Planning Board Meeting ~ April 2, 2025

2025-04-02 · Planning Board · 1:18:33 · watch on YouTube →

A Planning Board meeting held with the minimum quorum of three members, which the chair noted meant every vote needed all three in favour. The board heard an update from the town planner on the land use ordinance codification review, which came back with 139 questions for the town, and reminders about the town elections on Friday and town meeting on Saturday. Three applications were taken up: a private road maintenance agreement for Blue J Way, an amendment to a 2020 conditional use approval to allow outdoor seasonal seating at a farm market at 1252 Royalsborough Road, and a lot line correction in phase one of the Bowie Hill subdivision to cure a setback violation. On the seating application the board worked through each conditional use criterion in turn, recording a 3-0 vote on each, capped seating at 40, and added a finding that special events such as fairs and dinners are not covered by this approval and may need a separate amendment. The board also discussed wetland impacts on the Bowie Hill lot that are being resolved with the Army Corps of Engineers and DEP, and asked that the outcome be submitted with phase two.

No written minutes could be matched to this meeting. The transcript records that the speaker changed but never who was speaking, so any name attached to a statement below is inferred from context and is marked (?).

What was discussed

1. 0:37
   Call to order, quorum and minutes

   The chair opened the meeting with three members present, the minimum for a quorum, and noted that because the bylaws require a majority of the five-member board, every vote that night needed all three members in favour. A motion was made and seconded to accept the minutes of March 5 and March 19, 2025 as presented.

2. 0:37
   Codification of the land use ordinance

   The town planner, George Thebarge (?), reported that the consultant's editorial and legal analysis of the land use ordinance had come back with 139 questions asking the town for corrections and direction. He said the issues fall into three groups: legal and administrative wording, minor policy issues of which there are 13, and seven or eight major policy issues such as back lots and home-based businesses. He gave the deadline for the town's response as a date the transcript renders as "June July 25th".

3. 6:05
   Taking the codification list to the select board

   The town planner said he will present the analysis to the select board at its second meeting in May and seek direction on priorities, in the same way the board has previously delegated work such as solar and resource protection. Board members asked whether they would see the list, and said they would request a copy. Members were invited to send in policy issues of their own; the fire chief's concerns about the current policy on underground cisterns for fire protection water supplies were given as an example.

4. 6:05
   Election and town meeting reminder

   The chair reminded the meeting that town elections run Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Eureka Center and that town meeting starts at 9 a.m. Saturday at the Durham Community School. No residents raised non-agenda items.

5. 6:05
   Blue J Way private road maintenance agreement introduced

   The board took up review of a private road maintenance agreement for Blue J Way, map 2, lot 35, with no public comment taken.

6. 12:01
   Blue J Way: planner's introduction and applicant

   The town planner explained that under the current process the road commissioner and code officer approve the road plan and right of way, and the planning board reviews only the maintenance agreement, which the applicant needs before selling lots or getting building permits. The existing access is substandard for serving multiple lots, so the applicant proposes to relocate it and create a new driveway to the back lot, producing one new lot, which does not trigger subdivision review. Bob Puffer of 960 Pinkham Brook Road identified himself as the applicant and said the lots are fully conforming.

7. 17:14
   Blue J Way: easement questions and vote

   The chair asked whether the first part of the new right of way, which crosses land the applicant does not own, has the neighbours' permission. Bob Puffer (?) said both the old and new 50-foot rights of way are called out in his deed and that James Cherry, who owns the intervening lot, has no objection. The board confirmed the plan references the easement across land of James Cherry by deed book 4307, page 274, and then voted.

8. 17:14
   Outdoor seasonal seating at 1252 Royalsborough Road (?) introduced

   The board took up a request for conditional use approval for outdoor seasonal seating at 1252 Royalsborough Road, map 7, lot 113C. The chair disclosed that the land immediately north of the property is owned by his wife's cousin, said he has no financial interest, and asked whether the board members and the applicant were content for him to continue; they were.

