Planning Commission - Regular Meeting

So if you would like to get started, uh Shane, Henry, Alex Cordel, and Christian Nixon have all informed me they will not be attending. We are waiting for Natashi Jackson still. Alex Cordel is the chair. Um, so in the absence of the chair and not having a vice chair, typically that would be the most senior measury. However, she can defer that to someone else if you like chair. Kathy, what would you like to do? No, Jake's chairing the meeting. Okay, great. We're just getting this on record. We just Yeah, we discussed that already. Great. Just putting it on the record. So, yeah.

Um, all right. So, if everyone is comfortable with preparing your meeting, Jacob, you can go ahead and proceed if you'd like. Everybody, welcome to Georgetown Planning Commission. It's Wednesday, January 24th, 6 p.m. Can I get a roll call? Um, Alex Cordial, Kathy H here, Jay Cooper, present. Christian Dixon, Chris Sanford. Oh, Sanford. Sorry, it says Stanford on here. I'll press that. Thank you. Um, Natasha Jackson, Shane Henry, Jeff Goldman, present. We have a quorum on the agenda. We have Marvin Dness. You've got it.

Okay. [laughter] Block 44, lots one, two, and three, lot line eliminations. And then number two on the agenda, we have the comprehensive plan. Um, do you want to give us a uh a um sorry a staff um would you like to call for uh approval of the agenda? Oh, sure. Approval of the minutes for November 19th, 2025. Agenda, not minutes. Oh, do I have a motion to approve the agenda? I uh Yes. move that you approve the agenda. I'm sorry, I was slow. You're faster. I second. All in favor?

Now, can we get a staff report for item one? Yes. Um, so there is a staff report included from our planning and zoning uh consensus. Um, he this is a pretty straightforward lot line elimination. We're combining a couple lots into one big lot. And the plat that was submitted did not need any amendments. So Mike Davenport recommends it approval [clears throat] with no conditions. Does anybody have any questions about this? May I ask one question? Is the property for sale currently? [clears throat]

Um well maybe there the answer is that there is interest. Okay. So typically procedurally it would be stack report and then the applicant could say something and then we have a few questions with the commission. Is that okay?

So uh Bob or Mark did you want to talk about this project at all? I I think it's very straightforward and I was impressed with the consultants [clears throat] report which presented the packet. I assume we've all seen that. Uh it's it's a very simple thing. Um we want to not have uh build on three lots, one of which is all not very good for building and should be retained as on-site uh drainage retention. it'll be fixed up and made it to look a lot nicer than it does now, but at least it'll be there. And I think having um one residential structure will be fitting into the area. Uh it'll eliminate uh quite as much traffic on a narrow traveled way. The rightway is there, but the travel way is some and but there would presumably uh be less demand for on street far. Does that is that the property that um would butt up to the nice little garage or darn whatever that is?

Yes, that's the south side. Um the front is obviously along middle fiddle. It runs with the shi uh 152 ft along the front of federal and it's 84 ft deep. Uh the property behind uh this proposed route 1A is uh I think I'm not exactly correct but HGI I think only at least caretakes it. It's in a perpetual land and trust so nothing will be built there. No. But so you're you're not actually touching or abudding the barn per se.

Uh [clears throat] the property line is at the very very bottom of the stone wall that's on the north side of the bar. Okay. Oh, thank you. That was more curiosity than and and that's another reason for combining because one of the uh plans for development if we were to have gone even with two homes uh we would probably have to build a second retaining wall so that we did not disturb that existing historic hill, right?

And there'd be a a small little narrow alleyway that the mountain line could run through, but probably not much else. Uh so this just makes I think it'll allow us to work with the property a lot better. Is that all? Um yeah. Um we're not going to put any uh Yes. Okay. That's all. Does anybody have any questions for Can I go back to my original question?

And that was what effect would the approval be on selling the property? All right. Well, there are different buyers and anything that I I guess I'm not 100% certain what you're asking. Uh what's your concern then? Well, I don't have a concern. I'm just seeing if there's uh with the approval process if there'd be any change on selling requirements. No. No. Okay. That's what I'm trying to say. No, it just gives you a bigger lot. Okay. That's all I'm asking. That's all I'm asking.

You would not be able to sell them individually. It would all be one lot. Okay. Very good. So, make it make sure it's clear. Yeah. And while it's a bigger lot, it's not a huge lot. It's 12,000 square ft. And uh actually uh uh if you look at 500 5,000 square ft minimum for three lots, we would but we'd be grandfathered in because they were already there. But we're really making it more like what the current code calls for. Yeah. Tasha, do you know what's going on or do I need to explain anything to you?

