 Thanks, everyone and welcome to the Wednesday, January 16th meeting of the Amherst Planning Board the first item on the agenda is Minutes and we have the minutes in our packet of Wednesday December 5th to review I'd entertain a motion on those minutes move. We approve the minutes Moved and seconded any further discussion If not all those in favor Those are approved unanimously. Thank you Next item on our agenda is public comment period. This is a new item on the planning board agenda This is for the purpose of any public comment not related to another item on the agenda Is there any public comments? Seeing none, we're going to move on actually further down our agenda. This is going to be item 6a under new business and this is the public shade tree committee Discussion about the potential role of new trees at the proposed office building project at 236 North Pleasant Street and 12 Halleck Street. There's someone from the public shade tree committee that would like to speak to this Hi, I'm Henry Lappin the chair of the public shade tree committee and thank you for taking the time Mostly, I just wanted to check in with you We have met with you before and about this project and you know I'm just in general to think about trees when new projects are planned and even before the step I'm told that at this point the design is finalized. So There's not much I can say I guess in terms of this one, but it's just the idea of thinking about street trees before Before before this point, but at any point soon as soon as possible so If you look at the map the North Pleasant Street is pretty well shaded because there's that bump out of Land with trees there and that's great along Halleck Street itself though in front of the building is not going to be much There is the narrow tree belt. I know Alan Snow the tree warden is reluctant to plant in such a narrow belt because the trees generally don't survive so I Mean nothing can be done in this terms I guess I mean you can tell me more about that, but We're hoping that with as new developments get proposed thoughts Including expanding the size of the tree belt and things like that happen so that we can keep trees It'd be lovely to have a few shade trees there shading the building Protecting it visually from the road, etc That's mostly what I want to say Great. Thanks so much for joining us and for your information for those present and those Watching at home. Yes, the decision was already approved for this particular project. We appreciate your input if the shade tree committee or individuals would like to promote Change the design I'd recommend contacting the developers directly and certainly I'd recommend the shade tree committee and others that want to impact the design Projects in general that they can always attend the meetings prior to decisions being issued So we would certainly welcome your input during that process going forward, right? Often we hear about it after the design is pretty far along so If there's a way we could find out sooner and like oh this new project is coming up Would you please give input here? That would be something that'd be great I'd be happy to talk with the developers that if I talk to Christine. Can I get their contact info? Yes, I'd be happy to give mr. Lapin the contact info for the developers of this project. Okay, great. Thank you All right, and anyone else have anything else to say to me or Well, thank you very much for the time then. Thank you very much for your time and comments We're shortly going to move on to our 705 item, which is a ZBA application public hearing So this is ZBA 2009-19 Dave Wissenda 191 West Pomeroy Lane Hickory Ridge Golf Club. This is a special permit to construct an operator 5 megawatts Ground-mounted photovoltaic solar energy facility including access roads overhead utility lines and other appurtenant facilities required for the project Presentation is by the applicant for the review and recommendations to the ZBA by the planning board Would the applicant like to make a presentation? Good evening My name is Doug Telletman. I'm a business development director for New England for centric of business solutions Formerly known as direct energy solar where the contractor on this proposed project With me presenting today to my right is Charles Kovacic Project manager with centric of business solutions and to my left is Jason Gold engineer of record with the ESS group We're here today to talk about a proposed project to be located at the Hickory Ridge Golf Club location 191 West Pomeroy Lane The proposed project is a 5.24 Megawatt solar photovoltaic facility Projected to generate approximately 6.7 million kilowatt hours of emission-free energy per year Just to give that a little bit of reference. That's enough to power approximately 1,000 homes in the vicinity We're very happy to answer any questions that the board has regarding this project I'm going to turn it over to Jason who's going to give you a background On the project and then I guess we'll open it up for questions. It's perfect. Thank you. Thank you Good evening So the property is 150 acre parcel. It's plat 19 v lot 10 It's actually because it's such a large project is actually in four different zoning districts They are the primary flood-prone Conservancy FPC Is the majority of it the northern portion is within partially within the neighborhood residents aren't zone is an outlying resident zone to the south arrow and Also village residents RV and RVC