Machiasport (BUCKS HARBOR) Maritime Committee

Approved by the Planning Board June 9, 2016

Town of Machiasport P.O. Box 267 - Machiasport, Maine Planning Board Meeting THURSDAY- May 12, 2016 7:00 Planning Board Meeting

MINUTES

I. Roll Call

Present: Bill Prescott, Jr., Shirley Erickson, Jeff Huntley, Michael Hinerman, Bob Mercer, and Rick Heller. Absent: Rick Bury and Jim Bradley, CEO Quorum: Yes

Bill Prescott, Jr. called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and noted that Rick Bury called him to say he was unable to be present and noted that he has withdrawn his resignation from the Planning Board.

A. Planning Board Correspondence

Bill Prescott, Jr. referred the members to the correspondence provided in the communications folder including, the MMA’s Maine Townsman April issue, a Flood Plain Letter, and the MDEP SLZ Spring Newsletter. Without objection, he asked Bob Mercer, Chair of the Ordinance Committee, to update the Planning Board on the status of their Draft Ordinances. Bob Mercer reported that the Ordinance Committee meeting was held prior to the Planning Board meeting and the Committee has four (4) Draft Ordinances ready for a Public Hearing which include the Shellfish Conservation, Communication Facility, Small Wind Energy Systems, and Wind Energy Ordinances. He noted that the Shellfish Conservation and Building Permit Ordinances were the only two Ordinances sent to the Town’s Attorney for review since they may be contentious. He noted that a tentative date has been scheduled for June 6, 2016 for a Public Hearing for the four (4) Draft Ordinances the Committee has been working on. He asked if the Planning Board would have the Draft Building Permit Ordinance ready to be included at that time. He noted that since Selectman Jeff Davis had not yet provided a copy of the comments from the Town’s Attorney on the Draft Building Permit Ordinance to the Planning Board for their review, he wondered if this Draft Ordinance would be ready for the June Public Hearing. He noted that the Town Clerk must meet the newspaper deadline in order to advertise the Public Hearing prior to the Annual Town Meeting so the timetable is tight. Shirley Erickson asked Mr. Mercer which version of the Draft Building Permit Ordinance was sent to the Town’s Attorney for review. Bob Mercer said he did not know which draft document was sent. He noted that he believed that the response from the Town’s Attorney was received before last month’s Planning Board meeting.

Mike Hinerman stated that the deadline date for the local paper would be May 20th and noted that since the 3rd Draft of the Building Permit Ordinance has not been presented to the Town’s Attorney there may not be time for the Planning Board to review his comments plus make any revisions, thus a separate Public Hearing may be necessary. Shirley Erickson expressed concern that the Town’s Attorney did not have a copy of the 3rd Draft of the Building Permit Ordinance to review and that the Board had not received the comments from the Town’s Attorney to review and discuss at tonight’s meeting. She indicated that she thought the plan was for the Town’s Attorney to review and comment on the final Draft Ordinance. Bob Mercer said he would check with Selectman Davis and the Town Clerk to ensure that the Planning Board receives a copy of the comments from the Town’s Attorney as soon as possible. Bill Prescott, Jr. noted that the Planning Board members will need to review the comments from the Town’s Attorney before the Board can move forward with setting a date for the Public Hearing. He stated that depending on the comments from the Town’s Attorney, the Board may need to make some additional revisions to the Draft Building Permit Ordinance. Jeff Huntley inquired about the Small Wind Energy Systems Ordinance and suggested to Mr. Mercer that the Ordinance Committee review the language pertaining to “utilizing space on existing towers” before a new tower could be built. Michael Hinerman agreed and suggested that a word other than “utilizing” be used. Bob Mercer agreed to have the Ordinance Committee review this suggestion and modify the language in this Draft Ordinance.

II. Adjustments to Agenda- None

III. Approval of April 14, 2016 Planning Board Minutes

MOTION made by Shirley Erickson seconded by Bill Prescott, Jr. to approve the April 14, 2016 Planning Board minutes. Motion passed unanimously.

IV. Consideration of Building Permits A. BP# 16-10 Nicolas Wood, 2 car garage

The Applicant was not present.

Bill Prescott, Jr. said he had reviewed Mr. Wood’s Building Permit Application for a garage and that it appeared to be complete. Michael Hinerman agreed and said he did not have any issues with the Application.

MOTION made by Jeff Huntley seconded by Shirley Erickson to approve BP# 16-10. Motion passed unanimously.

TABLED Building Permits: B. BP# 15-19-David Thomas, After-The-Fact Application to remove and replace a trailer

Bill Prescott, Jr. noted that this Application would need to be tabled until the June meeting due to Jim Bradley, CEO’s absence tonight and no status report has been received from him plus no new information has been submitted by Mr. Thomas regarding an HHE-200 form for his property. Jeff Huntley noted that the Applicant appears to have drilled a well. Bill Prescott, Jr. said he had passed this information onto Jim Bradley, CEO.

