Wilber School Redevelopment Committee
July 25, 2005
Amended and Approved August 8th, 2005
“Approval of Part II of meeting with Board of Health approved on October 17, 2005 Delay due to need to wait for BOH to send their approved minutes to WSRC”
Committee members: Michael Baskin, David Depree, Jim Glaser, Jim Goldsmith, David Gordon, Marilyn Kahn, Marcia Liebman, Joel Tran
Guests: Alice Cheyers, Jeanette Keating, Joe Roach
Meeting called to order at 7:15 pm by David Depree.
Minutes
Permanent Committee Secretary
Liebman reported that the Personnel approved the secretary job description and rated the position as an OC5. Liebman and Goldsmith interviewed the only applicant who was not also already an employee of the Town of Sharon (in accordance with the dual employment restriction of the Town Personnel By-Laws), checked her references and were very pleased with the candidate. Liebman/Baskin moved to hire Rachelle Levitts as the permanent committee secretary as an OC5, step 1, effective immediately; motion carried unanimously.
RFP Consultant
Two final applicants were discussed for the position of RFP consultant: Stephen Crane (interviewed on June 6th) and the team of Larry Koff, Larry Bluestone, and Drew Leff (Koff and Bluestone made the team presentation on July 18th). Much discussion ensued as pros and cons of each were discussed. Both offer quite a bit, but concerns centered around adding a fresh voice (Crane) vs. the added value of multiple voices, including financial analysis, already familiar with the project and with the town (Koff and Associates also have been hired by Town in the past and have input in Town Center redevelopment).
Gordon/Baskin moved to call the vote; carried unanimously.
Gordon/Tran moved give contract to Stephen Crane. Glaser, Goldsmith, Gordon, Kahn, and Tran voted in support of motion; Baskin, Depree, and Liebman voted against motion. Motion carried; Stephen Crane to be awarded RPF consultant contract.
Joint Board of Health Meeting
Baskin/Tran moved to table all other items on the agenda so we could all attend the Joint Board of Health meeting where Joel will sum up Koff and Bluestone presentation from July 18th for further discussion with those attending tonight’s meeting, with our committee directly adjourning afterwards. Motion unanimously approved. (See attached below minutes by Board of Health secretary for continuation of meeting minutes.)
Respectfully submitted,
Marcia C. Liebman
Members of the Wilber School Redevelopment Committee joined the Sharon Board of Health at to jointly discuss issues pertaining to the Wilber property (see below and to the end of the BOH minutes: “Continued Collaborative Discussion # 4”) (The minutes below were written by Linda Rosen, BOH secretary.
A meeting of the Sharon Board of Health was called to order at 7:30 P.M. on Monday evening, July 25, 2005, in the Sharon Town Offices, with the following members in attendance: Chairman Anne Bingham, Suzi Peck, and Sherwin Goodblatt.
Variance Hearing – 11 Hillside Avenue
Christine Meaney of Toomey-Munson and Associates, Inc., and Contractor Tom Albert were present to request variances from Title V and Article 7 for the property at 11 Hillside Avenue, which is located in the groundwater protection district, including installation of a Bio-Microbics MicroFAST 0.5L system for enhanced nitrogen removal. No increase in bedrooms is planned – a garage is to be added with living space ( a great room) above. The applicant will also need to apply to ZBA for approval. The Board asked that the setback for the tank from the property line be maximized, particularly since the property slopes down to the road. No reduction in field size is sought. Anne Bingham requested revised drawings showing maximizing. of the setback for the tank from the property line, as well as revised plans for the 2nd floor addition. The Board continued this hearing to August 8th at 7:35 PM....to review revised drawings at that time.
Joyce Riley - It’s a Dog’s Life
Joyce Riley, owner of It’s a Dog’s Life located at Sharon Heights Shopping Center, was present at the Board’s request to review the matter of wastewater disposal from her establishment.
Kyla Bennett, Environmental lawyer and friend of Ms. Riley’s, reported that she had spoken with Dave Ferris of DEP in Boston, who stated that Ms. Riley;s establishment would be considered comparable to a beauty salon that does only shampoos......these can discharge to a septic system. Ms. Riley said she discharges 400 gallons/day( based on information from the water department) and does not do flea and tick dips; uses natural shampoos; has hair catchers in the drains. She does, however, use a flea shampoo. Landlord did present the shampoo which is mainly used to an environmentalist, who reported that is o.k. to discharge to the septic system.
The Board requested that Ms. Riley send to the BOH a copy of invoice for water and septic pumping, as well as a copy of the environmental engineer’s report on the shampoo. In addition, the Board asked that the flea shampoo no longer be used particularly since the establishment is located in a Zone II of town wells.
222 North Main Street: The homeowner, who had requested the hearing regarding housing violations reported by the Building Inspector, did not appear. It was agreed to send a letter to the home owner informing him that he has now given up his right to a hearing and that we assume he will be doing the required repairs.