I was reading a little bit in this, but if anyone wants to do a recap, that would be awesome. So, it's basically two lot line eliminations for three lots to charge three lots in one lot. Okay. And the town has [clears throat] said recommendations. Um it's the town attorney's gone over it. Um who else went over it? Um um

attorney has not report did review this. It's a fairly straightforward lot elimination. They're taking several lots and combining them into one lot which allows them to uh you know we have like lot average allows them to do the same percentage on a bigger lot space or anything like that. And the applicant was mentioning that um there's protected land behind it that would not be built on any point in time. And Kathy asked a question about it location in relation to the Nisle barn. Is that correct?

Yeah, the Nisle house is up there and then there's a barn next to it. And then Jeff requested information on how it impacts the sale of the last.

Cool. Yeah, I don't think I have any questions. Any questions? Uh, I think my only concern with this would be um, you know, obviously with any lot line adjustment, I always ask myself kind of at the time that that part of the town was zoned, there was obviously a reason why it was zoned the way it was. And so, um, not having reviewed any of the history of why that area was zoned the way it was and how that would affect authorities and stuff like that, I guess that would be my only concern is that it might negatively impact the town if we had that subdivision zone for say like three sewer taps. Now, with eliminating that line, it's only

if anything, I think it'll positively affect the the community because you'll have two less houses going on that property that will not be producing waste, will not be drawn on water, and will not be drawn in electricity. Correct. But if we don't know necessarily for each lot to have water or sewer or anything like that, um when they did the zoning a long time ago, it's pretty just every this many feet, they would create a block. Right. And the lot lines themselves, if I could add, are old historic way. Right. Right.

We wouldn't actually be allowed to like once this is combined, we wouldn't legally be allowed to split it back up into those because they're too small for our our minimum lot is 5,000 square feet and each one of these is smaller than that. So, right, they are small feet because they're old, but they don't meet our current they are non-conforming, right? Guess that would be more something to be concerned about on the north end of where developing this and zoning is a little more I guess. So we don't have any maximum lot requirements. We only have minimum lot requirements. Although if somebody's pushed it, we'd probably

Well, so by combining the lots, we're not changing the zoning. Correct. Okay. Good. Any [clears throat] questions? Anybody else? On page two of two, at the very bottom, there's a recommended motion. Oh, that's what I was looking for. So, the very first page, if you just flip it over, at the very bottom, there's a recommended motion.

Do I have a motion to approve these lot line amen lotations? I move to approve combining the north 10 ft of lot one, the south 42 feet of lot one and all of lots two and three, excuse me, into a new lot 1A in block 44, town of Georgetown, based on a finding that the application complies with the criteria for approval. So move. Do I have a second? I said oh um all in favor I I I motion passes

I'm overwhelmed by the amount of paper put together we got to free here I was overwhelmed I wanted to be here in one little note that little session 10 foot Marvinos that was put uh acquired in order to go to the outhouse It was an hour. I also believe that up right up in that area where that is and then going further to the east was a slaughter house. So you might find a bunch of bones in there. [laughter] Yeah.

You might. Okay. Well, I'll make some historic brock with Thanks. Thank you. Have a good night. Next on the agenda, the agenda we have. Uh yeah, depending on um so Jake will need to sign it since he chaired this meeting and then version. So she'll be in tomorrow the afternoon and I can come in anytime. Kasa can call me. I'm around all week. So I'm just saying I may be able to pick up the my early afternoon. in caseia calls on me, I'll answer and I'll swing by as soon as I get a chance.

And it'll be tomorrow if you bring it by tomorrow. Thank you. Oh, and the second agenda item was the comprehensive plan.

Yes. So, as you know, we requested from the board selectman to include in their budget plans to the comprehensive plan. So the first step is going to be seeking a contractor to facilitate that energy plan production. Um so at this stage that will be putting together a an RFP to put out for contract an RFP reflective proposal um for contractors who come and bid on doing our comprehensive plan and We may have you guys talk to them before we put it in front of the board. We may not because ultimately it's the board of selections decision who we use. So I'll talk to Dennis about whether or not you guys talk to the contractors first. But they will be working with you guys. They will be working with the community at large. They will probably consult with other commissions as well. But the comprehensive plan is you know your guys's

big project for the year. Is [clears throat] there a reason why you're not just hiring the firm that did the the last best is to obtain at least three quotes. We probably will we'll put it out. We'll probably reach out to them to see if they're interested in doing it again. But we'll be comparing quotes, so it won't be a given that they get it. And it's not good practice just to ask the same people to come back over them. Do you normally do an RFQ and an RFP?

No, I'm using them interchangeably. I'm not totally sure what the difference is between an RFQ and an RFP. The request for a quote or proposal. I just ask you. Yeah, but we will only do one. Okay. Okay. They're both the same thing. Well, it's different interpretation sometimes, but you're right. You're right. Um, does anybody else have anything? Do I have a motion to Oh, no motion. Um, no minutes. Sorry. Oh, for November 19th. Okay. Do I have a motion to adjurnn? A motion to adjourn the meeting. All in favor?

All right. Great meeting ever. Short and sweet. Short and sweet. Definitely. Thank you for your time, guys.