town of Danby on Wednesday , October 1 , 1997 at 7 : 30 P . M . , Danby School Building, 54A Gunderman Road, Ithaca, New York 14850 . Purpose of hearing is to consider a Recommendation to the Town of Danby Town Board with respect to a request for the rezoning of Town of Danby Tax Parcel No . 2 . - 1 -26 . 1 , located at 1428 Danby Road, from Low Density Residential Zone to Commercial Ciaschi , property Zone B . Timoth Ciaschi roperty owner ; Rice Landscaping, Inc . , applicant . All interested parties will be given the opportunity to be heard either in writing or in person . A special meeting of the Planning Board will follow the public hearing . By order of the Planning Board Chair Carol W . Sczepanski , Town Clerk Dated : September 20 , 1997 Publish: September 23 , 1997 " Communications Received : 1 ) Affidavit of "Notification by Mail" , filed September 4 , 1997 . 2) Letter to Planning Board from Barbara Ganzel opposing the rezoning of Parcel No . 2 . - 1 -26 . 1 . 3 ) Letter to Planning Board from James Hovanec of Progressive Powersport - approving of the rezoning of Parcel No . 2 . - 1 -26 . 1 • Nancy Rice from Rice Landscaping, Inc . reported that they had contacted the neighbors immediately adjacent to the property. They sent letters to the neighbors who were not at home . There were some concerns with the neighbors and they are more than happy to address those concerns . She said that their main goal is to have a very professional , well groomed, and quiet business that does not disturb their neighbors . She said that this location is perfect for them and that they operate a very high quality business and are very well known in the Ithaca area. They look forward to being a Danby resident and hope the neighbors will be happy to see them . They would never do anything to disrupt the Town. All their equipment will be installed in the warehouse and the house located on that property will remain residential . Their operation is basically mornings with their trucks leaving in the morning and returning late afternoon . The property is now zoned for use as an auto body repair shop and is now empty . Comments from the Public : 494 2 Planning Board Minutes Public Hearing - Rice October 1 , 1997 Toni McBride - 1432 Danby Road- Read a letter from Barbara Ganzel of 1444 Danby Road opposing the rezoning to be entered into the record . She lives adjacent to the site . Judy Vandemark - 1432 Danby Road - said that she and Toni McBride have a small farm adjacent to the property and is concerned their may be traffic coming to the landscaping facility and possible plans for future expansion or that a change of ownership might create a bar or other commercial business . Chairperson Horst said that if there was any change in the use of the property must come to the Town Planning Board for consideration . • Susan Beeners said that the site is very limited due to size and topography . As proposed the new zoning for the site would be for a landscape installation, maintenance and snow removal service business with an accessory wholesale nursery . The intent for the wholesale nursery is for items ordered by customers and held briefly until they are installed on a property. The site will not be open to all commercial uses but restricted to their proposal . Suzanne Hiney - 1450 Danby Road - owns the property directly across the road from the proposed site and her father owns the property that is adjacent. She has been through all the auto businesses that have operated there with ugly signage, traffic to the facility and lighting. She is concerned about snow removal trucks leaving the facility during the middle of the night with lights shining in her bedroom windows . Karl Kayser reported that Rice Landscaping has small trucks and the largest is a one-ton truck . When excavating is required they hire a contractor for that service . Nancy Rice said that their plans for the property right now is to paint the house, put the shutters back on, to re-landscape the entire property and to paint the warehouse . A representative from the N . Y. S . Department of Transportation has viewed the access to the site and told them where a sign can be placed and the laws regulating signage along the state highway . Bill Farrell said that we should continue with this public hearing for the purpose of rezoning this property to Commercial Zone "B " . Susan said that what is before the Planning Board is an application for Commercial Zone "B", where it is proposed that you add some restrictions . She submitted memo from Tompkins County Planning Department stating that there would be no significant deleterious impact on intercommunity, County, or State interests . They are concerned about the proposal to rezone this parcel to a commercial district yet restrict the commercial uses on the parcel . Creating a