Standish Planning Board Meeting Minutes
Standish Planning Board
Meeting Minutes
July 13, 2020
Open Meeting
a. Call to order- Chairman Charles Brown at 6:00pm
b. Opening Statement -Chairman Charles Brown
c. Declaration of a Quorum-6 present.
Present were Deb Boxer, Jolene Whittemore, Pat Frechette, Roland Cloutier, Cheryl Kimball, Chairman Charles Brown, Zach Mosher, Town Planner and Jackie Dyer, Admin to Town Planner and Planning Board.
Approval of Meeting Minutes from February 02, 2020/ June 15, 2020
Mr. Cloutier made a motion to approve the February 02, 2020 minutes., seconded by Mrs. Whittemore. All in favor. Mr. Cloutier made a motion seconded by Mrs. Whittemore to approve the June 15, 2020 minutes. All in favor.
Approval of Finding of Fact:
JDP, Inc., Middle Jam Road Subdivision, Map 20, Lot 47
Sea Dog Solar, 425 Cape Rd., Map 3, Lot 43
Standish Bonny Eagle Solar, 425 Bonny Eagle Road, Map 6, Lot 64
5 Brothers Tile, Cider Mill Rd., Map 10, Lot 64
Leavitt-Tompson, Rt.25/Oak Hill Rd., Map 10, Lots 11
Mr. Cloutier read all the Findings of Fact. He made a motion to approve all of them with an amendment (already done) on the Solar Projects-Sea Dog Solar and Roger Mosley. This was seconded by Mrs. Kimball. All in favor.
New Business:
Gorham Sand & Gravel, 186 Fort Hill Road, Map 14, Lot 54-1(former Pompeo Pit- 5 Year Gravel Pit Renewal
Shawn Frank from Sebago Technics was present to represent the applicant as well as Mark Curtis-Operations Manager and Tom Shaw, owner of Gorham Sand and Gravel along with his son Darren Shaw. Shawn gave a brief overview about the gravel pit. He said they are looking to keep things the same and not do any expanding. He said that the Board has the last report and permits issued along with the pit inspection report. He said that basically nothing has changed. He said there are setbacks that they have maintained, and they also have a ground water monitoring well. Shawn said that the pit has been inspected by DEP and found to be in compliance.
Shawn said that there are some minor items they have been asked to change and they have done that on the plan and will submit the final plan. There has not been any change in excavation since 2005. Charlie asked for questions from the Board. Shawn said that if the Board needs anything changed, he can make those changes as well on an updated plan. Charlie asked if the final plans would be sealed and Shawn said they would be. He said he would get those changes to Zach sometime next week. Shawn said that he had not seen anything through the peer review being done. He said the only change he saw was notifying the abutters in Gorham.
Mr. Brown asked for public comments. Mary from 182 Fort Hill Road said she has lived beside the gravel pit for almost 40 years. She said the only issue they have is sound and they have never heard the level they do now. She said that Gorham Sand has been very careful and willing to talk to them. She said for a while it got better and now it is back to being very loud and the banging of the tailgates has escalated. She said she knows that the owner does not have control over the men while they are working, but they have been great if they have called them. She asked what their recourse might be with this? She has spoken to Mark Curtis and feels that Gorham Sand has been very gracious when they have called.
Charlie asked if that is a Code Enforcement issue and Zach said it would be. Mary said she does not want to be calling them all the time. Zach said that he would like to hear from Mark Curtis first. Mark said the neighbors are 100 percent correct with what they have said. He said this is a new operation for GSG and has a lot of activity, but the previous owners did not have the amount of activity they do. He said they are trying to keep things in line with how they operate going from an inactive pit to an active one. Mark said they have gone in and are trying to change some things around. He said they do not do the things the same way the previous owner did.
