[This transcript was generated automatically from audio using AI and hasn't been reviewed by a person -- it can contain mistakes, including plausible-sounding sentences that were never actually said. Treat it as a starting point, not a verbatim record.]

[0:06] All right. The call is meeting of the Westminster Planning Board order. Today's date is September 22nd. This meeting is being broadcast live recorded by Ashburn Ham, Westminster Community Media.
[0:19] I have not been notified of any audio or video recorded in the evening by any other parties. That's still so. All right. Now this meeting is in order. Now we have more than four. All right. Administrative matters.
[0:34] So first we just have a set of minutes, we'll be the set on here.
[0:43] Look good.
[0:44] A few of these two screws.
[0:46] So that was not here,
[0:52] so Derek, Marie, and Amy, we're all here for that meeting.
[0:57] All right, do we have the motion to approve?
[1:01] So, I'll thank you.
[1:02] All right, all the favor.
[1:04] All right.
[1:08] Next up, we have a slight fan waiver request for two Haker Park Road.
[1:12] So, I'll just give a quick little background on this before I get some of you to the applicant.
[1:20] Technically, our site find review is very, the applicability is very broad, very wide.
[1:29] It encompasses a lot of things including change of use.
[1:33] So, the gentleman who's here today, the owner of the two-acre park.
[1:38] residents. It's as a currently stand, it's a two-family with some office space, and
[1:44] I'm going to invite you to convert that office space to a third unit to make it a
[1:48] three-family. It is allowed with my special permits and our zoning bylaws. He'll be meeting
[1:55] with the ZBA tomorrow of the hearing that's been open already for that special
[2:02] but because it's definitely a change of use from multi-use to a multi-family.
[2:07] To more multi-use.
[2:09] Exactly.
[2:10] Yeah.
[2:11] He would technically need a site plan review.
[2:15] There's going to be no exterior altercations.
[2:17] It's all going to be interior.
[2:19] So for something like this, I told him if you know would be appropriate to at least ask for
[2:22] or see if the board consider a site-fant wait for.
[2:25] All right.
[2:26] So it was pre-family.
[2:28] Or it's good.
[2:30] It's currently two family with office space.
[2:32] But it used to be three family, correct?
[2:34] No.
[2:35] Yes.
[2:35] Was it?
[2:36] Yes.
[2:38] It wasn't the three family that was converted into two family
[2:41] with a business unit.
[2:43] Are you able to reuse?
[2:45] I mean, if it was three family before,
[2:46] then you have the layout that existed.
[2:49] Yeah.
[2:49] Utilities and whatnot.
[2:51] Yeah, I think that should also be kind of in the walls
[2:53] and everything, like, to put the kitchen back in
[2:56] and all that shouldn't be too much work.
[2:58] When exactly was a three-themed I don't remember that it was like it was used before. I even bought it
[3:04] I was looking through the stuff like this. Oh, where are we? Yeah, because that's our one
[3:12] Yes, yeah
[3:13] Yeah, I don't have a good see you had to have a very it's for
[3:17] Right, and I don't remember anything like that, but that's in need of him. I think I think I moved to just issue a waiver to the
[3:25] Because I mentioned parking, it's all in the material, yeah.
[3:30] Right, do we have a second?
[3:32] It's not good.
[3:33] All right, all in favor.
[3:34] All right, easy now.
[3:35] That was easy.
[3:36] All right, thank you.
[3:37] We try that to have too much government here.
[3:40] And I'll write the letter.
[3:42] I'll try to happen.
[3:42] Ready for tomorrow.
[3:43] That's something we're meeting.
[3:45] Thank you.
[3:48] All right.
[3:50] Now we have our public hearing for the bylaws.
[3:53] We're going to read this out loud.
[3:55] Yes, please.
[3:56] You can go if you want.
[3:58] I mean, you got one.
[3:59] I'll say, okay.
[4:01] I'll say, okay.
[4:01] I'll say, okay.
[4:02] I'll say, okay.
[4:03] All right.
[4:04] We're still in submission on our launch after 48 Section 5.
[4:07] In Section 205, it took two of the quotes of Westminster Massachusetts.
[4:12] Notice that notice is hereby given that the Westminster Planning Board will hold a public hearing.
[4:16] Today's date is Tuesday, September 22nd,
[4:19] 2026, 6 p.m. and we're in 2005.
[4:22] 11 cell streets at the Westminster Town Hall.
[4:24] to discuss the following proposed amendments to the Zoning Bylaw, a man in chapter 205, 29, 29,
[4:31] land space requirements table to increase the minimum lot size in the R3 district, from the current
[4:37] requirements of 86,000 square feet to, you know, another number.
[4:44] That's stupid percent.
[4:46] We didn't put it on here.
[4:48] And then the second one is adopt Zoning provisions, regulating the development of battery energy
[4:53] storage systems known as BES, or BES, by establishing standards for citing design, construction
[4:58] operation, monitoring, modification, public safety protection of scenic natural and historic
[5:05] resources and decommissioning, copies of the proposed zoning amendments can be found at
[5:10] the town clerk's office and the planning department office during regular town hall office hours.
[5:17] So if you want, I can just kind of get started on just explaining what we've done since last
[5:21] meeting.
[5:21] Yeah, so the last one, so last one, the planning board just sent it back to me, just saying that they just want one more thing in there.
[5:36] In your attachments under
[5:41] the notes, I added a proposed number 10.
[5:44] And basically, what I did is I added language that mirrors the state's
[5:52] grandfather or the common ownership law provision, just because it kind of excludes these
[5:58] flag laws. So I basically did a flag law common ownership in the notes. So that way,
[6:03] everyone with these adjacent laws, no matter if it's regular frontage flag law frontage
[6:11] So basically, so the issue was just to make sure I'm remembering everything correctly and to make sure it's all in the video.
[6:23] There's an existing lot now, the house, and then they have an adjacent lot under the same name.
