Planning Board Meeting Minutes
September 23, 2010
Meeting called to order at 7:01 pm on 9/23/10 by Bill Squires. All present except Linda Mastellar who arrived a few minutes later.
Motion was made to accept minutes from 7/22/2010 PB meeting by Phil Knapp, seconded by Todd Horton – motion passed.
Bill Squires began with an update on changes made to Zoning Code concerning dumping regulations submitted to Town Board. It is necessary that these changes must be sent first to Seneca County with a SEQR application form. Once this is accepted, then the Varick Town Board can call a public hearing to vote on accepting the revised dump regulations.
It was suggested by Tom Bjorkman that we also submit the moving of lot size regulations in the Zoning Code to the subdivision code where they belong. That way we will get all of the necessary changes dealt with at the same time. All agreed this was a good idea. Chairman will make the appropriate add in to the subdivision code and email the other members for review.
Chairman introduced two emails – one from Pete MacDonald with a question about the meaning of “land application facility” and “surface impoundment” in the new landfill definition. He will be referred to the definitions section in the DEC code. The second email was from John Saeli concerning schools in the Zoning Code. He stated the issue has not yet been addressed by PB. We agreed that this needs to be placed on an agenda for discussion at a future date.
Bob Taylor, a member of the Zoning Board of Appeals, was present at the meeting. After commending the work of the PB, he stated that he believed the community cooperated much better due to the work the PB did on the Zoning Code. He then asked if there were any changes to section 306 of the code, which there were not.
At this point the PB began discussions regarding zoning permits based on a draft submitted by Linda Mastellar. The permit is currently four pages long. Page 1 consists of the following items: Heading – Zoning Compliance Permit Application, Town of Varick, Seneca County, NY; Permit #, date; Property Address; Zone District; Proposed Work; Estimated Cost; Property owner name, address, etc.; Applicant name, address, etc.; Applicant Signature (by owner, agent, contractor, architect, or builder), date. It was also agreed to add in an affidavit similar to the one on the current Varick zoning permit application. Approval will be determined by the Code Official who will sign the application.
Page two contains information and instructions for applying for a Zoning Compliance Permit (ZCP). Item one stated the permit is good for one year – this was discussed and changed to two years. Item two – a Seneca County Building Permit (SCBP) is also required before work can begin. Item three – Varick ZCP must be approved before filing for SCBP. Item four tells where Varick application is available. Item five – completed application submitted to Varick Code Enforcement Officer for approval. Item six tells where to obtain SCBP. Item seven – info given for building docks. Item eight – a schedule of fees to be determined by Town Board with PB recommendations. A discussion about fees included residential/business projects and demolition.
Two other items were added to the above draft – item nine wetland delineation and ten, clearance of more than one acre of land (DEC needs to be notified). It was also suggested that we include check offs for other permits required such as certification of occupancy.
The board also raised the question of how to enforce compliance to the code. What recourse may be taken if a person fails to complete the project in the allotted amount of time? It was suggested that we might contact John Sipos or a proper Seneca County official. At the end of our meeting Todd Horton volunteered to look into this and bring information to the next meeting.
Page three of the ZCP has check blocks for proposed improvements and a space for a diagram of the existing lot with improvements (a piece of graph paper may be attached for this purpose).
The last page of the ZCP pertains to waterfront development, docks, etc. The board thought it would be easier to have this separate from structural/land changes on page three. This also will include check blocks for improvements or work done with space to diagram said proposals. One of the purposes for these last two pages is to aid the zoning officer in approving the permit.
This completed the PB agenda for the evening. The next meeting will be on 11/18/10 at 7:00pm. Motion was made by Tom B for adjournment, seconded by Linda M.
Respectfully submitted,
Barry Somerville, secretary