HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-03-31 TOWN OF GROTON ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS
TOWN HALL, 7:00 PM
March 31, 2010
Attending: Members: Paul Fouts, Pat Gaines, Lyle Raymond, Steven Thane
Also attending: Glenn Morey ,Groton Town Supervisor, and Don Scheffler,
Town Board member
Absent: Carolann Darling
Meeting called to order at 7:05
1) Coffee and Donuts with the Town Board April 7, 10 AM at the Town Hall
Speaker is Michael Saviola—NYS Ag and Markets
Natural Gas Pipeline Construction Impact on Farm Land
2) Code for impact of gas drilling on Groton infrastructure
Lyle Raymond brought up the idea of increased construction traffic and its impact
on Groton bridges and roads and cited a NY Assoc. of Towns training workshop
given in Feb 2009.
Supervisor Glenn Morey outlined what the town and county are looking at to
mitigate that impact. A local ordinance is more likely but is still in the planning
stage. Members of the ZBA were appreciative of the proactive stance of the town
and county.
3) Draft Land Use code review and input
After reviewing the Draft Land Use code, Chair Thane stated that while the new
code is an upgrade to the old code and looks very workable, he still had
reservations about the Land Use Table (pg 61) and in particular the column under
Rural Ag. The table allows for increased development in the Rural Ag district
with Site Plan review by the Planning Board in almost every category. Chair
Thane felt that this was contrary to the Joint Comprehensive Plan for the Village
and Town of Groton New York of Oct 2005 which states as Goal 2a to "Protect
the diverse physical environment that provides the backdrop for Groton's rural
character" and as an objective to meet that goal to "Adopt clear and concise
policies and regulations to better protect the significant open space... and that
recognize the nature of contemporary agriculture and enhance the economic
viability of agricultural enterprises." The Comprehensive Plan goes on, under
Goal 2c1, to "Encourage new commercial development to locate in the vicinity of
already existing downtown areas and other nodes of retail and services activities."
Supervisor Morey replied that the Draft Land Use Code was a living document
and that he sees revisions coming over the next few years. Nearly half of all
businesses in Groton are outside of the downtown area. Groton does not want to
discourage viable development that may provide jobs and income to the town and
the code provides for the oversight of that development through the Planning
Board Site Plan review.
Meeting adjourned 8:55
Report submitted by Steven Thane 4/1/10