HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016-07-28TOWN OF GROTON ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS
Meeting Minutes -Thursday, 28 July 2016 - 7:30 PM
Groton Town Hall Court Room - 101 Conger Boulevard -Groton, NY
Board Members (*Absent)
Ted Schiele, Chairman
Officer
*Paul Fouts
Patricia Gaines
Carolann Darling
Daniel Cerretani
Applicants & Public in Attendance
Bob Fouts, Barbara Clark.
MEETING CALLED TO ORDER
Chairman Ted Schiele opened the meeting at 7:38 p.m.
Others Present
Rick Fritz, Code Enforcement
Victoria Monty, Town Attorney
Sheldon Clark, Town Councilman
Joan Fitch, Board Secretary
APPROVAL OF MINUTES - 22 JUNE & 14 JULY 2016
A motion was made by Member Patricia Gaines to approve the Minutes of the 22 June
and 14 July 2016 meetings of this Board. The motion was seconded by Member Dan
Cerretani, with the vote recorded as follows:
Ayes: Chairman Schiele Nays: None
Member Cerretani
Member Darling
Member Gaines Absent: Member Fouts
Motion carried.
This becomes Action # 12 of 2016.
OLD BUSINESS
Erich & Mary Sue Haesche, A-p-pellants/Re-puted Owners - 93 & 97 Ogden Road - TM #s
28.-1-34.304 & 305 - Continuation of Use Variance - Warehouse Facilitv in M2 District
(It is noted for the record that the Public Hearing for this appeal was held on 1 June 2016,
with the final action made to recess the Public Hearing for a Use Variance to maintain a
warehouse facility in an M2 District until 7:30 p.m. on 22 June 2016. On 22 June 2016, the
Board closed the Public Hearing and voted to continue the discussion on this request for a Use
Variance until 14 July 2016 at 7:30 p.m. At that meeting there was an oversight and the
required Short Environmental Assessment Form was never completed; therefore, this meeting
was called for the purpose of correcting this oversight. Reference is made to the 14 July 2016
Minutes for additional information.)
Chairman Schiele announced that the reason for this meeting was to correct a procedural
error made at the 14 July 2016, the SEQRA Review. Therefore, the first order of business, he
stated, was to rescind Action #8 of 14 July 2016 which granted a Use Variance for a
warehouse facility at 97 Ogden Road, conditioned upon approval of the Site Plan by the Town
of Groton Planning Board. He then outlined the procedures that the Board needed to follow
thereafter.
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Town of Groton ZBA Meeting Minutes
28 July 2016
With no further discussion, a motion was made by Member Cerretani to rescind Action #8
of 7/14/16 which granted a Use Variance for a Warehouse Facility at 97 Ogden Road,
conditioned upon approval of the Site Plan by the Town of Groton Planning Board. The
motion was seconded by Member Gaines, with the vote recorded as follows:
Ayes: Chairman Schiele Nays: None
Member Cerretani
Member Darling
Member Gaines Absent: Member Fouts
Motion carried.
This becomes Action # 13 of 2016.
A motion was then made by Member Gaines that the Town of Groton Zoning Board of
Appeals hereby declares itself Lead Agency under SEQRA for a proposed warehouse
facility. The motion was seconded by Member Carolann Darling, with the vote recorded
as follows:
Ayes: Chairman Schiele Nays: None
Member Cerretani
Member Darling
Member Gaines Absent: Member Fouts
Motion carried.
This becomes Action # 14 of 2016.
Chairman Schiele announced that the request was considered an Unlisted Action under
SEQRA, and he then read aloud Part II of the Short Environmental Assessment Form. Negative
or small impact responses were obtained to all questions in Part II. Chairman Schiele stated
that he differed with the Board's "No, or small impact may occur" answer to Question 11, "Will
the proposed action create a hazard to environmental resources or human health?" His
reasoning, he stated, was "Because I don't think we know and I think that it's a may. He does
have toxic stuff in there, and the Fire Chief did write a letter that said that if there was a fire
there, the DEC would have to come in and there was also somebody who either wrote a letter or
stated at the hearing that they would be okay with the variance if the Environmental Impact
Assessment was done. I just guess that I think we don't know..."
Member Darling commented that she had thought about how those families heat their homes,
some have 250± -gallon oil tanks on their properties. She also noted that most neighboring
properties have at least two vehicles, each containing gas and oils. There are household
chemicals in people's homes that are all toxic, probably mostly unsealed. Conversely, the
appellant's products are all sealed and he does not intend to sell anything unopened.
At the conclusion of the Chair's comments, a motion was made by Member Cerretani that,
based on the information and analysis of the SEQR concerning this application, the Town
of Groton Zoning Board of Appeals has determined that the proposed action will not
result in any significant adverse environmental impact, resulting in a Negative
Declaration. The motion was seconded by Member Darling, with the vote recorded as
follows:
Motion carried.
Ayes: Member Cerretani Nays: Chairman Schiele
Member Darling
Member Gaines Absent: Member Fouts
This becomes Action # 15 of 2016.
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Town of Groton ZBA Meeting Minutes 28 July 2016
The Board then reviewed the "Use Variance Findings & Decision" it performed on 14 July 2016,
item by item, for 97 Ogden Road. All Board members present agreed that, based on the
evidence used in the 14 July 2016 meeting on this appeal, the findings remain the same.
A motion was then made by Member Cerretani to grant a Use Variance for a Warehouse
Facility at 97 Ogden Road, conditioned upon approval of the Site Plan by the Town of
Groton Planning Board. The motion was seconded by Member Gaines, with the vote
recorded as follows:
Ayes: Chairman Schiele Nays: None
Member Cerretani
Member Darling
Member Gaines Absent: Member Fouts
Motion carried.
This becomes Action # 16 of 2016.
The Board then reviewed the "Use Variance Findings & Decision" it performed on 14 July 2016,
item by item, for 93 Ogden Road. All Board members present agreed that, based on the
evidence used in the 14 July 2016 meeting on this appeal, the findings remain the same.
A motion was then made by Member Cerretani to reaffirm the Town of Groton Zoning
Board of Appeals' denial of a Use Variance (Action #9 of 7/14/16) for a Warehouse Facility
at 93 Ogden Road in an M2 District. The motion was seconded by Member Gaines, with
the vote recorded as follows:
Ayes: Chairman Schiele Nays: None
Member Cerretani
Member Darling
Member Gaines Absent: Member Fouts
Motion carried.
This becomes Action # 17 of 2016.
ADJOURNMENT
At 8:10 p.m., a motion was made by Member Gaines to adjourn the meeting. The motion was
seconded by Member Cerretani, with all members present voting in favor.
Joan E. Fitch, Board Secretary Emailed to Supv., Town/Deputy Clerks, CEO Fritz,
Attorney Monty & Board Members on 8/3/16.
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