to the east That's the entire property the project itself is entirely within the FPC and the our and zones There are several resource areas within the site Fort River divides the site That's what river is the main river This thing there we go Plum Brook is down in the southeast which feeds into it They're bordering vegetated wetlands throughout the site these all include Associated buffers and 30 foot no work zone Majority of the property is also within the 100 year FEMA flood zone associated with the Fort River and Significant portion of the properties within the priority habitats of rare species and estimated habitats of rare wildlife area and That is currently under review by the natural heritage endangered species program the NH ESP The site's not located within any national or local historic districts There's surrounding areas mostly residential with some agricultural to the west and to the northwest as I already mentioned the property is currently used as a golf course Proposed project is a 5.24 megawatt DC project split into two different arrays one in the eastern side and one on the western side in Total there's approximately 15,000 26 modules 115 inverters 117 utility poles and an equipment pad Each array will be surrounded by a seven foot high chain link fence for security And as requested by the concom the bottom of the fence will be raised eight inches above the ground And that allows wildlife to pass beneath it The western fenced area is eleven point seven acres and the eastern area covers approximately eight and a half acres That's twenty point two acres in total The arrays are about a hundred eighty to four hundred feet away from residences to the north along boulders drive and Over a thousand feet away from the residences to the south along West Palmyroy Lane The site will be accessed by to gravel pose gravel roads They're both going across the Fort River at existing crossings. There are some Existing bridges there now that are being evaluated in those locations will be used The road to the west will require curb cut off West Palmyroy Lane And the eastern road will be off of an existing the existing part a lot in use the existing driveway As requested by the fire department we proposed gates locked gates on the south side of both bridges And that's to keep the public off those off of those bridges on the south side of the river One of the nice things about this project since it's on a golf course. It's already cleared. So there's not really a lot of Tree removal is not really a lot of grading a couple of spots Where the slopes are too steep for the racking will be graded just to reduce that slope a bit But there's not much of it There are no large trees greater than six inches in diameter within a public right-of-way that will have to be removed And within the within the golf course itself. There's only About a hundred ninety eight large trees to be removed so it's really Not a lot of site work on this project Because there's not a lot of say work required. There's no significant change in ground cover, which means there's no increase in stormwater So there's no stormwater controls required or proposed The plans do include solar or sediment control that will be filter socks along the Downgrading a perimeter of it as well as your typical construction entrance and stockpiles Again, there's not a lot of grading not a lot of earth work sediment sediment control is Not that much to it All the zoning setbacks and land coverage requirements have been met the property line setbacks are a little Odd because we're in so many different zones So the rear setbacks are either 20 feet or 15 feet 20 feet within the FPC zone and 15 feet within our end This two different front setbacks with three different zoning districts FPC is a 40 foot front setback Ro and RBC both have a 25 foot front setback and Then there's a 20 foot and a 10 foot side setback for the FPC and the RBC zoning districts respectively All the proposed building and lot coverages are within that allowed by the zoning ordinance and That it's also broken up by zoning district. So within our end proposed building coverage is 3.6 acres proposed that's less than the 4.3 allowed With an FPC 2.9 acres is proposed 12.3 is allowed within the RO District 0.2 acres is proposed and that's less than the 1.2 acres allowed As far as lot coverage within the RN zone 3.9 acres is proposed and that's less than the 6.4 allowed with an FPC It's 5.7 acres proposed less than 18.4 acres And when the RO District only 1.2 acres is proposed, which is less than the 2.0 Allowed and that is is a table on the plan set if you need to see those numbers The project does require a special permit under use 3.340 which is other energy facility use So the project's been designed to meet all nine conditions of the zoning by-law special permit findings required And if you want I can go through those Each of those nine. I think that's probably not necessary again The planning board is acting in an advisory capacity to the ZBA which will be making the actual decision on the permit So like to proceed. Okay, that'll save you lots of time Yeah So Generally, you know, it's a passive use it's solar. There's gonna be a lot less There's very minimal traffic a few times a year now somebody visiting the site for maintenance They're You know far away from the residents is existing woods along the perimeter will remain and The concom is reviewing the project. We had one meeting with