Mark went on to say that the Earle’s had called also and GSG is in total agreement with them about the noise. He said they have no reason to start before 7am like they have been doing. He said there is a concern for tailgate slamming, and it is not needed, but they are doing it anyways. He said they have spoken with the head of the pit and the drivers and they will get a reminder daily. He said they will try and remedy this as soon and as much as possible. Mark said they do use back up alarms and that is for safety reasons. He said they use a different kind of back up alarm which bounces off you so you can tell where the truck is coming from. The loader beepers adjust up and down to the noise levels around them.
Mark ask that any neighbor call him first so they can address any problems and complaints. He said there are sometimes that the early morning noises are not them, but he asks that people contact him directly during working hours so they can address the issue right away. He has given the neighbors his cell phone number. They will operate within the Town ordinances and have no problem complying with anything. He said they want to be good neighbors and understand what it is like to live near a gravel pit. Zach said there is a requirement with hours of operation, but there is nothing specific in the gravel pit ordinance about noise. He said that is a separate issue and ordinance.
Mr. Brown asked what the Board thinks. Mrs. Boxer asked about what they would do to comply, and Zach said that they need to follow and comply with the ordinances in place.
Mary said that she does not want to call them and complain every time the noise level gets louder. She said they are just asking that they monitor it and she really thinks it is about the trucks coming in and out. She said the first time she called, the first couple of weeks were great and then it became louder and louder again. She said she appreciates everything the are doing to remedy this. Tom Shaw said he appreciates them calling and he knows right now it is noisy with the rock crusher going and they probably have that for about another month or so. Tom said that they will remind the truck drivers about the noise and remind them that they do not need to slam the tailgates constantly. He said he knows they forget at times. Mark Curtis said they can put some signs in the pit reminding the drivers about “no tailgate slamming, “plus reminding them from time to time. He said they appreciate the calls and will do what they can to make it right.
Roland asked if they would be comfortable with a condition that said they needed signage with “no tailgate slamming” as constant reinforcement. GSG agreed. Mrs. Kimball asked if there were any other problems, or just the noise from the tailgate slamming? Mr. Cloutier said with the signs in place he feels that would remedy the situation. Mr. Brown asked for other public comments and there were none. He closed the public comments. Tom said they would put the signs at the entrance and one in the pit. Roland made a motion to approve the application and add a couple of conditions of approval, first the no tailgate slamming and second, the Town must receive a sealed plan.
Mr. Cloutier made a motion seconded Mrs. Whittemore to find the application complete. All in favor. Mr. Cloutier made a motion seconded by Mrs. Kimball to approve the application with two added conditions of approval. All in favor.
“Move that the Board grant a Site Plan approval for a gravel pit 5-year renewal under the provisions of the Standish Land Use code for the application submitted by Shawn Frank of Sebago Technics, LLC on behalf of Gorham Sand & Gravel with the finding that it meets:
The application meets the requirements in Chapter 181-16, Gravel Pits and meets the requirements in Chapter 181 – 73 Site Plan Standards and Conditions of Approval.
CONDITIONS OF APPROVAL –
Daily hours of operation shall be limited to no more than 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Monday to Friday; 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Saturdays; and no Sunday operations.
There is a gate on the pit access road near Rt. 114. It should be shown on the plan. If the access road serves other purposes a new gate should be installed at the pit.
The 150' setback to the northeast property line was waived; a 50' setback was required. Only clean fill that would not pollute the groundwater may be used to bring the pit 2.5:1 side slope to reclamation grade.
The project would be in two phases. The first to be 10 acres, the second would be the remainder. In no case shall the total area needing reclamation exceed 11 acres. This includes only 10 acres of working pit and associated on site non-vegetated storage areas and stockpiles.
A minimum of one steel cased monitoring well with lockable cap will be installed per phase within the pit floor. Well depth will reach a minimum of 10 feet below the lowest elevation within that phase or into the ground-water table.