[6:29] that and it's approved, it would be approved for a health lot now, but not after this
[6:39] bylaw goes into place, they still have the ability to build on that spot. Exactly. And it
[6:44] doesn't get absorbed into their property even if it's under the same name. Exactly.
[6:50] Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And just for context, if you know, if anyone's just
[6:54] and who hasn't, you don't been keeping up with this, planning board wanted to look at the R3
[7:02] district. It's supposed to be like the large lot, minimum, lots, out of the residential zone
[7:10] and town, but it's only 86,000 square feet compared to 60 and 50 for two and one respectively.
[7:18] It's so because our zoning bylaws and things have changed, you know, more effective family has been
[7:23] loud, EDU's are loud, so kind of as a way to counter.
[7:30] Not kind of a act, but you know, kind of give some breathing room in other places.
[7:34] There's R3 district that is supposed to be the larger lots of minimum, figure maybe that's
[7:39] one that we can go up and size. The problem is there were some neighbors who expressed in meetings
[7:46] and, you know, in the office or office hours, that seems like there were some people in the R3 district
[7:53] who created adjacent lots that were buildable but vacant so basically they can
[8:01] protect it on their terms right so once they go to sell it they have like a
[8:06] buildable lots and they were kind of concerned because if it becomes no longer
[8:12] you know meeting zoning at some point in the law kind of becomes considered one
[8:19] So, the state has a protection of that if you have a build a lot, in this situation, you're protected if zoning increases, but the problem is there was a 75-foot frontage minimum, our flight lives there for four, so this would protect everyone, flag lots.
[8:41] And that is, so, could do like a subdivision or anything like that, that's what all have to do.
[8:50] Right, because it can do the new. Let's go whole different set or regulation. Yeah. Yeah, it seems like there's like maybe just a handful
[8:57] Yeah, yeah, so that this might apply to like it's the those that were paying attention
[9:02] Notice this whole change knows that weren't would have been like wait. What?
[9:07] Yeah, so any any new subdivision any new ANR as well may not as well as we don't. Yeah, look at that
[9:13] But it does any new lots being created in order for them to build yeah, they would be that 25 and what's there
[9:20] some sort of a provision, but...
[9:22] In other words, a new subdivision would need a lot more land.
[9:26] And it would be a cluster hopefully.
[9:29] Exactly.
[9:29] Yeah.
[9:30] With a lot more land.
[9:33] Exactly.
[9:34] Any questions from the audience?
[9:37] All right.
[9:37] So the difference between our land is in a free place
[9:39] with a lot of size.
[9:40] In front of you.
[9:42] OK.
[9:44] So you say, Murray, that did not do subdivision here, it's too small.
[9:48] It's just enough to give the color in more space, won't I?
[9:54] They could still do a subdivision. It would just be if you have a 58-per-parsal
[9:59] Now you know, you can only subdivide that in so many lines. Yeah, and if you were a lot
[10:03] See your high spots
[10:05] Yeah, because it's still in this new zone
[10:07] Yeah, yeah, our parade. So still has to do you want to copy these are the new
[10:15] I don't have the watermark, but just keep in mind, this is just the draft draft, this is not what I'm going to do.
[10:23] So it's basically 2.878 years old and 25 years old.
[10:27] And they give a foot clusters on that?
[10:29] Absolutely.
[10:31] Clusters aren't as important.
[10:32] I hope to eliminate traditional.
[10:34] We'd rather have to cluster for any new subdivision.
[10:36] The goal is to preserve open space.
[10:39] And, you know, we're not, we get into the balance of property on our rights, so we get into the balance of, you know, requirements, you know, we need housing for certain people or we need housing for everybody, whatever you want to say, but we're losing a lot of farms and a lot of land, and so our three is generally farms and heavily forested areas and rural areas.
[11:03] And so we're not changing anything about the R-1 and R-2, but the R-3 that the kind of the bigger parcels is what we're trying to just make it a little less
[11:14] A bit of a
[11:15] Yeah, I can out of both a divide into many housewives. You can still do it, but you get your housewives out of the same house
[11:25] Yes, yeah, and just for context the R-3 district is primarily the area in southern
[11:30] Westminster kind of close to the Prince and border near. And just in the Fischburg border.
[11:35] Yeah, but no one wouldn't be able to farm that border.
[11:39] Yeah, um, a way of, you know, the North Park near Ashwinham.
[11:43] That's still R2. So.
[11:45] So it's, this is one way of, you know, we don't have too many means of preserving land that doesn't cost money.
[11:56] And so, people always talking to me about how do we preserve land, how do we keep the
[12:00] rural character?
[12:02] This is kind of one of the things that we have, and if people all like it, they don't
[12:06] like it.
[12:07] But I think it's worth a shot of pushing this to the town meeting.
[12:11] Is there a way to update a map for the African District?
[12:16] Is it?
[12:16] I might have provided a map in there, but I can.
[12:19] No, I'd be happy to pull it up though, but I actually had Mr. Mapwork just a second.
[12:24] There won't be a line until all of this.
[12:25] The map doesn't change, right? I'll probably be able to change the map at R-3, but R-3 will just change.
[12:35] The lines won't change.
[12:36] The lines won't change at all.
[12:38] The definition of R.
[12:41] So the same way.
[12:43] Same way.
[12:44] Is
[12:47] there any other work that we need to do on that?
[12:52] Just vote to close and then vote to endors it and then yeah.
[12:59] And after these do I do want to talk about like scheduling the, you know, all these bylaws, but for now I'm sure.
[13:05] Yeah.
[13:06] Two boats.
[13:07] Yeah.
[13:08] On something different.
[13:09] Did you?
[13:10] I missed lots of means.
[13:12] Did you do anything with the data centers?
[13:14] I don't know if you just still take one then.
[13:16] Thank we are going to put that in the November town.
[13:20] And basically it's going to be a in our table of uses.
[13:24] We list all the other different tables and the data center is just going to be
[13:26] across the board.