them the second meeting is coming up on January 23rd Zoning board meeting will be on February 7th. MEPA review has been completed They issued their certificate on December 21st And as I mentioned earlier the natural heritage endangered species program that review is ongoing or in the middle of Preparing a habitat management plan now. That's the overview. I'm happy to take any questions Thank you so much for that Are there questions comments from the board? Michael on page two of your 11 14 18 ZBA application You state that no important scenic features have been identified at this site Who decides what is an important scenic fixture? I'm sorry. Can you point me to the paragraph? It's page 2 on the I don't know what paragraph it is on on the ZBA application of 11 14 18 No other unique or important natural historic scenic features have been identified So no important scenic features have been identified. I think that's a paraphrase of the full Statement which is natural or it's an it's an illusion of the full statement Yes, but you you state that no important scenic features have been identified at the site And my question is who decides what is an important scenic feature? We haven't identified anything that we Believe it's in a significant scenic feature Well, then that is a matter of opinion Because I would contend I would suggest that there are significant important scenic features on that site From from that site there are splendid views of the Holy Oak Range From several parts of the property and the river itself is an important scenic resource People who are not associated with the golf course Canoe and kayak up and down that river on a regular basis and that is an important scenic resource for the town Would you can test that? We would not contest that the Fort River then why did you say there were no scenic resources? I think it may and Let me first preface this by I am in no way trying to be argumentative about this point But I think what we said in our application and what you're saying might be two different things We completely agree that the Fort River is a beautiful scenic resource We also assert that there is nothing in our plans that will in any way alter the Fort River So, you know, I think what we're implying in our application is that there are no important or historic scenic features on The site that we plan to alter in any fashion now I agree with you that the view For people that are canoeing down the river will change as a result of the deployment of a solar facility on the property That's not what we were saying We're saying that we didn't identify any important scenic features that we need to remove in order to facilitate this project and we're certainly happy to Speak with the board if you feel that there are important scenic features that you would like to make sure Remain on the property. We would do everything in our power to make sure that those features remain. I think part of my concern is that the scenic features have to do with the viewshed which is Observable from the property not the property itself but that in individuals who make use of the property in its current configuration have access to an incredible viewshed of the Holy Oak Range and surrounding area and that will be Eliminated completely by the presence of the solar farm So first of all, I apologize that I'm not familiar with the geography So I'm not exactly sure what you're talking about but as part of the plans for this project There have been significant talks that are Continuing and ongoing regarding the conveyance of The portion of the property that is not going to be used for solar to the town of Amherst so a vast majority of the property or a Significant portion of the property will remain available to the public's use At the town's discretion as if this project comes to its fruition The town will end up owning a significant portion of this property That answers part of my question the other part of my my concern Is that the very area on which the solar fields are proposed to be located are the very places where the viewshed is most significant Now if you're not familiar with the property That's too bad. I am familiar with the property. I'm not sorry. Excuse me. I'm not familiar. Yes, my apologies If you were familiar with the property, you would know that the area particularly the West solar array is Significantly underneath and visible from the Holy Oak Range viewshed and that is the area where the significant Questions apply It's and I that that's not arguable What is what I would like to know is what the plans are for the rest of the property that you suggest are being conveyed to the town That would be up to the town We don't have any plans for that remaining portion of the property The talks that have been ongoing and continue are intended to Result in the town owning and having 100 percent control over the portion of the property that they own and The town is free to do with it what they like So if I could interject here Michael first, I want to clarify again We're acting in an advisory capacity making a recommendation to the ZBA also to my understanding We don't have information about a specific agreement between the applicants and the town For purchase of a section of the property. So that's not within our scope tonight And I know that party had a question as well, right and just just to expound on what you said very slightly There is no agreement at this point in time Just discussions that