MOTION made by Shirley Erickson seconded by Bill Prescott, Jr. to table BP # 15-19 due to no status report from the CEO or documentation from Mr. Thomas on his HHE-200 form. Motion passed unanimously. 2 C. BP# 16-09-Gregory Berry, addition to add 2 bedrooms & extend living room

Bill Prescott, Jr. reported that Mr. Berry had submitted an incomplete Building Permit Application last month and his Application was tabled. He stated that Jim Bradley, CEO planned to conduct a site visit to answers questions about the septic design, setbacks, and lot size. He noted that this Application would need to be tabled until the June meeting due to Jim Bradley, CEO’s absence tonight and no status report has been received from him on his site visit to Mr. Berry’s property. Bill Prescott, Jr. noted that Mr. Berry had informed him that J.L. Huntley installed the septic system; however, he did not have a copy of the HHE-200 form. Jeff Huntley did not recall the septic system design for Mr. Berry’s property.

MOTION made by Michael Hinerman seconded by Bill Prescott, Jr. to table BP #16-09 due to no status report from the CEO on his site visit to Mr. Berry’s property. Motion passed unanimously.

V. CEO Report- Jim Bradley No report (absent)

VI. Old Business A. Finalize the proposed amendments to the Building Permit Ordinance (See Attachment # 1)

Shirley Erickson noted that she had taken the comments from the April Planning Board meeting and incorporated them into the 3rd Draft of the Building Permit Ordinance. She questioned how the Planning Board could finalize the Draft Ordinance tonight without the comments from the Town’s Attorney. Bill Prescott, Jr. agreed and noted that there may be additional revisions. Michael Hinerman noted that time had been wasted if the Town’s Attorney had reviewed an earlier Draft Ordinance. He suggested that perhaps the Secretary could get an electronic copy of the comments from the Town’s Attorney and Email them to the Planning Board members. Jeff Huntley noted that he would like to review the comments made by the Town’s Attorney. Michael Hinerman stated that in reviewing the 3rd Draft Ordinance that he felt as though all the suggested revisions the Board members made at the April meeting had been included in the third version of the Draft Ordinance. Shirley Erickson suggested that the Board could review and accept the 3rd Draft of the Building Permit Ordinance as our final document subject to review by the Town’s Attorney. She noted that the fee schedule is just a proposal for the Board of Selectmen to review and consider.

Discussion ensued about the amount of work that the Board had devoted to reaching consensus on the language in the 3rd Draft Ordinance. The Board reached the conclusion that the 3rd Draft of the Building Permit Ordinance should be forwarded to the Board of Selectmen for their review and approval.

MOTION made by Michael Hinerman seconded by Shirley Erickson that Draft # 3 of the Building Permit Ordinance along with the proposed Fee Schedule be approved by the Planning Board and sent to the Board of Selectmen for their review and forwarding onto the Town’s Attorney for further review. Motion passed unanimously. 3 VII. New Business A. Review & Approve Draft Planning Board Budget 2016-2017 (See Attachment # 2)

Bill Prescott, Jr. reported the FY 2015-2016 Planning Board Budget will come in under budget this year even though there are expenses for the months of May and June remaining. He noted that the Town has collected about one thousand dollars ($1,000) in fees. He suggested that the Board recommend to the Board of Selectmen that the Planning Board budget remain the same at $4,700 for FY 2016-2017. He noted that any unspent monies go back into the Town’s general fund. Shirley Erickson noted that due to the amount of research and additional time the Secretary spent on the Planning Board’s work on proposed revisions to the Building Permit Ordinance that the Secretarial Services line item will exceed the budgeted amount this year. She inquired as to whether or not the Board needed to request a transfer of funds from another line item to cover the projected overrun in the Secretarial Services line item. Michael Hinerman noted that if there was an overrun in one line item that it would automatically be taken from elsewhere in the budget at the end of the year and there are no issues as long as the total budget is not overspent.

MOTION made by Michael Hinerman seconded by Shirley Erickson that the Board recommend to the Board of Selectmen that the Planning Board Budget for FY 2016-2017 be the same amount as last year at $4,700. Motion approved unanimously.

B. Review & Approve Draft Planning Board Annual Report for FY 2015-2016 (See Attachment # 3)

Bill Prescott, Jr. presented a Draft of the FY 2015-2016 Planning Board Annual Report for the Board’s consideration and noted that the number of Building Permits mentioned in the Report will be revised to include the action that the Planning Board has taken on Building Permits this evening. He said he had asked Shirley Erickson to review the Draft Report before presenting it to the Planning Board.