Seasonal high water within all monitoring wells must be observed and reported during the pit’s annual inspection. Annually records of the seasonal high water table elevation should be established and submitted to the town prior to annual CEO permit renewal This monitoring well report must be certified each spring the seasonal high-water table elevations for the two existing monitoring wells and a new well to be located near or within wetland along northerly lot boundary. Prior to expanding into the Village Center District, toward White Brothers pit, a drill well will be installed to explore the depth to seasonal high water within that area prior to excavating into the water table.
A surety bond for reclamation would be established to the satisfaction of the Planning Board Administrator This includes only 10 acres of working non-reclaimed pit plus 1 acre for aggregate storage that will need to be reclaimed once the piles are removed. Adequate clean material shall be retained on site to reclaim pit to grades shown on reclamation plan. Bond language will need a review by our town lawyer as to legal sufficiency.
Approval is for excavation five feet above seasonal high-water table only. Once seasonal high water is determined the site plan will be modified and pit floor elevations must remain five feet above the high-water table.
Topsoil shall not be removed from the site but shall be retained on site for reclamation. Adequate loam to cover all reclamation needs shall be retained on site for the purpose of reclamation.
It is understood that the applicant has an agreement with the owners of the abutting White Brothers pit to, at some point in the future, to remove the gravel within the buffer. Until that time, the wooded buffer area between these pits should remain substantially forested unless or until the applicant has received site plan approval for expansion of the pit into that area. A wetland exists within this area and excavation must not lower the seasonal high-water table assumed to exist 6" below the ground surface.
No blasting permitted without separate Planning Board approval.
This approval is dependent upon, and limited to, the proposals and plans contained in the application and supporting documents submitted and affirmed by the applicant (either orally or in writing) and that any variation from the plans, proposals, and supporting documents is subject to review and approval by the Planning Board, except for minor changes which the Code Enforcement Officer may approve.
Signs will be installed that say, “no tailgate slamming.”
The applicant will provide to the Town of Standish a sealed plan.
WASH, LLC, Route 35(Chadbourne Road), Map 14, Lot 45-5 Year Gravel Pit Renewal
Shawn Frank from Sebago Technics was present to represent the applicant as well as Mark Curtis-Pit Manager and Tom Shaw, owner of Gorham Sand and Gravel along with his son Darren Shaw.
Shawn gave a brief overview of the pit and said they are not looking to change anything.
He said this was previously the White Brothers Pit. Shawn said that this pit has been in operation for many years and meets all the DEP standards. He said they are doing the same type of processing that the Fort Hill Road pit does. He said they are seeking approval with all of the proposed conditions.
Mr. Brown asked for comments from the Board. Charlie asked him about the buffers and will they be maintained as separate or eliminated. Mr. Frank said they would eventually remove the buffer and make it one big pit. The buffer he said goes right to the property line. Mr. Cloutier asked about the plan as it refers to a body of water and Mr. Frank says they will note that on the plan. Mr. Cloutier made a motion to find the application complete. Mr. Brown asked if there are any comments and Zach said he had emailed Mr. Frank his concerns about making some small changes on the plan, along with a missing abutter on the Gorham side of the pit.
Shawn said he did address Mr. Tubbs concerns and he thanks the Board and the Planner for their time. Mr. Brown said that a couple of the conditions needed to be adjusted on the plan and Mr. Frank said he would take care of that. Mr. Shaw said it’s not really much of a road but can be driven on with a pickup. Note 3 and 7 in the memo need to be updated on the plan.
Mr. Brown asked for public comment. Kathleen Scholfield lives at 100 Fort Hill Road and this pit is behind her house. She said she tried on her own to look up codes and was confused. She asked how much of a buffer is allowed between her and the pit? How close to their backyard will the pit be allowed to come? They were told they would have a beautiful pond behind their house, and she said it is just a frog pong. Both her dogs swam in that pond and had cancer. How is the quality of water? Mr. Frank said they are showing a 50-foot buffer and set back but he is not sure as he is going by the old plan. Mr. Brown asked about the Shad Gully Road and it was said that this is an old tote road.