[13:29] Nice information on that.
[13:31] And I actually said to Park State, some of our state legislators, but I wanted to
[13:35] give it to you guys, including the letter to folks here on the front lines, do you
[13:39] mind if I do that actually?
[13:40] Yeah.
[13:40] We can put that at the end.
[13:41] Yeah.
[13:42] Yeah.
[13:42] I'll read you all reading just to kind of add some back information in what I said.
[13:46] Oh, letter, exactly.
[13:47] Eight letters.
[13:48] Okay.
[13:48] Yeah.
[13:49] Just so they are there.
[13:50] No.
[13:50] I appreciate it.
[13:51] Yeah.
[13:51] We'll do that after the better energy storage one and before the planning to
[13:55] up dates and fit that right in. All right. So it seems like this R3 district is pretty cut dry.
[14:04] You can make a motion. Do we have a motion to close the area?
[14:06] I'll make a motion to close the area. Second. All right. All right. All right. If you want to make one
[14:12] more just to say that you vote to, you know, vote to approve the R3 changes as described. Yep.
[14:18] send us a motion to that.
[14:20] So, I'm a second.
[14:22] Oh, I'm favorite.
[14:23] Great.
[14:24] All right, so second we have battery storage.
[14:29] So I have to last meeting.
[14:32] So it was actually, if the timing that she worked out, because the planning board sent
[14:37] it back, just saying, you know, we're not really sure about what the number is sent for
[14:42] the 250s get a lot of hours that would be the lowest threshold seems pretty high.
[14:50] And after that's when I went to go look at the states, if they had any resources, I noticed
[14:54] that they had an updated model by-law pretty much the same, but just won't finalize.
[14:59] And they had-
[15:00] Some information in there, kind of guiding towns, how did these could do that to a tier zero.
[15:07] So the way that I changed it is, there would be a tier zero, planning what I want to get involved.
[15:12] It would go straight to the building, building, zero to 100.
[15:20] One would be tier one would be 102, 150, and then the same is for tier two and three, 250 to 10 megawatts,
[15:28] and then 10 don't want to make a lot.
[15:31] So the state has the pleasure to say about somewhere you come up with this chip.
[15:36] Yeah, so in these like blue boxes,
[15:38] so this won't show up in the final by-law.
[15:41] This is more like the state's notes.
[15:43] So I decided to do a good in this one.
[15:46] I forgot what your page was.
[15:47] I believe it might be on page three.
[15:52] Yeah, so if I'm just going to tell you the size of the project,
[15:56] currently the project's currently designated as tier one,
[15:58] go through cyclone review, the municipality should create a zero to 100 kilowatt hour separate
[16:03] tier for residential systems. There are a lot by right with a building permit. So I was
[16:09] just thinking like most consistency, because I know we had talked about tier 1A and tier 1B.
[16:15] Right, and that's basically how I just know for that. But is that? I'm just curious to see
[16:19] if other communities had a tier 1A and tier 1A and tier 1B. Yeah, I didn't see it.
[16:25] zero was actually yeah you know and I don't they don't really have a standard for it
[16:30] we can do one a one one day that's totally fine but I figured like the tier zero made
[16:34] sense of my head just when I was running it down because it's like oh it's a zero it's
[16:38] not even a tier you know what it is but so I mean something down
[16:43] that was my only that was my only yeah we can change it to one to four one a one
[16:47] b no it doesn't matter me I just I should be something that everybody is in agreement
[16:53] just already to consistency, I guess,
[16:56] from community to community to one and to be able to zero.
[17:00] I think tier one to four based the most sense
[17:03] because tier like, tier zero is like nothing.
[17:07] You know, there was nothing.
[17:08] So one is, you know, you start, you start at one
[17:12] and then two, three, four.
[17:13] Yeah, no problem.
[17:14] I just wanted to bring that up, I agree.
[17:16] Yeah, no, no, I agree.
[17:18] I could have gone either way.
[17:20] I wanted to bring it up.
[17:21] And I mean, I mean, 100 kilowatt hours is enough to run any of the large homes dead.
[17:30] I mean, that's a lot of battery power. And to get that much battery power in your home,
[17:35] you need it. We're solar panels and, you know, yes, absolutely.
[17:40] And then with the table of uses, I fix it around a little bit. So what's now tier one here, it says
[17:50] zero. It's just by right across the board. That's kind of what we're thinking. And then
[17:57] for Tier 1, I put Cypane Review across the board, except for a village center. I put
[18:04] special permit if we want to change. You can change it. And then Tier 2 is, for primary
[18:11] use, no across the board, except for, and there's just one and two. A lot of special
[18:15] permit tier 3 is not allowed anywhere except for i2.
[18:21] For accessory use, tier 2 is special permit across the board except for
[18:26] a village center.
[18:27] It's not allowed.
[18:28] This is actually matches our solar by law for accessory use.
[18:34] So that kind of matches there.
[18:37] And then tier 3, same thing, no across the board except for i2.
[18:43] It makes sense when you brought up the fact that we have a solar field that actually already
[18:47] has a battery insulation in it.
[18:51] How big is that battery?
[18:52] That battery, all the numbers, the Sony numbers, but I believe it was like 5 or 6 megawatts
[18:59] and so for in the packets, it's like a full of a map, that is one of the solar that was
[19:07] I believe from 2018 or 2019, potato hill road that they basically released 35 acres,
[19:18] big piece of wetlands of the middle, that's not touched, and then in a little corner
[19:23] is a five megawatts, and it's really not, it's actually not as big as I thought.
[19:31] One of the other examples I gave was what Sterling has, Sterling was a earlier doctor of the battery,
[19:36] And that thing right there is, I believe it's 50 feet long, and that's about two megawatts.
[19:44] So it wasn't as land intensive as I thought.
[19:47] Yeah.
[19:48] And I believe that you had one from council.
[19:51] So this is one of the projects that my companies worked on.
