ATKINSON PLANNING BOARD

Atkinson, New Hampshire

Planning Board Meeting

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Present: Sue Killam, Chairperson; Paul DiMaggio, Vice-Chairman; Joe Guischard;

Tim Dziechowski; Ted Stewart; Mike Fletcher

Alternate: Sue Miner

Ex-Officio: Jack Sapia

Sue Killam opened the meeting at 7:30 p.m.

Ms. Killam reviewed the incoming and outgoing correspondence.

The Board discussed Eric Steltzer’s memorandum regarding the inclusionary zoning ordinance. The Board will have a consultant study the affordability description with regard to the low income/moderate income ordinance and will file for grant money. $10,000 will help the Town to get inclusionary information for the ordinance. The grant money can be used to hire a consultant in order to update the definitions for the inclusionary zoning ordinance for the warrant articles. Mr. Steltzer will call Ben Frost and express the Town’s interest.

Sue Killam opened the public hearing at 8:00 p.m.

David Brown, 11 Lippold Road, Regarding Deed Addendum – Building on Class VI Road: Mr. Brown brought to the Board the recorded deed with the necessary deed addendum indicating that the Town is not responsible or liable for the road. Tim Dziechowski asked what the Fire Chief’s position was because the road is right on a Class V road and the building site is not too far out. The Town relinquishes the maintenance of the road and the life safety.

CTAP Discretionary Funding – Eric Steltzer: The application for the grant has not happened yet. The Town Administrator is interested in updating the GIS which includes: subdivision information, converting CAD file to GIS file, flood plains, land use and conservation lands. The flood plains is up-to-date now, CTAP is taking care of land use, and conservation will be updated next year. Mr. Steltzer feels the subdivision update is not suitable for CTAP. He recommends the CAD file conversion.

Tim Dziechowski feels that if the CAD files are converted, no one will have access to the files other than the Town Administrator, and there will be no integration with Granit. Mr. Steltzer informs the Board the RPC has a GIS license so individuals can view the file. The Town currently does not have the software for GIS, but it is possible to get ARC reader which is available for free or at a very low cost to have access to the data and do a run-down analysis. CAD has a functionality that Mr. Dziechowski is afraid the Town will lose with GIS. Mr. Steltzer said the Town will not lose that functionality and will gain more ability to do analyses of the data. With the GIS, Mr. Dziechowski hopes updating the tax maps for assessing will be an easier project. Jack Sapia would like to have a working demonstration with those knowledgeable in this software. Mr. Dziechowski sees no downside in the conversion. The conversion would be within the $10,000 range for the CTAP grant money. There is an open rolling timeline for the funding which will continue into next year. The Town can apply for $10,000 this year and then apply for another $10,000 next year. Mr. Sapia suggests that this be a topic at the next Board of Selectmen meeting. Mr. Dziechowski suggests that the only downside is that there will be two sets of data, and one will fall to the wayside. Another suggestion for the grant money is an analysis of speed of traffic and sidewalks in Town center. Another idea is an energy audit for the Energy Committee. Mr. Sapia feels the Town center and Energy Committee suggestions are great ideas, but he feels the Town can handle the Town center issues itself. The GIS project cannot be done by the Town itself, and the Town should move forward.

Planning Board Consideration to Adopt the Updates to the Housing Chapter of the Atkinson Master Plan: The Board discussed the graph regarding households making the median income and access to Atkinson and the marketplace as compared to other communities. The graph compares what is available in surrounding communities and the accessible market. The graph is not only the Timberlane School District but also includes surrounding towns. The next graph shows the Timberlane School District and Atkinson as a portion. The graph depicts Atkinson’s household income. The median value in Atkinson is higher than surrounding communities. The next graph shows each town’s share of housing and median income. The graph is challenging, but it shows where Atkinson lies in comparison with the other communities. Sue Miner suggests this graph use dotted, hard, and slash lines rather than the shaded areas. Jack Sapia feels a color version would be easily readable. Mr. Steltzer put the same information in a chart form, but it does not compare Atkinson’s buying power. It shows what the residents have access to within their own community. The graph applies the same standards to all towns in the Timberlane School District and does not show a summation. There has been a shift in the affordability with a lot less sales. Atkinson has stayed even. Atkinson is staying fairly level with the sales of affordable housing, but is very low compared to other communities. Mr. Steltzer can discuss both charts and graphs, but the discussions cannot be combined because different data is used for the graphs and for the charts. The Board prefers the chart over the graph, and Mr. Steltzer will incorporate the chart into the Master Plan.