9. 22:59
   Planner's summary and applicant's presentation

   The town planner explained that the 2020 conditional use approval for a farm market including food takeout included a finding that there would be no seating, so seating requires an amended approval, and that under article 7 the board may only review the proposed change, not reopen the existing approval. Gary Goodrich of 764 Elmwood Road in Pownal (?) said a picnic table had been on site for employees as a condition of his GAP certification and that customers began using it. He said point-of-sale records show vehicle visits have not changed much from the 50 to 100 a day estimated in the original approval.

10. 28:06
    Seating locations and a cap of 40 seats

    Two seating areas were discussed, one to the side and one directly behind the market, the rear one proposed as a 25 by 30 foot deck or stone surface. Gary Goodrich estimated 30 to 40 people at a time and agreed to a maximum of 40 seats. He said there are no plans to expand the kitchen or bring in food trucks.

11. 33:19
    Special events are not part of this application

    The chair said the existing conditional use and this application do not cover the fairs, dinners and bands held at the farm, and pointed to Celebration Tree Farm as a comparable approval that did include events. The board agreed to deal with seating now, since the applicant wants seating out in April and the next meeting is in May, and asked Gary Goodrich to work with the town planner and code officer on whether a further amendment is needed before his first charitable dinner at the end of June.

12. 33:19
    Conditional use criteria: public health and traffic safety

    The board began working through the conditional use criteria one at a time, voting on each. Findings for public health covered trash in two covered bins collected by a private hauler and a regularly cleaned bathroom. For traffic safety the findings recorded no parking lot or vehicle accidents in nearly five years and maintained entrance and exit signs, with one member noting the exit sign looked askew, possibly from plowing.

13. 38:29
    Conditional use criteria: public safety, environment, scale and intensity

    The public safety finding recorded that surrounding uses are residential and the only substantial safety problem is multiple auto accidents each year at the nearby intersection, with a state four-way stop expected. The environmental finding covered the level, stable seating surfaces and the applicant's own well. On scale and intensity the board reviewed findings about the craft fair, small local bands and screening, and the chair noted the ordinance sets maximum day and night noise levels measured at the property line.

14. 44:03
    Added finding on special events, then noise, right title and financial ability

    The town planner drafted an added finding J: that any expansion of use for special events may need amended conditional use approval and the current approval is limited to outdoor seating. Gary Goodrich agreed to it. The board then voted separately on noise and hours of operation, correcting the hours to Tuesday through Friday 8 to 5:30 and Saturday 9 to 2, on right title or interest, and on financial and technical ability, where the deck was estimated at less than $5,000 and members took care not to lock the applicant into building a wooden deck.

15. 49:07
    Compliance with land use ordinance standards and parking

    The board reviewed section 5.22, covering restaurants, food service and takeout stands, and added findings recording the agreed maximum of 40 seats and that the current parking lot configuration was approved as part of the original conditional use and is not changing. The town planner corrected the use of the word grandfathered, explaining that the parking is not lawfully nonconforming but was approved by the prior conditional use decision, which this amended application cannot reopen.

16. 54:20
    Condition of approval and final decision on seating

    The board voted to attach the condition that the project be constructed in accordance with the plans and testimony presented, covering the two seating areas only, and then took the final vote on the application as a whole. Afterwards the chair said seating was done and repeated that the applicant should work with town staff on the separate question of special events, including a parking plan.

17. 59:45
    Bowie Hill: setback correction on lot 13

    Jonathan Lozo of 616 High Street, Bath, and Charlie Burnham of New Gloucester appeared for Bowie Hill Development LLC on an amendment to correct a setback violation on lot 13 in phase one. The town planner said the foundation was poured approximately 7 feet into the 20-foot rear setback at its farthest point, and that the proposal takes a triangle of about 10,000 square feet from the subdivision's excess open space, more than is needed to cure the violation. Jonathan Lozo (?) said the corner had been staked incorrectly on a steep site and that the aim is only to rectify the setback, not to expand the structure.

18. 1:05:17
    Wetland impacts and the size of the lot line shift

    Jonathan Lozo (?) said the only wetland impacts in the subdivision occurred on lot 13, during removal of the Parker Schoolhouse across a ditch from Bowie Hill, and that these are being addressed with the Army Corps of Engineers and DEP. Board members pressed on why the line was being moved about 90 feet when 7 feet would cure the violation; the applicant said there was ample excess open space and no reason not to. The chair noted the developer has the right to propose the change but not to make it without the board's approval.