[19:54] It was the first battery underneath storage as a backup instead of a diesel generator in Boston.
[19:59] So they worked with the Boston Fire Department figure out how to keep it separated in case something happens
[20:04] and it catches on fire, how do they keep this?
[20:06] And that's, I mean, that's what I think.
[20:09] I think, I think it goes for,
[20:10] what do you make a lot of hours?
[20:11] That sounds about right, yeah.
[20:12] So that would be what a tier two, two, now it's here three.
[20:19] So the big one that's, we were looking at there,
[20:22] that's a tier two also.
[20:24] Yeah, that's a pretty big range,
[20:25] 250 to 10 megawatts, so that's a scale of 40.
[20:30] What was, I noticed you were going to reach out
[20:32] the fire department about what they possibly need or what the town may need for the sort of
[20:40] situation.
[20:42] I mean, passing by large rate, but if it's going to cost the taxpayers, you know, $100,000 to get
[20:50] the equipment to find a fire, it's not good.
[20:56] So I reached out to Kyle.
[20:57] In my mind, I have talked about this stuff in person before, but last week I was like,
[21:03] can you put down and writing what you would like to see?
[21:06] I sent him the bylaw and he gave me his proposals for to add to the bylaw.
[21:11] So I didn't have this to the language yet, but if you have for this, we can always add this.
[21:19] So these are kind of some extra provisions if you would like to see for fire safety.
[21:25] Um, remember read those out? Yeah, I can read them out. Um, they're not in our,
[21:31] you're right. Oh, they're on the back. Yeah, they are. We got them. Yeah, I mean, I'll read them. Um,
[21:35] they're going to be important. Yeah. You get tired. I already looked at them. Okay. I just want them to be.
[21:41] All right. Let our viewers. Yeah.
[21:47] So we have to comply with the mask comprehensive fire safety code and all
[21:50] standards that are within, that makes sense.
[21:54] All of better entry stores, installations will be subject to review by the Westminster
[21:58] Fire Chief or does it need for compliance with the provisions, that makes sense.
[22:04] Approve on to the zoning by-law site, Cleaner Viewers, Special Permits, and I cost you approval
[22:07] or issuing some permits from the Fire Department.
[22:12] Nothing in this by-law shall supersede or place or limit compliance with state, federal, local
[22:16] closed that laws, codes, or standards.
[22:22] The Biola currently references local authority, authorize,
[22:26] local authority, or a responsible version of permits,
[22:28] replace that language for estimates or files.
[22:34] The applicant shall supply UL954-0A test reports of the proposed batteries and equipment to the fire chief force, as in me, for all tier 2 and tier 3 installations.
[22:46] Any changes to materials or equipment or technologies?
[22:48] I'll be subject to review.
[22:51] Inactive nodes, any one is this tier 2 and 3, I'll change the third to 3, 4.
[22:55] Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
[22:56] The downstream effects, yeah, yeah.
[22:58] All right.
[23:00] The older operators shall supply the fire department
[23:03] with training to include, but not limited to installed technology,
[23:07] hazards, shutdown procedures, alarm conditions, thermal runaway,
[23:10] explosions, off gas hazards, firefighting,
[23:12] consideration, and damage, batter procedures,
[23:14] at no cost to the town for all tier 2 and tier 3
[23:17] installations. Good. Yep. Part of the apartment access.
[23:23] Here are two and two and three. Installations will provide a maintain emergency
[23:27] after us. Apparatus access acceptable to the fire chief, including but not limited to by
[23:33] 27 CMR1 and a PA1. Accessible include adequate roadway width, access shall be maintained
[23:41] year round, clear vegetation, et cetera, a fire G4 is as a name, may require an apparatus,
[23:48] turning analysis, an apparatus staging location may be required, gates shall be provided
[23:55] for fire department apparatus subject to approval by the fire chief. All gates and fencing
[24:00] doors shall be secured with a knockbox lock to determine by the fire chief. A knockbox
[24:05] document, cabinet shall be provided by the installer.
[24:10] We're going to fire the production
[24:11] water supply to your two and three installations to demonstrate that adequate and reliable water
[24:16] supplies available for fire department operations. We're required the fire chief or as
[24:24] does an e-mail required documentation available for fire flow, hydrant locations, water supply
[24:28] capacity or an approved alternative water supply is applicable
[24:34] and separation distances.
[24:37] Equipment shall maintain separation distances is required. We're applicable required
[24:42] separation distances shall consider the system listing installation
[24:45] configuration, fire production features, and quickly you all test with this.
[24:50] All right, that seems easy enough.
[24:52] And if they're, yeah, they're happy.
[24:58] These is safety these.
[25:01] And I think it included a little graph.
[25:03] That shows safety of these.
[25:04] Oh, yeah.
[25:06] And in the last five, ten years.
[25:09] Yeah.
[25:09] And then the package.
[25:09] I just, I found it interesting.
[25:11] It was, as long as safe websites,
[25:12] so I figured I'm able to print it.
[25:14] Just about like the fire safety stuff in it.
[25:17] There's like an orange line that's the failure incident
[25:19] to deploy, or a gigawatt hour.
[25:21] It's pretty good.
[25:22] And then it's like that.
[25:23] So yeah.
[25:24] But you know, so I think if, especially with these battery storage
[25:28] systems, I think the obviously the fire is the biggest thing,
[25:32] the biggest concern.
[25:33] And even if this makes, you know, more expensive for applicants,
[25:36] as well, at least if town meeting approves it,
[25:39] well, at least we have one.
[25:41] Yeah, you know.
[25:42] I don't think it'll make it more expensive.
[25:45] I think it's just, the big thing
[25:46] is locating the big ones in the industrial zones.
[25:51] That's, you know, I think we saw a lot of fight in OCam
[25:55] about where better energy storage,
[25:58] industrial size storage system is being located.