have been very productive According to the town. Thank you for that So if I read the plans correctly There's going to be a number of perhaps smaller trees that will be removed in order to install the panels, right? Yes And my question for you is when would the snow more than? Mr.. Snow, sorry the tree warden make a decision or He's gonna have to review this at some point Chris The tree warden will have to review any trees that are proposed to be taken down in the town right of way But if trees are proposed to be taken down on the property itself The tree warden would not necessarily be involved with that one quick question. I think you quantified them Can you just repeat how many trees you'll be removing within the property we counted I Can just add I met with Alan snow the tree warden last week and We're only removing three trees on West Pomeroy two small I forgot the name of the trees and one tree that was actually chopped up by ever source because it was in the power lines And Alan's snow is all right with that and we I'll file an application and we'll go through the due process and we'll There'll be a fee for those three feet those three trees and they'll plant three trees somewhere else in the town But he has no he didn't have any jurisdiction over the trees in the actual property Thank you within the property that number is 198 I See hi, you mentioned that you were having the I think it's I Don't know how many maybe two bridges evaluated structurally and is that to see if they would hold the loads that you Think you'll need to use or is that thinking about having to beef up the bridges? To carry the loads for construction or maintenance. So I think it's both We've discussed the load requirements with the fire department Based upon what types of vehicles they want to be able to get over the bridges So we're going to make sure that the load capacity on the bridges is sufficient to Hold the types of vehicles that the fire department has told us they want to be able to get over Which they said do not include fire trucks, but just ambulances and other smaller emergency vehicles and We also want to make sure that the bridges have the load capacity to handle the equipment that would traverse the bridges during construction So there's specific numbers that are going to need to be met And if those numbers cannot be met based upon the existing structural capacity of the bridges They'll need to be reinforced So we have an engineer a structural engineer who is coming on site to take the measurements necessary to make those calculations Once those calculations are made We will know whether or not the bridges require Reinforcement or if they are adequate under their existing structure Just quick so that is all done before it goes to the ZBA We expect that it will be done before it goes to ZBA the engineer is coming on site this Friday You know Within a week from that point we expect that they'll have the calculations done It's possible that they may be done in time for the concom meeting a week from today But certainly by February the 7th area Sorry, I noticed on the previous plan the road to the eastern array used to cut through Existing parking lot and then now it's much better. I think it's avoiding a lot of the wetter area But there was a note about the parking lot being Laydown area does that mean like for construction your staging area and Used it so there you no longer have that area You're gonna be using any public space to you know use as what you call lay down area Is that staging from equipment or what is that exactly? So I'll Let Chas address the second part of your question or really the only part of your question But just a comment on the change in plans that was done at the suggestion of the conservation Commission and We were happy to accommodate that suggestion That's why the the road has moved in terms of are we planning on using a parking area for staging potentially, I mean we're gonna We're gonna have to store some equipment on that parking lot before we bring it over the bridge I believe we have full use of that parking lot until it is conveyed to the town. So Yeah, we will be using that so the new portion of the road Will be built Simultaneous to the PV install and you can still access that row that was previously the access road Correct, so you won't need to come into the right away. In other words, you won't be meeting any space beyond the property as far as Staging Correct, and I guess sorry the second part is so this is all still gravel road And I guess concomal dress, you know the issue of like run off into the river with the gravel and whatnot Is there are you planning on plowing that at all or? You know for winter no Clarify what you just said about the relationship of the west of the sorry the east access road and the existing parking lot I Thought I heard you say that it was not necessary to go Into the public way from the existing parking lot to the east access road Is that correct? Jason can address that I didn't say that But if I said something that sounded like that, I apologize Jason you can address the east access road I'm not sure what the question was so the east access road There's an exist wrote this section of the road right along here is existing There's already a road and it goes to a parking lot right about here. So that that section road will be utilized and then And then the rest of the road from here up is proposed and the parking lot I believe Jason is referring