Minutes of Regular Meeting

January 4, 2006

ROLL CALL

Present: Richard Allen (Acting Chairman), Ansley Schmitt, Geri Speich, Scott McCartney, Steven Smith (arrived at 7:20 pm).  Excused: David Wilcox, Joseph Bradley. Also present: Zoning Enforcement Officer Stephen Hunter and six members of the public.

MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING

Motion by G. Speich, seconded by S. McCartney, to approve the minutes of the December 7 2005 meeting, as submitted. Vote: R. Allen, yes; A. Schmitt, yes; G. Speich, yes, S. McCartney, yes. Motion carried.

CORRESPONDENCE

The following items were passed for review:

Draft minutes of Town Board meetings

ZBA minutes and decision

ZEO Report/Annual/Annual Citations

 Local Government Conference – Tug Hill Commission

Letter from Anita Adam

Rural Futures

Planning News

ZEO’s Special Permits Report

OLD BUSINESS

1)      Town Board requests for recommendations:

a)      Home Occupation – No report.

b)                  Hog farming – tabled; S. Smith is continuing to work on this matter

c)                  Ken Cutler’s zoning change recommendations – withdrawn from consideration

d)                  Unsafe building law – tabled; A. Schmitt is continuing to work on this matter

e)      Junkyards – A letter has been received from Town Attorney T. Hughes requesting that the board consider changing the definition to include large accumulations of debris not usually associated with residential uses and eliminate the reference to the sales of discarded or salvage material. A. Schmitt has been working with ZEO S. Hunter and CEO K. Cutler on this matter; however, this is a new perspective on the problem. The board may need to revisit the clutter and debris law proposed previously. S. Hunter suggested that the board review the property maintenance laws of other municipalities. A. Schmitt will copy and distribute these materials for review at a subsequent meeting.

2)      Review of wood burning furnaces (outdoor furnaces) – P. Benson recorded this portion of the meeting. S. McCartney reviewed the discussion from last meeting. R. Allen stated that, although the meeting is not a public hearing, the board is willing to hear short statements from those members of the public in attendance. He noted that the constant disruption at previous meetings has been counter-productive, so after the statements, the public is invited to stay, but not interrupt the board during its deliberations. The board, then, listened to statements of concern from the public. All attendees expressed support for a complete ban on these devices, citing concerns that it would be difficult to control or regulate varying usage and that regulation would not be sufficient to control the problems associated with the furnaces.  The board asked all the members of the public if they support a complete ban on all wood burning devices. The consensus from the group of residents was that a complete ban in relationship to outdoor furnaces would be desirable.  They stated that they believe indoor wood burning need not be regulated since, because of the user’s intimate relationship with an indoor stove, it is essentially self-regulating.  At the end of the public comment, the residents were invited to stay for the rest of the meeting and most did.  After a general discussion of possible setbacks, regulations on fuel type and seasonal use restrictions, a poll of the board suggested that there may be significant support for a total ban to consider this option. The board decided to table the matter until all members are present and call an up or down vote first before they proceed with any more work on regulation. The vote will propose two possibilities:  total ban or permitted within the RA zoning district only, with regulation on setbacks, seasonal use, and fuel type.

3)      Definition of primary structure – The board reviewed draft 4 as presented by R. Allen. There were a few small changes noted. Motion by S. Smith, seconded by G. Speich, to submit the proposal, as amended, to the town board. Vote: R. Allen, yes; S. Smith, yes; A. Schmitt, yes; G. Speich, yes, S. McCartney, yes. Motion carried.

4)      ZBA request for discussion of Section 86.3, 1, regarding the timing of the planning board recommendation before a public hearing on the matter. The town board does not want to change the code on this regulation, so the planning board will adhere to the timeframe as it is currently outlined.

5)      Sign application #05101 – Nimey’s Super Lube – A. Schmitt recused herself from the matter. S. Smith circulated a draft letter. The board suggested small changes. S. Smith will make those changes and send the letter.

NEW BUSINESS

1)      There will be an informational meeting regarding Scott Sanborn’s proposal for a water bottling facility on January 19 at 1:00 PM at the State Office Bldg, Room 108. Board members were encouraged to attend.

 

 

                                                            Respectfully submitted,

                                                            TOWN OF TRENTON PLANNING BOARD

 

                                                                        By: _________________________________                                                                                                      R. Allen, Acting Chairman