[26:01] And so we were trying to get ahead of that,
[26:03] and make sure that we're not locating it
[26:04] sense of the area. This area is already zone for industrial uses which has chemicals and risks and everything else.
[26:12] And I think that the table of uses that came up with this seems like a pretty fair one, especially when it comes to pairing it with solar.
[26:21] I mean we allow solar if you're going to have solar.
[26:24] That's what's going on.
[26:25] That's stormy.
[26:25] Realistically why it's very clear.
[26:27] It's so well together.
[26:29] Exactly.
[26:29] So, if everyone's okay with it, if there's anything you want to add, I'll change the numbering and if you want to approve it with, you know, to allow me to make reasonable formatting changes.
[26:43] Can you do that?
[26:43] Pressure.
[26:44] Can you do that?
[26:45] Pressure.
[26:47] Pressure.
[26:50] Pressure.
[26:51] Pressure.
[26:54] Pressure.
[26:55] Pressure.
[26:57] Pressure.
[27:00] Yeah, just curious if we want to address, you know, from what I know is the way the EMF works is it.
[27:09] The farther away you get, it drops exponentially.
[27:14] So for instance, I know somebody that lives near a high, the high voltage transmission lines.
[27:19] And so he has got out there with a meter to measure it and you get real close, it spikes.
[27:25] and then as you get every ten feet away, that's a hundred degrees less.
[27:31] And so I can't imagine, yeah, so I can't imagine say you were some high-transmission
[27:36] voltage lines.
[27:38] Okay, so periods, you put on like the edge of some of the problems, you can kind of near
[27:42] someone else's houses.
[27:43] Yep.
[27:45] It's same for you, but then you're too close to somebody else's house.
[27:48] Most of the ones that would be for residential or probably going on the house or in the
[27:54] house.
[27:54] There it's cute, you know, right? I have one in my house right now. We've set up using a generator. We use that as a backup system and and actually at night
[28:03] So the solar panels charge it all day long and then when night comes we
[28:07] You know, we're riding on the power that we had in the solar panel in the battery from most of the night
[28:13] Yeah, and I mean, it is my mind it a lot of ways it's better than having a generator
[28:19] You know
[28:20] situation happens. We lost power for somebody we've worked on a lot of the power we've never
[28:25] been doing because we picked in without us even knowing and just keep in mind how to
[28:30] elect us in every power.
[28:32] Yes, it's an amazing, great, great technology that can help in a lot of different ways,
[28:40] long as it's, you know, like anything, we have to place it in a place that makes the most sense
[28:46] And I think, I remember reading about the setbacks.
[28:49] There are setbacks that you can't put it right next to someone else's property.
[28:52] You know, is there a list that there is a cloud to you?
[28:55] No, there's no.
[28:56] No, no, no, no.
[28:57] But I would like you to like the colder generation for a new one.
[28:59] They run once a week for 20 minutes.
[29:01] It's a noxious.
[29:03] No, there's no sound.
[29:03] It's completely a noxious.
[29:05] So that's better than a regular generator that everybody can go and put it in the property.
[29:09] I was no part of it.
[29:11] In a little village sector, that can be.
[29:13] Yep.
[29:14] There's absolutely.
[29:15] Actually, no sound to it whatsoever.
[29:19] And I say, I did make a few other changes to some of the other sections.
[29:23] Just when I was doing one last.
[29:25] Would you have everything?
[29:27] If you see like this with like I made a few pages.
[29:31] Yes.
[29:32] Zoom down.
[29:33] So the first one was just with the site plan review.
[29:38] I just wanted to clear that.
[29:41] If the project were a site plan review.
[29:44] They are also, they also have to comply with our sacred point review by laws and regulations.
[29:49] In the case, if any regulations conflict with the provisions of each other, the structure of the requirements shall be followed and thus the point.
[30:00] Board of degrees by majority vote otherwise. Okay? Yeah. That's pretty standard. Table of views, exceptions. We set
[30:07] this up beforehand. I know it's kind of random with the color, but I didn't pay it since the green is the newest
[30:13] stuff. We kind of put it like an exception for brown fields. That if something is considered a brown
[30:18] field, they'd be able to, you know, consider this. Sure. Brother York says there's an ATR. If the site
[30:26] is in his own district, because it doesn't allow the BSS use,
[30:30] a special permit of an appending workshop of your acquired,
[30:33] but I also put in there that doesn't apply to any graph fields
[30:35] that might be in the middle of the center district.
[30:37] Now that there is any budget, you know, you never know.
[30:41] And then I put the table, uses there.
[30:45] And then the last one was I kind of played up some stuff
[30:47] with the special permit, because I think we had the planning board
[30:51] would be the special permit authority here.
[30:56] But kind of going through the solar, because I, you know, the ZBA is the, gives out the solar
[31:06] social permits.
[31:08] So I just put them here that if it's an accessory used to solar, and they have to go to the
[31:13] ZBA anyways, then they can be the zone.
[31:16] Social permits.
[31:17] Anything else, if it's primary use, if it's accessory to something else, they'll come
[31:20] to you.
[31:23] So under 3.2, the second set of sets of site is in a zoning district that does not allow it.
[31:32] It should say variance, should variance, should be required.
[31:37] You can't give a special permit to something that isn't allowed in zoning.
[31:42] It has to be allowed in a special permit.
[31:48] Yeah, because I was
[31:50] Isn't it a zoning district that does not allow that use?
[31:53] The only way you can get that uses with a variance from the ZBA.
[31:57] Right, so otherwise it has to be allowed with a special permit.
[32:02] Right, wherever the ground goes.
[32:06] And we could strike it.
[32:08] If that's an issue, we can always strike it a month and just kind of.
[32:13] Okay, because this is the reason these were the little kills that went on in this.
[32:19] Well, this is just how to do a zoning law.
[32:21] Right, but as far as like wear towns and ZBAs made decisions based upon it.
[32:26] Yeah, and for context, this is just for if there's a site that's a brownfield.
