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MARSHFIELD DEVELOPMENT REVIEW BOARD
Approved Minutes of May 18, 2006
Board Members present: James Arisman, Paul Brierre, Tom
Daley, Martin Johnson and Gary Wilson. Also attending:
Zoning Administrator Bob Light, Michael Birnbaum, Denise
Newton, Stephen Newton, Brian Tyrol, Christopher
Bellamy, Margot Lasher, Earl Roger, and Donna Dailey.
At 7:10 pm
the Board opened public hearing on the
Site Plan and
Conditional Use
application of
JM Solutions dba
Cloud Alliance,
which wishes to install equipment on the property of
Stephen and
Denise Newton
to broaden the coverage of their wireless internet
service in Marshfield. The applicants were represented
by Michael Birnbaum, who opened with a statement
stressing the benefits to the community of making
broadband internet access available to as many residents
as possible, and that this priority has endorsed by the
Select Board and in Marshfield’s current Town Plan. He
then described the equipment to be installed on the
existing silo on the Newton’s property for this purpose.
There would be a single slender omni-directional antenna
rising above the silo. Their immediate plans also call
for the addition of a single flat panel directional
antenna, about 16 inches square. In the future they may
wish to add additional directional antennas, but that
these would not project above the top of the silo. In
fact, they would prefer that the Board grant them
permission for eight of these supplementary antennas,
which would be the most they could envision needing at
this location. With such pre-approval, they would then
not have to spend the time and money coming back before
the DRB for further approvals as their needs grow.
Adjoining landowner Chris Bellamy expressed
his concern that the addition of these antennas, along
with the associated cabling and brackets, would
significantly alter the visual appearance of the silo.
He asked about each component of the installation, and
how the esthetic impact might be minimized. Michael was
not able to give him any assurances about what would be
technically feasible in this regard, but did pledge to
work with him at the time of installation to ensure that
his concerns were addressed wherever practical. Brian
Tyrol identified himself as both an adjoining landowner
and a member of the Marshfield-Plainfield Community
Internet Project. He stated that this group had worked
hard to find a suitable company to bring wireless
broadband to the community, and that they have found
Cloud Alliance to be very compliant with local needs and
concerns. Michael emphasized that it was in their own
best interest to maintain good will with the local
residents, as they expect to be applying for zoning
approval to add repeaters in other locations throughout
the town.
The hearing was closed at 8:20 pm. The Board
will issue a written decision.
The Board then spoke with
Earle Rogers,
who has just filed an
Appeal
of an enforcement letter from the Zoning Administrator.
Earle had received a Zoning Permit to build a garage on
his property on the Groton Forest Road, but discovered
after beginning construction that one of his property
lines was not where he represented it as being on his
application. It now appears that his new building lies
only about 20 feet from the property line. Bob’s letter,
dated May 10, 2006, informed Earle that his new
construction does not meet the setback requirements of
Marshfield’s Zoning Regulations, and gives him until
June 15, 2006 to remove any portions of the structure
that lie within 40 feet of the property line. Earle was
here tonight to ask the Board how he could proceed in
order to be relieved of this obligation.
Members of the Board told him that, if he
feels the Zoning Administrator was in error, he could
proceed with an Appeal of the enforcement letter. They
could also use the Appeal process to request a Variance
from the setback regulations. The Board cautioned him,
however, to familiarlize himself thoroughly with Section
240 of the Marshfield Zoning Regulations, which lays out
the criteria which must be met before the Board can
issue a Variance.
Earle asked whether he could, as an
alternative, bring his garage into compliance with the
regulations by adding land to that part of the property.
He thought it may be possible to work out a land swap
with his neighbor for this purpose. Both Bob and the
Board agreed that this could be a good solution, but
cautioned him that he must be careful not to reduce his
road frontage in such an exchange. This is because the
frontage of his lot appears to already be below the 250
feet required by the Regulations. If he does want to
proceed with this option, he will need to get
Subdivision approval from the Board.
Earle will consider his options and notify
the Board of how he wishes to proceed. Should he decide
to follow through with his Appeal, the Board will
schedule a public hearing.
At 8:35 pm Martin moved to approve the minutes of May 4,
2006 as drafted; seconded by Gary — all in favor. Then,
as this was his first meeting as a member of the DRB,
Paul introduced himself and spoke briefly about his
professional experience.
At 8:45 pm the Board went into closed session to
deliberate on the Cloud Alliance application. At 9:40 pm
Martin moved to adjourn the DRB meeting. Seconded by
James, all in favor.
Respectfully submitted,
Tom Daley |