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TOWN OF STERLING ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS MEETING TOWN OF STERLING ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS MEETING April 27, 2015 April 27, 2015 A meeting of the Town of Sterling Zoning Board of Appeals was held on Monday April 27, 2015 at the Sterling Town Hall at 7:00 pm with the following members present: Darrell Uetz ~ Acting Chairman Richard Palmieri ~ Member Charles Itzin ~ Member Brad Dates ~ Member Excused: Chairman Larry Lemon Brad Dates. Also present: Christopher Ferlito and Attorney John Klucsik, Thomas Blanchard, Steve Keeling, Brian Soper, Robin Allinger, Joe Hammond and Vern Bishop. The meeting was called to order at 7:00 PM by Acting Chairman Darrell Uetz. PUBLIC HEARINGS Christopher Ferlito Acting Chairman Uetz read the legal notice into the minutes and the Public Hearing was opened at 7:02 PM. Notice is hereby given that the Zoning Board of Appeals of the Town of Sterling will hold a Public Hearing on Monday April 27, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. at the Sterling Town Hall, 1290 State Route 104A, Sterling, NY 13156 to hear an Area Variance request by Christopher Ferlito of CJ Construction LLC. A request for relief of Town of Sterling Land Use Regulations Article X, Section 5.J Subsection 2.d Setback requirements for access roads and existing residences in connection to a gravel and sand mining/excavation operation on property located at 13181 Sanford Road, Martville, NY 13111; Tax Map #20.00-1-68.01. All those wishing to be heard in favor of or in opposition of said application may appear in person or by other representation at said time and place. By order of the Zoning Board of Appeals, Lisa Somers, clerk CJ Ferlito and his attorney, John Klucsik, approached the Board and stated that he has been before the Planning Board for Special Use Permit approval and was referred to the ZBA during the project review because of a noncompliance issue regarding the minimum distance required between the entrance of the mine and the surrounding residential structures. He has also been working with the DEC to obtain a mining permit and process the State SEQR EAF Review which is nearing an end ( a draft negative declaration was provided). He has also been working with Highway Supervisor Brian Soper to complete the Highway Preservation paperwork for the Town. Some design elements changed after talking with Mr. Soper like curving the egress drive to assist loaded trucks with the 90 degree turn onto Sanford Road and a plan for all trucks to head south to access both Route 38 and 104. Mr. Ferlito stated he had spoken to many of the neighbors to explain his business plan, especially the closest like the Allinger’s, Welsh and Seymour families and that they seemed positive that hours would be established and reclamation efforts would be mandated. A large surveyed Vicinity Map was provided for the members to identify the properties closer than the 1,000 feet with exact distances for each structure to each driveway of the mine. Member Palmieri asked why a second driveway had been designed? The applicant explained that traveling from the north down Sanford Road is a long hill which could be problematic for trucks to pull out, therefore the thought was a north ingress and a south egress 300’ apart to ease traffic flow and provide safety. A member asked if signs were going to be posted at the mine to direct the trucks, the applicant stated he would place a ‘no right hand turn’ sign on the property but the roadway would need to be handled by the Town. The Highway Supervisor commented that the Town would add signs if needed. A member asked about the usage history of the existing mine to which Mr. Ferlito stated that he had purchased the property from Steve Keeling and was told that they had been removing small loads for over 60 years, the aerial photo supports this claim and shows a visibly scarred area. The Board members reviewed the map provided and found that the 4 closest properties were within 600’ and only the Allinger’s were present at the Hearing. Member Dates asked about the numbers – how many trucks and how much product is going to be moved. The applicant replied he has 6 trucks of his own (4 ten wheel dump trucks and 2 tractor trailer haulers) but deliveries are not limited to his own vehicles, others will be entering the mine pursuant to business contracts. Mr. Ferlito stated that he has two bids out currently for the Sterling water line job and for the Onondaga Lake project – hauling long distances increases bid prices so he hopes to work locally. Member Itzin asked if there was any other layout of the business that would result in better compliance for the mine entrance. Even though the property is 82 acres it has neighbors around the perimeter and purchasing additional property doesn’t change the issue it only involves different structures. Acting Chair Uetz asked the Highway Superviosr about the condition of Sanford Road and its ability to handle this kind of truck traffic. Brian Soper answered that the road had recently been rebuilt and can handle the loads. Sanford Road had been on a schedule with many other roads in the Town for repairs and rebuilds which was determined before this project was proposed. At this time, Acting Chairman Uetz asked if any audience members had comments or concerns. Resident Tom Blanchard, who resides in Victory, questioned whether the roads along the designated route could withstand the loads as well. The Victory Town line bisects Sanford Road past the Welsh residence this section of road and the right turn onto Pople Road to connect with Routes 38 and 104 are not within Sterling’s jurisdiction, therefore they are not part of the Road Preservation law nor are they part of this review. The clerk stated that the Town of Victory had been ---PAGE BREAK--- notified as all the residents of the project, Brian Soper also stated that he had spoken with the highway department and they were aware of the project. Discussion ensued regarding the hard right turn onto Pople Road and the effect the loaded trucks will have on the road condition in the Town of Victory. Brian Soper again stated that he had spoken with the Town of Victory representatives and that they were not concerned, as was Brian who had plowed snow for over 10 years at that intersection. Some neighbors commented that the traffic had already increased because of the other businesses in the area in the past 10 years and the roads hadn’t been affected thus far. Steve Keeling (previous property owner) stated that they had used the same route and although the turn appears tight, it can be easily maneuvered. Mr. Blanchard had other concerns such as the Creek that borders the property along the east and