Mark Curtis said they had a survey done and a title search before they bought the pit. He said they did not see anything on the title or the survey that said anything about a town road or the like. He said the previous owners had owned the pit for years. What they are showing on their plan is what the DEP approved previously. Mark said that under the new ordinance maybe things are different than they were back many years ago. He said the first site plan approval came in 1984. Shawn Frank said they took this plan from the previously approved plan and he said nothing is referenced in the plan about the former road or the existing setbacks. He went by the previous plan from 5 years ago and assumed everything else had been addressed years before.
Charlie asked about the road and is it right behind their property line and Mrs. Scholfield said yes. She said snowmobiles and ATV’s go down there. Charlie said he felt that this would be behind the 50-foot buffer. Mr. Frank and Mr. Brown agreed that the pit does not encroach on the buffer or the Scholfield’s property. Mark Curtis said there are some things possibly to farm near the buffer and they will dig it out if they must but will maintain the 50-foot set back at the same time. They will not disturb the 50-foot buffer or take any trees down and disturb the roadbed. Mrs. Scholfield said she realizes it is their property and they just want to ask questions and find out as they have rights with their land too.
Mark Curtis said the Pompeo pit has a variance and was approved under the existing ordinances in place today. Mark said that the edge of the pit is following the ordinances and they will not go any closer to the buffer than approved. He said this has been approved as a site plan and will remain that way. He said he feels they are nearing the end of the pit and will be surprised if they come back in five years for another approval. Mark said there are better things to come that he feels people will be happy with. Mark said that if ordinances change, a new pit would have to conform to those new standards. He said there is a difference between a new pit and a renewal. Mr. Cloutier said the pit renewal maintains a prior renewal standards and Mr. Brown agreed. Mr. Cloutier asked about the pit and the 50-foot undisturbed set back (buffer zone). Mr. Curtis said their site plan says that they go by the previous site plan and setbacks. He said this is from the previous plan and what they bought. They will make a note on the plan that this approval is from the prior approval since 1984. Zach asked about taking the original plan and just putting that 50-foot buffer will remain undisturbed. Tom Shaw said they will not disturb it and the abutters will have more of a buffer than they have now. Mr. Cloutier said condition #5 should be that the 50-foot set back will remain as an undisturbed buffer zone.
Mrs. Scholfield asked if the pits would become one and Mr. Brown said yes, and it was discussed earlier. Mr. Cloutier said eventually the two pits will be come one and become reclaimed with the material on site. Mr. Brown closed the public hearing. Mr. Cloutier had made a motion to find the application complete and this was seconded by Mrs. Whittemore. All in favor. Mr. Cloutier made the motion to approve the application, seconded by Mrs. Kimball. All in favor.
“Move that the Board grant a Site Plan approval for a gravel pit 5-year renewal under the provisions of the Standish Land Use code Chapter 181-16 Gravel Pits as well as Chapter 181-73 Site Plan Standards and Conditions of Approval for the application submitted by Shawn Frank of Sebago Technics, LLC on behalf of Gorham Sand & Gravel with the finding that it meets:
The application meets the requirements in Chapter 181-16, Gravel Pits and meets the requirements in Chapter 181 – 73 Site Plan Standards and Conditions of Approval.
V. CONDITIONS –
No blasting permitted without separate Planning Board approval.
This approval is dependent upon, and limited to, the proposals and plans contained in the application and supporting documents submitted and affirmed by the applicant (either orally or in writing) and that any variation from the plans, proposals, and supporting documents are subject to review and approval by the Planning Board.
Daily hours of operation shall be limited to no more than 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Monday to Friday; 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Saturdays; and no Sunday operations.
The following should be shown on a revised existing conditions plan:
The gate at Rt. 35 should be noted (labeled).
Abutters to the East and South (east of Davis) should be noted.
There is a perimeter road around the actual pit area, it should be shown.
The large sand stockpile should be shown.
The limits of the pond in the pit should be shown.
The 50-foot set back will remain as an undisturbed buffer.
The meeting was adjourned at 7:37pm