February 21, 2007

Agenda: The Town of Stratham, Planning Board conducted a Public Hearing on Wednesday, February 21, 2007, at 7:00 p.m., at the Stratham Town Hall, 10 Bunker Hill Avenue, Stratham, NH to consider the following:

Approval of Minutes: February 21, 2007

New Business:

Map 14 Lot 13-1, Preliminary Site Plan Review for a Elderly & Workforce Housing development by Aaron Brown & Faith Bartlett

Other:

Planning Session

Members Present: Chair Janet Johnson; Joe Russell, Jeffrey Hyland, Gordon Barker, Bruno Federico, and Charles (Chuck) Grassie, Town Planner. Mary Jane Werner arrived late.

Ms. Johnson asked Mr. Russell to act as a voting member for this evening. Ms. Johnson noted that the February 7, 2007 meeting minutes needed approval. Mr. Federico made a motion to approve the minutes from the February 7, 2007 meeting as written. Mr. Barker seconded the motion, which passed unanimously. Mary Jane Werner arrived late to the meeting. Mr. Russell resumed his position as an alternate.

Map 14 Lot 13-1, Preliminary Site Plan Review for a Elderly & Workforce Housing development by Aaron Brown & Faith Bartlett:

Mr. Federico asked if there was an address for this parcel. He was told that the address is 269 Portsmouth Avenue (The Beairsto property). Faith Bartlett was present to speak to the preliminary site plan for this project. She said that she and Mr. Brown would like to put in a small community type development on the approximately 10 acre lot. Ms. Bartlett said she has envisioned 16 semi-detached garden style, town-house residential units plus a separate single family residence (existing) to be occupied by a resident maintenance manager. Each unit would have two bedrooms and 1-1/2 baths, with two parking spaces for each unit. The units would be sold as condominiums and would share approximately 5 acres of open space. There would be a community well and septic system.

Mr. Barker asked what semi-detached means. Ms. Bartlett said there would be four buildings, with four units in each. She submitted photographs of a similar type of development located in York, ME. Mr. Brown had arrived at the meeting, and took over the discussion. Mr. Brown is a Real Estate Agent who is helping Ms. Bartlett with this project. They are here tonight to get some guidance from the Board as to what would be allowed on this parcel. Mr. Brown had a basic plan that he put up on the board that showed a subdivision design similar to what Ms. Bartlett envisions. He said this would be an age restricted community. Mr. Brown wanted to know if the Board felt that what had been outlined would fit on this site. Mr. Federico asked where the property was located in relation to Sandy Point Road. Mr. Brown explained where it was located. He said they haven’t gone very far into the planning stage, because they wanted to get feedback from the Board on whether or not they thought something like this was feasible. There were discussions on: wetland setbacks; the buffer strip (the State Conservation Restriction) between this property and the Technical College property; and whether or not they could use the conservation land for their calculations on development potential. Mr. Grassie will do some research on this issue. There were also discussions on: the curb cut for the property; and another potential access to the property. Mr. Barker asked if this would be a private road. He was told yes. Mr. Barker asked if the road would be built to Town specifications. Mr. Grassie indicated that the base would be built to Town specifications, but the road may be narrower than Town specifications because it will be a private road. Mr. Federico asked about fire protection. Mr. Brown said they are proposing a 30,000 gallon fire cistern within the development. The applicant may be required to sprinkler the buildings. Ms. Werner asked if this would be elderly and/or workforce housing. Mr. Brown stated that they are still struggling with that issue due to Stratham’s Zoning restrictions. There was additional discussion on this issue; what the buildings might look like; if the language of the easement on the property allows wells and septic in the easement area; and the wetlands.

Lucy Cushman, from the audience, suggested that the applicant might want to pace themselves to see if the proposed zoning change of the Technical College property is approved. This way they might be able to design something that would be compatible, if the same type of development is proposed for that property. Mr. Brown asked if the Board was comfortable with the proposed design. Ms. Johnson said it would be nice if they kept with the look of the homes in the area. No action was taken on this matter. The applicant was asked to wait until after Town Meeting to bring in their formal application.

Other:

Planning Session:

Mr. Grassie indicated that a letter was going to be sent to all the Boards, Commissions, and Committees inviting them to the March 21, 2007 workshop meeting. He said he has been working with the Heritage Commission to find old maps of the Town and getting them scanned. They have also been working on getting a database together of parcels that would be affected if the historic demolition review ordinance passes at Town Meeting.

Mr. Grassie passed out copies of the Growth Management and Innovative Land Use Control Ordinance. He indicated that he had received information from the Stratham Memorial School regarding school capacity. He went over the letter in detail. He also went over the Growth Management information. Ms. Werner asked how the Town could come into compliance with the Growth Ordinance if it is impossible to get good numbers. Mr. Grassie said you can’t be in compliance with the numbers that are available. There was a great deal of discussion on getting numbers from the schools; and the Growth Management Ordinance itself.

Ms. Johnson asked if the Board wanted to create a study committee for the Technical College property; and create a committee to work on defining farming. The were discussions on: coming up with some suggestions on uses for the Technical College property, if the State doesn’t find a buyer for it; and what to do with the properties that have a Conservation Easement on them.

Ms. Johnson asked if the Board members had any suggestions on what should be discussed at the meeting on March 21, 2007 with the Boards, Commissions, and Committees. She will ask them to have representatives present who will give an overview of their concerns, what they are working on, etc. Mr. Grassie suggested that additional tables be brought in so they can have a round table discussion. Mr. Barker asked about the status of updating the Master Plan. Mr. Grassie gave a brief report on the status of the update. There was a great deal of talk on the upcoming Master Plan round table discussion.

Mr. Barker made a motion to adjourn at 8:27 p.m. Ms. Werner seconded the motion, which carried.

Respectfully submitted,

Linda A. Beaudoin

Secretary Stratham Planning Board