Varick Planning Board minutes
July 28, 2022
Present: Linda Mastellar (chair), Cindy Lont, Lauren Burling, April Freier, Frankie Long, Thomas Björkman (Secty) One vacancy.
Guests: Neil & Lisa Olver. Jim Foggo, Steve Marsh, Tony Parella, Mike Karlsen.
Called to Order 7:03 pm
Minutes for June
Approval moved by Burling, second by Lont. Approved 6-0
Public comment
David C. Swanson, Rt. 89
The condominium project proposed by Mr. Lin at 4608 State Route 89 has several aspects that concern Mr. Swanson, a neighbor.
- Fifteen duplex condominiums does not fit the “Rural residential” character of the LR District.
- Farmland will be converted to residential use, a conversion that is explicitly discouraged in the Zoning Code
- The access road will pass through a designated wetland
- The number of septic systems proposed would result in an increased load to Cayuga Lake, a short distance downslope.
Lafferty- Parella lot line move. With the pervious lot line moves filed with the town, we agreed to move ahead with this application.
Resolution: We accepted a preliminary plat for a lot-line move to take 1.023 acres from Lot 10-3-26.1 (Lafferty) to lot 10-3-26.2 (Parella). The move involves no frontage on the road and all dimensions are over 100 feet. We received an application, Agricultural Data Statement and short Environmental Assessment Form.
Moved by Björkman, Second by Lont Approved 6-0.
Update on Short Term Rental Code.
The STR committee made a few clarifying changes to the last version, and provided that version to the Town Board for their meeting on July 19.
The code was approved at special Town Board meeting on July 19. The legislation was filed with the State and is expected to be in force by August 15. Björkman will post the new Zoning Code on the Town website.
The Town board also agreed to provide administrative support for STR applications, and a job has been posted.
The Special Use Permit Moratorium was also renewed at the last town board meeting until August 15th
Limiting to two STR permits per owner is possible according to counsel.
Administrative support.
The planning board will have support from attorney Wendy Marsh, for STR administration, the next round of code revision, as well as for the Lin Project on Rt. 89. We have no direction from the Town Board on the last issue at this time. Marsh met with Supervisor Hayssen, Clerk Karlsen and Planning Board members Mastellar and Lont to review major issues.
Review of Fees.
Resolution:
The Varick Planning Board proposes to the Town Board adopting the following fee structure.
Special Use Permit $100
Short Term Rental Application (includes first year if approved) $500
STR Annual Renewal $250
Lot Line adjustment $100
Site Plan Review $100
Major Subdivision (preliminary plat) (5 or more lots) $250 plus $50 per lot
Major Subdivision (final plat) (Five or more lots) $1000 plus $100 per lot
Minor Subdivision (up to and including 4 lots) $250 plus $50 per lot
Moved Lont. Second Björkman. Approved 6-0.
[Note: the Town Board adopted these new fees on August 2, increasing the Special Use Permit fee to $250.]
Olver Major Subdivision.
The preliminary plat for this subdivision was accepted at the May planning board meeting. A Final Plat application needs to be filed within six months of that acceptance. The applicants, Neil and Lisa Olver, attended to discuss the likely requirements in that application.
Seneca County Soil and Water marked the high-water mark. That location is important to determining the eastern limit of structures on the lake side of Rt. 89.
The applicant provided a completed survey map showing the lot lines. The Board felt that the location of the lines was good, and that the application details can be developed based on this survey map.
The applicant provided Agricultural Data Statement with the Preliminary Plat that is satisfactory for the Final Plat application.
We anticipate that this subdivision will be classified as an “unlisted action” for the State Environmental Quality Review, so the short Environmental Assessment Form will be sufficient.
In order to complete the application, the following information will be needed of those listed in Article V Section 4 of the subdivision code.
· A letter from the Town of Varick indicating that the new lots can tie into municipal water from Varick Water District #4.
· Confirmation from the Seneca County Health Department that each new lot has the capacity for a septic system. All septic systems must be west of Rt. 89.
The board discussed how to describe a building envelope on the lake side that will preserve essential natural features, such as the open nature of the lakefront. An effective approach would be a maximum building envelope, with the simplest manifestation being a maximum width of the structure. Bjorkman proposed 24 ft north-south (i.e. facing the road) as a starting point for discussion. The code already limits the height to 12 ft above the road centerline all the way to high water mark. Side (10 ft), lake (10 ft) and road (50 ft) setbacks as in Zoning Code could be sufficient. The Zoning code bulk table limits the footprint to 25% of the lot, which is considerably larger than any contemplated structure, thus a lower limit would need to be specified for these lots if that is the intent.
Adjournment
Moved by Burling, Second by Freier. Approved 6-0.
Adjourned 9:22 pm