MOTION made by Michael Hinerman seconded by Shirley Erickson to accept the FY 2015- 2016 Planning Board Annual Report for inclusion in the Annual Town Warrant subject to adding the revised numbers for action taken on Building Permit Applications in May. Motion passed unanimously.

C. Discussion Regarding the USACE’s Proposed Plan for former Bucks Harbor Facility-Remedial Action for Groundwater Contamination (See Attachment #4)

Shirley Erickson reported that she had attended the US Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) Public Meeting held on May 5, 2016 on the Proposed Plan for Bucks Harbor to address the water contamination problem. She noted that the Board of Selectmen and Planning Board had received a copy of the Proposed Plan. She reported that no one from the Jasper Beach Water Association or Board of Selectmen were in attendance at the Public Meeting. She stated that the Proposed Plan calls for connecting the impacted property owners to the Downeast Correctional Facility (DCF) water supply coupled with continued, long-term monitoring of the problem. She said she asked the USACE what happens if the DCF closes, and suggested that modified language be included in the final Decision Document to not just refer to DCF as the alternate water supply but that an alternate water supply will be provided. She also expressed concern about the Land Use Controls section of the Proposed Plan that indicated that the Town would develop notices to be provided with Building Permits issued for properties in an institutional control zone (ICZ) and that the Town or the MDEP may decide to record deed restrictions or notifications on properties within an ICZ. She reported

4 that there appeared to be a lack of clarification about implementation of the Land Use Controls section of the Proposed Plan. She noted that the Board of Selectmen would need to provide the Planning Board with specific direction on this complex issue. Jeff Huntley said the USACE has been “all over the board” on this problem and they are responsible for fixing the water supply as well as for issuing the notifications. He stated that if the DCF closes, then the State of Maine will have to assume that responsibility. He noted that he was completely opposed to imposing any deed restrictions on anyone’s property. Shirley Erickson also noted that the USACE reported that the role the Jasper Beach Water Association played will cease as the USACE will now manage this issue. She reported that the USACE indicated they will assume full financial responsibility for the alternate water supply. Shirley Erickson reported that John and Susan Almendinger were in attendance at the meeting and expressed concern that when the cell tower was installed at the GATR site they did some blasting which could have adversely impacted the contamination in the bedrock. They stated that the blasting was concerning to them since they own property near the GATR site and thought that the blasting may result in further contamination. Jeff Huntley wondered how many yards of blasting was removed. Shirley Erickson noted that if the Planning Board would like to make written comments on the Proposed Plan then they would have until May 27, 2016 to do so.

By consensus, the Planning Board decided not to make written comments to the USACE on the Proposed Plan as the Board agreed it would be the Town’s responsibility via the Board of Selectmen to respond.

VIII. Public Comments - None

IX. Reports/Comments from members

Jeff Huntley noted that in the MDEP’s SLZ recent newsletter that there are articles about temporary structures and the definition of walls for a screened in porch. He said the articles are informative and suggested the members review this information.

Shirley Erickson reported that LD 1447, which was amended to include funds for making improvements to a Washington County correctional facility, was recently signed into law. She indicated that the original bill was just for capital improvements to the Maine Correctional Center. She noted that it was unclear at this time what the passage of LD 1447 means for DCF.

Bill Prescott, Jr. also reported on the following:  Informed the Board that the DCF inquired about the need for a Building Permit if they were to build on State property. He stated that he did not think so but would consult with the MMA to know how to respond if the prison follows through with a Building Permit Application.  Reminded the Board that the June Planning Board Meeting will be his last meeting as the Chair and that this item will be put on the agenda for next month’s meeting. He noted that a new chair will assume these duties at the July Planning Board meeting.  Noted that Shirley Erickson and Michael Hinerman’s terms on the Planning Board will come up for reappointment when the Board of Selectmen meet to make future appointments.

Shirley Erickson and Michael Hinerman both agreed to be considered for reappointment to the Planning Board. By consensus, the Planning Board agreed to ask the Secretary to inform the Board of Selectmen that the Board recommends they both be reappointed.

5 X. Adjournment

MOTION made by Michael Hinerman seconded by Bill Prescott, Jr. to adjourn the Planning Board meeting at 8:30 p.m. Motion passed unanimously.

Attachment # 1 Third Draft of Building Permit Ordinance Attachment # 2 Draft Planning Board Budget for 2016-2017 Attachment # 3 Draft Planning Board Annual Report for 2015-2016 Attachment # 4 USACE’s Proposed Plan for Former Bucks Harbor Facility, dated 4/13/16

Minutes recorded for the Planning Board by: Sandra K. Prescott, Secretary Note: This meeting was also tape recorded. A copy of the recording is available for review at the Town Office during regular business hours.

Approved by the Planning Board ______Date Attested by: ______Bill Prescott, Jr., Chair, Planning Board

The next meeting for the Planning Board will be held on June 9, 2016.