[32:31] It's kind of giving them special consideration.
[32:34] Understandable.
[32:36] But now I was just looking through where there's something.
[32:40] Yeah.
[32:40] But also, you know, marino's.
[32:43] When you can say a variance from the ZBA is required,
[32:46] if you want to say, you know, if you want to keep that sentence,
[32:49] it has to be a variance and has to be from the ZBA.
[32:52] Yeah, I think you're just keeping it, you know,
[32:56] the language correct.
[32:57] And if you know the support thing, you mean?
[32:59] Yeah, and plus we can always have.
[33:00] I mean, we can always revise this, too,
[33:02] and if town council has to look at it.
[33:05] So we can, I can say that, you know,
[33:08] that they can see good covariance in it, they'd.
[33:11] Let's see the only way you can get around the zone.
[33:13] Yeah, okay.
[33:14] It's good, it's good.
[33:16] It's a special permit.
[33:17] It must just spell it out.
[33:18] It's a lot of high-special permit.
[33:21] Otherwise, we're going to need to be there.
[33:22] We're going to need to be there.
[33:22] It's not a lot in the zone if you restrict it.
[33:24] It needs a variance.
[33:26] I mean, the other thing I could do to you was like,
[33:28] maybe add it to the table of uses, like a special,
[33:32] like if it's a bit.
[33:33] Yeah, you could.
[33:34] If you want to, that brownfields as a special use, you know,
[33:37] Yeah, I could do anything that happens in a brown field is kind of different than so that one it's it's um, I
[33:44] Believe the number is 3.2
[33:49] Yeah, it's like it's mostly yellow and then
[34:03] So
[34:05] You know for the about two people are probably listening who may not know when a prompt of this
[34:12] Yeah, it's basically as a site that had some sort of use before, that's right, there's some sort of contamination.
[34:22] And it can be anything that doesn't have to be like something really nasty.
[34:26] It can be anything from like an old gun range, right?
[34:29] Because if it's exactly.
[34:31] So anything like that like old gas stations, anything with some sort of contamination.
[34:35] It's a program by the EPA.
[34:37] It's a federal thing.
[34:38] It's basically a way exactly rebuttalization
[34:44] Yeah, so maybe what I can do is with the language that I have here. I'll just make it to the table of use.
[34:50] Yeah, yeah, T.R. W.
[34:59] Yeah, that might be that's an official browse view.
[35:02] Okay, yeah, because I know there's still a monitor and probably will be forever.
[35:06] Yeah, I know there's a super fun site too, that don't ask me what that means, but Brownfield's, yeah, there's no Brownfield projects in town right now.
[35:16] Right. That's like, that you go through the state for funding for Brownfield, or is it some sort of, I was a program.
[35:23] I was going back to God that decades.
[35:25] Yeah, MRPC gets involved too, like they get, they get ran funding for that.
[35:30] So if we were had a place in town that we wanted to kind of target for brown fields, I would probably reach out to MRPC and they would, because they have a consultant that they hire for these projects, I think there's a brown field like working group that MRPC has, I used to go to those, but I'm not working anymore.
[35:54] kind of a neat program.
[36:00] Your question?
[36:01] Yeah.
[36:03] On to the stage.
[36:05] To play that.
[36:06] Is that what you say?
[36:07] Yeah.
[36:07] I believe.
[36:08] And I could just be here.
[36:09] There's a thing in the environmental.
[36:11] In the survey back in the day.
[36:12] But Brownfield's was just like an incident program where you could get some funding
[36:16] to take funding.
[36:17] All right.
[36:17] Might even be caught in my funding.
[36:18] I could be wrong.
[36:19] But there was funding available to sort of salvage.
[36:24] of property that had been deemed contaminated or not usable by the APA, they could be a combination,
[36:38] I'm not sure, but it is a program that exists for quite some time.
[36:47] Yeah, I don't think there's tons of uses that even if they do clean up,
[36:52] there's not a lot of people that want to build on them.
[36:55] So like I know like solar, like the S or the S or the S.
[36:59] Yeah, there was a lot of incentive, like you get more money
[37:04] if you're building a solar, you know, farm on a brown field.
[37:10] I would just put it into the special use over here.
[37:13] I mean, the, so we, you say, put it into the special use.
[37:20] I mean, the brown field.
[37:23] Yeah.
[37:23] But what it could do is, I'm trying to think how we have it, like, because I know there's some spots in our zone where, like, we have these special.
[37:30] So, I can put a table of views like a table of views, exceptions. Yeah, I can do a little something, either with the rest of them, or I can just put it right into the redash show. Like I can do a table of views under the redash show. I think that's how I want the bill of Senator has one like that. Okay.
[37:52] Yeah.
[37:54] And so everyone is okay with that, if you want to vote to close and vote to approve it with, you know, all the changes we made tonight and, you know, any formatting.
[38:04] Yeah, do we have, I guess, are we at the end where we have to approve it or to get on the November town meeting or do we want to review it one more time?
[38:11] So that I was going to, I was going to bring up as well. If you want to review it one more time, we can absolutely do that because I'm not sure if it can act.
[38:19] So, or I was going to mention is I don't know if all five that we're looking at can make it to the November town meeting
[38:25] because of that conversation about it and it was a well special town meeting is really more for like time sensitive things.
[38:35] So if there were things that might need a little bit more time to go to the advisory board and go to the kind of present to people
[38:45] Maybe we want to consider which ones we want for November, definitely, and which ones we want for May.
[38:52] I'm going to say let's get a clean copy that we can review next time if we're not at a time crunch.
[38:59] Yeah.
[39:00] And then next time we can discuss which ones we want to put on the November meeting.
[39:05] I kind of had in my head which ones I think.
[39:07] But if you want to go to continue this to the next meeting, which is,
[39:11] you pull it in my calendar on a minute.
[39:13] If you think you've received all the information you need,
[39:16] you can close the hearing.
[39:18] And we're looking for more information.