Paul.Lauenstein (Planning Board) reported that he had spoken with the Planning Board chair that the planned MUOD changes will not be proposed this fall. Suzi Peck stated she had spoken with the chair of the Planning Board last week about BOH concerns.
Continued Collaborative Discussion (C.C.D) #4
Numerous members of the Wilber School Reutilization Committee (WSRC), as well as the three selectmen, representatives of the Planning Board, ZBA, and others were present to hear and discuss some ideas for redevelopment of the Wilber School presented to the WSRC by planning consultants Larry Koff and Larry Bluestone.
James Goldsmith, chair of WSRC, stated that the group is looking for other boards to work collaboratively to come up with an economically viable solution for the property....taking into account the rules of the various boards which MUST be adhered to.
Joel Tran presented the information to the group on behalf of the WSRC: A portion of the Wilber School in a Zone 2; all of the property is located in the groundwater protection district. Anne Bingham and Suzi Peck believe that if part of the property is in a Zone 2, the entire property is treated as if it were in a Zone 2. Anne Bingham suggested that the historic flow might be applicable; i.e., that no greater amount of flow could be placed on the site than there was when a school was located on the site. But, she said, DEP would need to be consulted about this concern.
Walter Newman stated that the question is one of how much water can the site take.....and the impact on the well (re nitrates). E.g., for every 1000 gallons what would be the impact on the well ...and, if a higher level of treatment were used, what would then be the impact on the wells? Anne Bingham stated that there would be significant limitations on flow if Title V technology were used. Higher levels of treatment would result in fewer limitations. The suggestion was made that these questions (regarding flow with Title V technology vs. higher levels of treatment) be forwarded to Weston and Sampson (W&S) through the Engineering Department.
Joel Tran explained that the WSRC is looking for guidance to find out the maximum that can be built under existing septic regulations; they also need to speak to ZBA regarding what past variances have been an issue for impervious surfaces; and there is the question of a packaged treatment plant. Anne Bingham added the question of: are we limited to historic use because the building is in a Zone 2? Can we get higher flows if we do a shared system? . Suzi Peck stated that the bottom line from a health perspective is the hydraulic capacity of land (Weston and Sampson have done this); what is the total volume of effluent at what concentration of nitrogen that we can we afford to put into the Zone II?, i.e., how much more nitrogen can that well take? Michael Baskin stated his belief that the scope of services of the W&S study will not cover all these questions. Suzi Peck noted that .once you know how much nitrogen and what the treatment options are.....then we can find out what is economically feasible for the site. It was suggested, and Joe Roach agreed , that members of various boards, as well as Peter O’Cain and W&S be invited to a Board of Selectmen’s meeting to ask/answer these questions.
Anne Bingham suggested a rotation for responsibility for running this CCD, stating that the BOH has had difficulty covering other agenda items while administering this collaborative discussion.
Almost all concepts presented by Larry Koff and Bluestone will require variances from a variety of boards, including : parking/impervious surfaces/septic/historical commission; some plans involve complete demolition of the building; some partial demolition.
The question of a nitrogen loading district was also raised: to hook up non-compliant properties from the adjacent residential neighborhood. Suzi Peck expressed grave concerns about doing this in the Zone 2. Joel Tran asked if the lot can be subdivided into 2 pieces: separating the Zone 2 and the non-Zone 2. Suzi Peck stated that the Board of Health’s main concern will be to protect the water quality — any scenario will be fine as long as we’re not exceeding the water quality of that well. Anne Bingham said that the BOH will be the permanent primary authority if Title V technology is used; if the project exceeds 10,000 gallons or, possibly, goes above historic use, then DEP will be the permanent primary authority. James Goldsmith reiterated that the WSRC needs to understand septic possibilities before they can choose the best project. He asked who grants a waiver if the project goes above the history use of the site, and what are the requirements for this??? where to get approvals??? Anne Bingham responded that the W&S consultant hired by the town should be working on getting these answers — not the BOH.
Walter Newman suggested that the WSRC ask the planners to put forward a plan to minimize environmental impacts, but yet end up with an economically viable plan. E.g., in some instances in the past, impervious surface has been increased because the runoff has been put into the ground. James Goldsmith, WSRC chair, stated that his committee needs to know parameters. What are decision rules used by boards to grant variances? What are boundaries that the Boards could approve? When does the jurisdiction leave BOH and go to state? Suzi Peck repeated that more scientific study is needed....to be discussed with W&S. There are also legal questions: What would be allowed under Title V, given the property is in a Zone 2; what’s the wastewater flow allowed based on historic use? Greg Meister stated that the consultant can easily do calculations done on how much nutrient loading would result from various plans...with Title V technology and with higher levels of treatment. Suzi Peck stated the question is how much more nitrogen can we put into the well? She further said that, with the most conservative, most restrictive assumption, no more than 440 gpd per acre of domestic wastewater or its equivalent could come from the site. Perhaps additional treatment could be done to bring the levels to that amount. The planner is returning to the Wilber Committee on August 1st.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:30 PM.