separate zone could be considered spot zoning. Susan reported that the Danby Fire Department and the Department of Transportation do not see any problems with the site . She said that she had reviewed the Tompkins County Planning Department memo with the Town Attorney regarding the creation of a separate zone that could be considered as spot zoning . He said that the County in many of their letters makes a statement of concern related • to spot zoning. This property is across from existing commercially zoned properties, is on a N . Y . S . highway, is a reasonable distance from neighbors and the use would be restricted basically to this service so that spot zoning should not be an issue . Public Hearing Declared Closed Chairperson Horst declared the public hearing closed at 8 : 25 P . M . delal 'data/4j phm-rice . 97 Carol W . Scze ►fd<ki , Secretary 4 9 ,5 1 Planning Board Minutes October 1 , 1997 TOWN OF DANBY PLANNING BOARD MINUTES OCTOBER 1 , 1997 SPECIAL MEETING PRESENT : Chairperson Kenneth Horst Planning Board Members : Gerald Catlin, Arch Dotson, William Farrell , Linda Hansen, Bob Roe, • Nancy Weitzel Others Present : Carol Sczepanski - Town Clerk Susan Beeners - Code Enforcement Officer Nancy Rice and Karl Kayser - Rice Landscaping Representatives Members of the Public : Suzanne Hiney, Judy VanDemark, Toni McBride A special meeting of the Planning Board was held to consider a Recommendation to the Town of Danby Town Board with respect to a request for the rezoning of Town of Danby Tax parcel No . 2 . - 1 - 26. 1 , located at 1428 Danby Road, from Low Density Residential Zone to Commercial Zone B . Chairperson Ken Horst called the Special Meeting of the Planning Board to order at 8 : 30 P . M . Bill Farrell said that we should consider the proposal as it has been presented to us . Nancy Weitzel said that the size and the location of the property restricts its use for many other uses than is proposed . Gerry Catlin said that this proposal will upgrade the property . He is familiar with the operation of Rice Landscaping and said that he thinks it would be an improvement to the property . Chairperson Horst asked the Board to review the Environmental Assessment Form and attachments . Robert Roe said that he thinks the documents presented are in order and all the issues he was concerned about have been adequately addressed by the DoT , the Danby Fire Department and the applicants . Linda Hansen said that she thinks this proposal will be a wonderful addition to the community . In response to comments about the noise from traffic along 96B , she said that she also lives on 96B and has become accustomed to the noise generated from traffic . The Planning Board reviewed the proposed Local Law and amended Section 1 3 (b) by deleting (upon the application for and the receipt of a Special Permit ; and) • RESOLUTION NO. u9_ OF OCTOBER 1 , 1997 RICE LANDSCAPING, INC., REQUEST FOR REZONING , TAX PARCEL 2 .- 1 -26 . 1 , 1428 DANBY ROAD By William Farrell : Seconded by Gerald Catlin WHEREAS, Rice Landscaping, Inc . has requested that Town of Danby Tax Parcel No . 2 . - 1 -26 . 1 , located at 1428 Danby Road, be rezoned from Low Density Residential Zone to become a part of Commercial Zone "B-2 " , with the proposed zone to contain a landscape installation, maintenance and snow removal service business along with a preexisting dwelling ; and WHEREAS, this is an Unlisted Action for which the Town of Danby Town Board is legislatively 496 2 Planning Board Minutes October 1 , 1997 determined to act as Lead Agency in environmental review, and for which the Town of Danby Planning Board and the Tompkins County Department of Planning are involved agencies ; and WHEREAS , the Planning Board on October 1 , 1997 has held a public hearing for review of the proposal ; and WHEREAS, the Planning Board has duly considered the General Considerations for site plans provided in Section 805 of the Zoning Ordinance, now, therefore , it is RESOLVED, that the Planning Board recommends to the Town Board that a negative determination of environmental significance be made for this Unlisted Action ; and it is further • RESOLVED , that the Planning Board recommends to the Town Board the following : 1 . that the site is located on a main highway, and that the proposal appears to be consistent with guidelines set forth in the 1989 Comprehensive Plan for commercial development ; 2 . that the distance from the warehouse on the site to the nearest off- site residences appears to exceed 400 feet ; 3 . that the site is near established commercial uses, and that the property had in 1971 received a variance for use for an automobile repair business ; 4 . that the proposed use for a landscape maintenance and snow removal service business is not as incompatible with residential uses as some other uses permitted in commercial zones might be for this location, and that it is appropriate to limit the uses of the site to those set forth in the proposed local law which follows in this resolution ; and it is further RESOLVED, that the Planning Board recommends to the Town Board that the General Site Plan for said zone, entitled " Site Plan, No . 