[39:21] It's good question.
[39:21] Or do you just want to see it like a more clean copy?
[39:24] Because I just kind of want to see everything.
[39:27] I don't know.
[39:27] Before I vote on something, I want to know exactly what it looks like.
[39:31] It makes me want to make sure I'm not missing anything.
[39:33] And I know we can continue to change it if it's like variations.
[39:36] I think given the sensitivity of this whole topic,
[39:39] it wouldn't be that idea.
[39:41] Yeah.
[39:41] Yeah, let's continue.
[39:42] In that way, if somebody does get one to this and they want to.
[39:46] Yeah.
[39:46] Add in.
[39:47] Sounds good.
[39:48] All right.
[39:48] What do you think is actually pressing for November?
[39:52] The really, really should go to the annual.
[39:53] Yeah.
[39:54] My opinion.
[39:55] Maybe all the stuff should go to the annual.
[39:58] Talking with, I'm not sure.
[40:00] I'm kind of like sticking about the stuff.
[40:02] I think it is.
[40:03] Then there should be November.
[40:05] And then just because it's like a one line.
[40:07] that they have to take communities like adjustment that we made, I think those are the two,
[40:13] I think the other three can go to any wall. Right? Yeah. See any wall the spring? Yeah that's
[40:18] thousands in May, which I know it feels like forever but then then you get ready for it and you're like
[40:24] oh it's actually you actually kind of need six months. All right so do we have motion to continue this
[40:31] until the next meeting, which is, that will be October,
[40:37] yeah, we have that weird, like, that will be October 13th.
[40:41] Okay, the answer comes.
[40:42] All right, do we have motion to continue the steering till October 13th?
[40:45] At six p.m.
[40:46] That's six p.m. Sorry.
[40:47] Motion.
[40:48] Some more.
[40:49] Okay.
[40:50] All right.
[40:52] All right.
[40:53] All right.
[40:53] So that covers all of our by-law hearings today.
[40:55] Yep.
[40:56] Um, few.
[40:58] Yeah.
[40:58] Sorry.
[41:09] You want me to just kind of give my day it's quickly as well or not so yeah sure yeah
[41:17] so Adam Streets that's kind of the October 20th at the senior center same time which is you know
[41:27] That's going to be trying to get back to like the way there's scheduled ZVM meetings. So
[41:33] October 20th at the last meeting
[41:38] We extended it because the deadline was going to be in October for the kids for comprehensive permanency need six months
[41:46] the ZBA and the
[41:48] Applicants agreed to extend the deadline for closing the hearing
[41:52] to December 31st. Okay, so
[41:55] See what we can do in that time, and if we need to extend it again, we can extend it again, I'm like
[42:01] Sorry, hopefully it doesn't take this long, but you know sergeant wrote has been in the queue since January of 25
[42:09] That is actually almost over, I think I think we found we have all the
[42:16] Pure view common stuns so sergeant roaches is in the final stages. I think I think it's gross
[42:23] So cool
[42:25] Yeah, that's been a long time and the second thing, this is just kind of for informational
[42:30] and it kind of ties back to the battery stuff. The state came out with a new law, you know,
[42:37] when they came out with the whole trying to push battery storage and clean energy,
[42:43] they created a law that basically all the towns have to follow.
[42:48] When somebody comes to a town to do what they call a small clean energy project, you know,
[42:55] they would have to go to the planning board, the zoning board, they have to do all these applications.
[43:01] So they're calling it like a consolidated application, and there's nothing we have to do.
[43:06] There's no dialogue with the change.
[43:08] The only thing is it's really administratively, instead of for each permit they need,
[43:13] having multiple applications, and applicant will just do one application,
[43:18] they still have to go through all the public hearings, and it just gives
[43:22] a time frame for the town to make a decision within the year.
[43:28] This is perfectly reasonable.
[43:29] Yep, so for you guys, it's really not going to make too much of a difference for
[43:35] individual boards, it's more on us and the background.
[43:39] So, and then a part of it is like this supposed to be somebody in town who's like the local government
[43:46] representative who is kind of like the manager of making, you know, you know,
[43:51] just basically managing to make sure everything is running.
[43:56] So, how the law is its Stephanie automatically, but she can delegate it.
[44:02] So, I think she'll probably delegate it to me.
[44:05] I was talking to the guy from the state, and I asked him how other towns do it, sometimes
[44:09] they do but employees, sometimes they do like the conservation chair or the planning
[44:13] board chair.
[44:15] I would imagine, you know, if you're a volunteer, probably want me to do it, you don't
[44:19] think they need to do it, so yeah, that's something coming up and thankfully the state
[44:26] was really good about like they have all the documents for us and everything.
[44:30] We didn't have to, if we didn't want it, do any by-law changes, we don't have to, we don't
[44:34] like have to, you know, pass anything we don't want to.
[44:38] So yeah, they made it pretty easy.
[44:41] So, you know, I appreciate it.
[44:43] That's, and yeah, that's the big thing.
[44:47] We have a new land use assistant here, Diana.
[44:51] She's been here for a few weeks when, you know, Caroline moved to the health department.
[44:56] So yeah, she's just getting started the year.
[44:59] She's, she's, she's.
[45:00] Who is here for the Adam Street 40B? That was her first day. So, she got thrown into the choir. They won, but...
[45:06] Speaking of the last one, was that a traffic?
[45:10] Oh, the Adam Street...
[45:12] That was right, yeah.
[45:14] Yeah, Adam Street we were talking about. It was traffic access, kind of discussing how the board wants them to proceed.
[45:22] Because they had a concept of, like, well, if you're not going to like Adam Street, here's a vacant street.
[45:30] And we're a lot of people present.
[45:33] Yeah, there's a good amount.
[45:34] It's slowly starting to simmer down a little bit,
[45:38] but it's still well a time.
[45:39] Is that the senior center?
[45:40] Senior center, yeah.