19. 1:10:52
    Phase two guidance and vote on the amendment

    The town planner asked that phase two lots be reviewed for building envelope limitations given wetlands and slopes, which matters more on smaller lots. A member asked that the final Army Corps and DEP decision on the wetland impacts be submitted with phase two so it is on the record. A motion was then made to approve the amendment submitted by Bowie Hill Development LLC as a lot line correction.

20. 1:10:52
    Recap of the ordinance amendment public hearing

    Members reported that about 13 people attended the public hearing, of whom only about three were not conservation commission, select board or planning board members or staff. Gordon Grimes (?) asked whether the historic designation covers the interior of a building, and another attendee asked what happens if the contract zoning and battery storage article does not pass.

21. 1:16:32
    Public hearing recap continued and adjournment

    Members noted the hearing ran 58 minutes, that there was no discussion of resource protection, and that the decision not to separate the contract zoning and battery storage questions was the select board's. A motion to adjourn followed.

What was decided

• 0:37
  Motion to accept the minutes of March 5 and March 19, 2025 as presented. Recorded 3-0passed
• 17:14
  Motion to approve the private road maintenance agreement for Blue J Way, map 2, lot 35. Recorded 3-0passed
• 33:19
  Conditional use criterion for public health impacts satisfied. Recorded 3-0passed
• 33:19
  Conditional use criterion for traffic safety impacts satisfied. Recorded 3-0passed
• 38:29
  Conditional use criterion for public safety impacts satisfied. Recorded 3-0passed
• 38:29
  Conditional use criterion for environmental impacts satisfied. Recorded as unanimous, 3-0passed
• 44:03
  Conditional use criterion for scale and intensity of use satisfied, findings A through I plus the new finding J that any expansion of use for special events may need amended conditional use approval. Recorded 3-0passed
• 44:03
  Conditional use criterion for noise and hours of operation satisfied. Recorded 3-0passed
• 44:03
  Conditional use criterion for right, title or interest satisfied. Recorded 3-0passed
• 44:03
  Conditional use criterion for financial and technical ability satisfied. Recorded 3-0passed
• 54:20
  Standards for restaurants, food service and takeout under section 5.22 satisfied, with added findings recording a maximum of 40 seats and that the existing parking lot was approved under the original conditional use. Recorded 3-0 and stated as approvedpassed
• 54:20
  Motion to attach the condition of approval that the project be built in accordance with the plans and testimony presented, covering the two seating areas onlyoutcome unclear
• 54:20
  Motion to approve the outdoor seating at 1252 Royalsborough Road, map 7, lot 113C, as a whole. No count is recorded; the chair then said seating was doneoutcome unclear
• 1:10:52
  Motion to approve the amendment submitted by Bowie Hill Development LLC, lot line correction on lot 13 of phase one. Recorded 3-0passed
• 1:16:32
  Motion to adjourn. Recorded 3-0passed

An outcome reads "unclear" where the recording does not state it plainly. The recogniser drops short words, and "the motion does not carry" is one missing word from its opposite.

Worth knowing

• 0:37
  The codification consultant returned 139 questions on the land use ordinance requiring direction from the town, grouped into legal and administrative wording, 13 minor policy issues, and seven or eight major ones including back lots and home-based businesses. The response deadline is rendered in the transcript as "June July 25th", so the month is not clear.
• 6:05
  Town elections run Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Eureka Center; town meeting is Saturday at 9 a.m. at the Durham Community School.
• 38:29
  The findings record multiple auto accidents each year at the intersection near 1252 Royalsborough Road. The state is to install a four-way stop at Royalsborough, Rabbit and Quaker Meeting House Roads; no firm date was given, with "about a month" and "this year" both offered.
• 59:45
  The distance the Bowie Hill property line is to be extended is given three different ways in the papers: 90 feet in the attachment B note, 100 feet in the cover letter, and 94.06 feet on the surveyor's draft amended plan. The foundation was poured about 7 feet into the 20-foot rear setback.

Motion language found in the transcript

Located by pattern matching, with no model involved: "I move that", "I'll second", "all those in favour". This is an independent check on the summary above: 8 passages of motion language, against 15 decisions summarised.

Elsewhere

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