south property lines and the potential for contamination – the design standards utilized and recommended by the DEC eliminates any potential for contamination. Mr. Blanchard was also concerned about outside hauling contracts and the ability for the project to control other haulers. He stated that Ricelli is a hauler for the Onondaga Lake project and his company is known for noncompliance – other Towns in the area have many complaints filed for noise, dust, speed and road surface destruction. The neighbor directly across the road, Robin Allinger, questioned what the negative declaration from the DEC involved. CJ Ferlito answered that the DEC had reviewed the project design and found that there would be no negative or adverse affects on the surrounding environment and that the DEC would be monitoring the progress of the mine through the phases and reevaluating any oversights. A reclamation plan to plant grass and vegetate each phase as its completed is supported with a bond posted to cover each phase. She also asked about dust control measures? The dust will be controlled by watering the surface areas as needed with water supplied to tanker truck from the pond on site. She also asked what activity would be occurring on the area of property located next to her on the west side of Sanford Road. Mr. ferlito replied that no activity would be occurring on that portion of the property, in fact of the 82 acres available only 36 acres are part of the actual mine. Attorney John Klucsik had already presented a written argument in support of the variance request for the Board Members and proceeded to summarize the main points for the audience present. The variance request pertains to the mine access and its relation to structures within 1,000 feet only. Mining is a use allowed in AR districts with the issuance of a special use permit according to the Land Use Regulations of Sterling. The mine has existed since 1966 and has had two access points – the north historically for mine access and the south for access to a Christmas tree farm. The use of these existing access points will not change the character of the neighborhood (criteria The proposed control of ingress and egress should increase safety standards relative to traffic negotiating the steep grade on Sanford Road. Established hours of operation with security fencing and gates only further benefit the surrounding community by eliminating the unpredictable previous usage including illegal waste dumping. Other options for access do not exist on the property that improves the number of residences affected (criteria in fact other scenarios increase the number of homes affected overall. The request is substantial (criteria 3) for four properties and less substantial for the four remaining parcels affected but Mr. Ferlito has attempted to mitigate with separate access points for ingress/egress and negotiation to purchase more property to the north to create an easement to place entrance further north on Sanford Road. The location of the access points for the mine will not cause an adverse impact to the physical and environmental conditions of the neighborhood (criteria 4) as supported by the Negative Declaration to be issued by the DEC as lead agency of the coordinated SEQRA review. The hardship that relief is being sought for is not self-created (criteria 5) in that it arises exclusively from the setback requirements of the Town’s Land Use Regulations – the State Mined Land Reclamation Law supersedes local laws, and permits for mining activity are governed by the DEC which has the authority to establish setbacks for public thoroughfares. In conclusion, the applicant has respectfully requested an area variance from the Town in the interest of furthering good relations with both the Town and the neighbors. A question regarding the mine operation details prompted Acting Chairman Uetz to read aloud from the supplied ‘Mine Land Use Plan’ sections already approved by the DEC concerning contamination of water sources, estimated truck traffic (5 trucks per hour with a maximum of 10 trucks per hour), dust control, phasing of operations and reclamation efforts with performance bonds, road design and noise study of acceptable processing equipment scheduled to be on site. Member Dates asked the applicant how they monitor the load rates on each truck? He was answered that scales are on the loader. Member Palmieri commented that the hard ship was self-created because he purchased the property to establish a business that doesn’t fit the zoning requirements. The attorney disagreed and stated that it’s an allowed use - the hardship came with the land that had been utilizing the two access points to extract gravel for close to 60 years. Without any further questions from the audience Acting Chairman Uetz closed the Hearing at 7:50 pm. Acting Chairman Uetz stated that he was satisfied with the neighbor notification and that those who had concerns and problems had attended and were given opportunity to discuss the issues with the Board and the applicant. He also stated that the applicant had appeared to answer issues of dust and noise sufficiently for the DEC to declare a negative declaration. Member Dates commented that the noise levels of the mining activity appear to be equal to those of farming activities which are prevalent throughout the community. Without any further comments a motion was moved by Member Itzin to approve the requested relief of setback requirements regarding access roads and existing residences in connection to a mining/excavation operation. The motion was seconded by Member Palmieri, all were in favor and the motion carried. ---PAGE BREAK--- Resolution 2015-04 BE IT RESOLVED, by the Zoning Board of Appeals for the Town of Sterling, upon the facts presented and the determination made, that the application request for relief of setback requirements regarding access roads and existing residences in connection to a mining/excavation operation on property located at 13181 Sanford Road, Martville, NY 13111; Tax map # 20.00-1-68.01 is hereby APPROVED with conditions as follows: None. A roll call vote was taken: Darrell Uetz, Acting Chairman Aye Richard Palmieri, Member Aye Charles Itzin, Member Aye Brad Dates, Member Aye 4 AYES 0 NAYS 0 ABSTENTIONS – REQUEST APPROVED MINUTES Motion to approve meeting minutes for October 16, 2014 was moved by Member Uetz and seconded by Member Dates, all were in favor with no discussion, motion carried. Motion to approve meeting minutes for February 25, 2015 was moved by Member Uetz and seconded by Member Dates, all were in favor with no discussion, motion carried. ADJOURN On a motion by Member Itzin and seconded by Member Palmieri, the meeting was adjourned at 8:15 PM. Approved Minutes, Respectfully submitted, Lisa Somers, ZBA Clerk