Mr. Sapia feels the graph is easier to understand. Mr. Steltzer feels the graphs are confusing. Mr. Steltzer can incorporate a note explaining the graph, but the purpose of the graph is to visually understand the data. The Board again feels the chart is a better choice. Mr. Dziechowski does not completely agree and feels the graph gives extra information to understand the data. Mr. Sapia feels there is no downside to putting in both where one helps the other. Mr. Steltzer will put the chart in first and the graph in second. Mr. Steltzer suggests continuing the hearing once again to review his next set of changes. The discussion will continue on Wednesday, November 28, 2007 to review the changes.

Mr. Steltzer can write the vision chapter, but the Town will need to collect the data. The Town will have the RPC do the analysis and write the CD, and the Town will print and mail the information locally. Sue Killam reads the contract Mr. Steltzer has brought to the Board. There is money in the budget for such services. The Board agrees with the wording of the contract, and Sue Killam signs the contract on behalf of the Board.

Old Business: Sue Miner discusses the off-site improvements with respect to the 55+ development and the fact that they are starting to occur. She questions whether the improvements being performed are different than what she felt they were going to be. Ted Stewart informs the Board that the Sawyer Avenue work has been paid for by Lewis Builders, and it is impossible to make the work perfectly smooth. This problem will be rectified when the overlay is placed, but it may be up to 3-5 years before this is done. The Town specifications is that the road must be paved and meet certain standards, but does not have to be "perfect" as long as all standards have been met. The Town cannot make it perfect, but if anything happens to the road now, the Town will be responsible. Mr. Stewart said the road was raised 6 inches, and the road is much safer now than it was before. There is still a commitment to cut the road at the "T". Mr. Stewart has painted the road and allowed the builder to do as much to improve it because he did not want the road cut in 2007 and limited the work to only painting. Lewis Builders again paid for all the work, and the Town was not involved. Lewis Builders will have the road cut and will pay for the work to be done. Mr. Stewart limited the conditions to be fulfilled, and Lewis Builders is still obligated to fulfill the remainder of the commitment. Mr. Sapia asks if some kind of obstacle (planters) to force the flow of traffic can be used without the cutout of the asphalt being done. Mr. Stewart states in the wintertime you can plow to force the line of traffic, but in the summertime placing obstacles creates a liability for the Town. Mr. Stewart would like painting and signage before the asphalt cutting occurs. The Board would like a written commitment that the asphalt will be cut. Sue Miner feels that the line painting should occur, but the asphalt will be cut in the future as well. Sue Killam assures the Board that the plan will not be signed until all the conditions are met. Mr. Stewart feels the offsite improvements were conditional upon his approval of the work being done.

Flood Plain Ordinance: An ordinance, not a regulation, goes to Town Meeting. The Board must tailor the model ordinance to fit into the Town’s ordinance and present it to the Town for a vote. The Board will look at and bring to public hearing an ordinance and then put it on the ballot for vote. The Board has until January to put the ordinance together. Mr. Sapia again suggests having a representative appear before the Board to give additional information. The Town cannot get government funding unless there is a flood plain ordinance in place. Individual residents can get flood insurance, but the Town will have more difficulty receiving FEMA without an ordinance. Mr. Sapia does not see a downside for the community. The Board of Selectmen has decided that the decision lies with the Planning Board. A copy of a model ordinance will be scanned and e-mailed to the Board members for their review.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:50 pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Raelene McBride