[45:42] So any interesting information come out of that.
[45:46] I didn't go.
[45:47] I wanted to go.
[45:48] But then I couldn't find it on this video.
[45:51] Is it up on video now?
[45:53] It should be on video now.
[45:55] If you can't find it, just let me know all of a sudden.
[45:56] the link. They were looking at increasing the number of apartments to two buildings and
[46:04] 60 something apartments. Yeah, so so what the discussion was because, you know, there was
[46:08] some topic of like, oh well, is there any way you can go down to two floors? So when they looked at it,
[46:15] you know, because when it comes to 40 B's, the state mandates, you know, my law by
[46:21] regulations that we can't change it in a way that would make it un-economic for the applicant.
[46:28] So it seemed like making it in just two stories, you know, they could do it by two buildings.
[46:34] It would change the economics of it, so they proposed they could do two stories, two buildings,
[46:40] but add some units to make it shorter, but you get more apartments.
[46:46] And the, it's a trade-off that I don't know who wants, wants to make that as if yes.
[46:51] Is there any talk about more than one actual entrance?
[46:55] It was talked about, but I don't know if anyone was, I don't know if the selling border.
[47:00] It seemed like it didn't really go anywhere.
[47:05] But it seemed like the feeling from the residents and from the selling border.
[47:09] They weren't really interested in the adding actual units.
[47:13] So, or putting it on a bacon straight, it seemed like, you know, people were open to hearing the whole bacon straight access thing, but I think what it was kind of like a moving forward meeting, so they, the zoning board feeling was, keep it out as, keep it the three stories, keep it on Adam straight, but try to make it work. Basically, try to see if you can make Adam straight work.
[47:39] So if that's a huge change, if the applicant wanted to make that big of a change, that would fly by on the state level, the easily?
[47:50] The state would probably, it's just not going to argue about it at all.
[47:55] Just okay, guys, you know, you want to make a big change like that, they'd be okay with the state.
[47:59] Right, they would probably have to go to the state.
[48:01] They'd say huge change, it's like a whole different project to build it.
[48:03] You know, but they said we get more units out of it, so let's say we love it, but so basically those aren't happening so it's staying
[48:11] With the current concept, just trying to mitigate the height of the shield as much as they can
[48:15] But yeah under there, it's current application. It's up to the local ZBA to approve the whole thing. Yes. It's just point in time. Right.
[48:24] Seems to me if they made that big a change they have to
[48:27] Come up with a whole new application. That's just my opinion. Well, they, it's real different. The original application
[48:32] the original state application was two buildings okay and then they changed it to this
[48:38] one building okay so the two buildings got approved by the state or never got
[48:42] that all the way to the state and now they changed the one building and when asked
[48:46] about it they said that they don't have to go back to the state to get it approved okay
[48:50] that answers my question yeah the state's their biggest worry is unit count oh yeah
[48:56] Oh sure.
[48:57] Oh sure.
[48:58] Okay.
[48:59] Yeah.
[48:59] So that's been much better.
[49:01] Yeah.
[49:02] Sure.
[49:03] We'll come about.
[49:04] I'm sure you can.
[49:05] Well, don't they have a six month time frame also?
[49:10] But we decided to December.
[49:12] So that's the one that...
[49:15] What's it extended?
[49:17] What's it extended?
[49:18] What's it?
[49:18] Is there a new...
[49:19] Was it extended once?
[49:20] This was the first extension.
[49:22] because the hearing deadline to close it was going to be a few weeks from now from now yes
[49:30] and it is not ready to close yet so the applicants and the learning board voted to continue
[49:38] Adam Street yes because you talked about the other one got in get it got extended I think five times
[49:47] Yeah. Okay. Yeah. So.
[49:50] You know, the question was one building with like 48 units or something. And that
[49:55] got a group. They did not go to 60. Is that what you're saying?
[49:59] No, he's saying they're very original was two buildings.
[50:02] Who's two? They've got to prove by the state. No, no. Yeah. Yeah.
[50:05] So two buildings, but it was 40 years at the time. So same, you know, count. They just had a
[50:10] concept plan that they presented in. They're not going to go for it.
[50:13] They're there, and they crunched their numbers and came up with the argument that this would not be economically feasible for them to continue forward, even though the original plan was too big.
[50:30] Got it.
[50:33] Yeah.
[50:35] We don't need to keep getting that.
[50:39] All right.
[50:39] So that's what I have, and if nobody else is anything, then I think if you want to say a drink, you're your topic.
[50:46] I'll just say that you guys are working on that.
[50:50] Sure.
[50:51] You know, it'll be good.
[50:52] It's just give you the information.
[50:55] You show up.
[50:56] You attend meetings or appreciate that.
[51:00] Okay.
[51:00] You're all right.
[51:01] Yeah.
[51:01] All she's any that are okay with, is the board okay with having those the MBTA communities
[51:12] adjustment and the data centers for November and the other three we can push to.
[51:18] Oh yeah.
[51:18] Yeah, absolutely.
[51:19] Okay.
[51:20] I thank you.
[51:21] Is that difficult for Zoning Bylaws to be at the end of the time meeting around the special?
[51:26] If you want to make a motion, it's not, yeah, yeah, it's all if we're really emergencies and catching up stuff
[51:33] All right, exactly. So if you want to make a motion more and stuff, yeah, if you want to make a motion just
[51:38] Let's say if because I'm going to write a letter to them, so you can have a best way of matters
[51:43] Good second
[51:47] You said some move
[51:49] Yeah, okay, second
[51:51] Yeah, oh
[51:52] All right. Perfect. Motion to adjourn. Motion to adjourn.
[51:57] And so this is for our pleasure reading. Thank you.
[52:00] Thank you. Thank you.
[52:05] Oh my God. Somebody seconded motion to adjourn.
[52:09] I'll second be a motion. Okay. All of it.
[52:12] All right. All right. Thank you.
[52:15] And I say I'm at the motion.