1428 Danby Road" , prepared by Rice Landscaping, Inc . , Nancy Rice , dated September 3 , 1997 be approved, and recommends that the Town Board establish said zone pursuant to the proposed local law which follows : " TOWN OF DANBY LOCAL LAW NO. OF 1997 A LOCAL LAW AMENDING THE TOWN OF DANBY ZONING ORDINANCE RELATED TO THE EXPANSION OF COMMERCIAL ZONE " B2 " , ON DANBY ROAD NEAR MUZZY ROAD Section 1 . The Zoning Ordinance of the Town of Danby as reenacted and readopted by the Town Board on December 11 , 1991 , is further amended as follows : 1 . Commercial Zone B-2 , located on the east side of Danby Road near its intersection with Muzzy Road, is hereby expanded to the west to include Town of Danby Tax Parcel No . 2 . - 1 -26 . 1 , which is known as 1428 Danby Road and which was previously zoned Low Density Residential Zone, with the boundaries of said expansion area more particularly described in Schedule A attached . 2 . The Zoning Map of the Town of Danby, and the Supplement to the Zoning Map , are hereby amended to show the location and boundaries of said expansion of Commercial Zone B-2 as set forth • in this local law. 3 . Permitted principal and accessory uses in said zone expansion are the following, except as may be authorized upon further application to and approval by the Town Board : (a) a landscape installation, maintenance and snow removal service business with an accessory wholesale nursery ; (b) those uses which are permitted in High Density Residential Zones ; (c ) parking and off-street loading areas for motorized vehicles, accessory storage buildings, and advertising sign boards , as subject to the further requirements of this ordinance for such uses in Commercial Zones . Any outside storage of landscaping materials such as topsoil , and any receptacles for waste disposal, shall be suitably screened so as not to create a visual detriment to neighboring properties . 497 3 Planning Board Minutes October 1 , 1997 4 . The placement of a new sign on the preexisting sign posts, which are located approximately five feet within the N . Y. State Route 96B right of way line , is permitted notwithstanding the fact that the sign post location does not comply with the current minimum setback requirement for signs set forth in this ordinance , provided that said sign placement complies with all other requirements for signs set forth in this ordinance , and with all pertinent requirements of the N . Y . State Dept . of Transportation.. Section 2 . In the event that any portion of this law is declared invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the validity of the remaining portions of this law shall not be affected by such declaration of invalidity . Section 3 . This law shall take effect .5 days after its adoption or the date it is filed in the Office of the Secretary of State of the State of New York, whichever is later. SCHEDULE A DESCRIPTION OF LANDS BEING REZONED FROM LOW DENSITY RESIDENTIAL ZONE TO BECOME AN EXPANSION OF COMMERCIAL ZONE B - 2 ALL THAT TRACT OR PARCEL OF LAND situate in the Town of Danby, County of Tompkins and State of New York, being more particularly shown on a survey map entitled " Survey Map, No . 1428 Danby Road, Town of Danby, Tompkins Co . , N . Y. " , dated Aug . 9 , 1980 , amended Aug . 14 , 1980, by Clarence W. Brashear, L. L. S . , filed in the Tompkins County Clerk's office in Book 431 of Deeds at Page 732 , and according to which survey the property is described as follows : BEGINNING at a point in the center line of Danby Road, which point is 247 . 7 feet northwesterly of the centerline of Muzzy Road at its intersection with Danby Road, thence north 82 degrees west along a southerly boundary of lands reputedly owner by Hiney a distance of 412 .7 feet; thence south 5 degrees 53 minutes west along an easterly boundary of lands reputedly owned by Hiney a distance of 334 . 5 feet; thence north 84 degrees 26 minutes east along a northern boundary of lands shown on said survey map as reputedly owned by McDonald and presently reputedly owned by McBride a distance of 476 feet to the center line of Danby Road ; thence northwesterly along the center line of Danby Road a distance of 247 . 7 feet to the point or place of beginning . " A vote on the resolution resulted as follows : Catlin Aye Dotson Aye Farrell. Aye Hansen Aye Roe Aye Weitzel Aye Horst Aye Carried Unanimously • ADJOURNMENT : On a motion the meeting adjourned at 8 : 37 P . M . del°11 Carol W . Sczep . s . i , Secretary rein- 10- 1 . 97