to was at the maintenance shed Yes, but that was not the parking lot was originally proposed as a staging area, right? There was parking lot originally proposed as a staging area is the current parking lot for customers. Yes a previous submittal Showed a potential lay down area in this parking lot here That was a previous in middle when the road was coming out from that section That's that's normally something that's shown on the construction plans But it just looked like a good a good area since the road has come off was coming off that area So it was shown in those previous plans now that the road has been moved The actual lay down area will will be determined during the construction plans. Well, if the actual current if the If the if the lay down area or whatever you want to call it the place where you store materials Is now in the vicinity of the existing maintenance shed Then to get from there to the west Array will also require going on to the public way. Will it not? It depends on that how they How they construct it, I don't know if they're gonna and again, this is construction level detail So whether or not they have one lay down area on each side Or just one lay down area on the east and use the existing roads to get over to the west That's that's a construction level detail that isn't hasn't been finalized at this point Chris I just wanted to say that normally Well often recently the building commissioner has recommended that the planning board and the zoning board of appeals require a construction logistics plan from an applicant and that can be You know shown to the planning board or the zoning board of appeals depending on who's giving the permit But it can also be something that's submitted later And then it's reviewed by the building commissioner and the town engineer and the superintendent of public works To make sure that it all makes sense. So The ZBA one of your recommendations could be that The applicant needs to submit a construction logistics plan and then the ZBA can figure out at what point does that get submitted and who reviews it? Thank you, David How tall are the solar mod modules? So it is the question Just for clarification related to the dimensions of the modules or when installed how tall will the array be? The ladder slightly less than eight feet at the highest point. Do you have a sense as to how? Visibility of the modules In relationship to the seven foot tall chain fence Will they be visible over the fence? I? Guess it depends upon the angle upon which they're being viewed from but I would say that the the Highest point of the array will be higher than the fence And the fence is Gonna be transparent Anyway, so Jack and if Mr. Levenstein, I would also say that the height difference between the top of the array and the top of the fence will be So relatively small that if you're a decent distance back say on the South side of the Fort River you probably would not be able to notice the height difference Thank you, Jack During introduction you mentioned the electricity would be used in the vicinity What sort of agreements do you foresee in terms of who will be the ultimate user? So there would be there are no agreements that are necessary the The every bit of electricity that's produced by the system will just go on to the power grid and Then we'll flow with all the other electricity. That's on the power grid to Wherever there's a draw so the way I came up with a number of a thousand homes is if an average home consumes 6,700 kilowatt hours of electricity per year and The system generates 6.7 million kilowatt hours. That's a thousand homes But the electricity flows like water So wherever there's a draw electricity will go there the path of lease resistance will be followed and You know, eventually every bit of the electricity that's being generated by this facility will be consumed Somewhere and it's going to be consumed first by those Homes and businesses that are closest by but it Ever source is going to be purchasing the power and So they own it and then they're just going to sell it to the homeowners Just like they sell any other power It will not be differentiated in any way on the customer's electric bills Customers not going to be not going to necessarily know or be notified What the source of their power is just like right now customers aren't notified what the source of their power is? so You know, you have ever source is going to purchase a lot of times of these larger rays you know the The ever source or national grids don't necessarily have To take on the electricity or they don't you have to find some other off-taker, so I'm just wondering it So you have an agreement with ever source that they will Be purchasing the electricity under the state's smart tariff program Which is the new performance incentive program for solar in Massachusetts The utility is required to purchase 100% of the energy that's produced And there's always a place for it to go There's always a place for it to go And then you you have a Interconnection I forget the terminology, but yes, you have a long process associated with that Yeah, that process has been completed and we do have a signed interconnection services agreement in place Other questions comments Michael Sorry, I have a question about the physical interconnection How does that happen I understand that the two solar arrays are connected by Why wires? Where does the how does the power get from the solar array complex to the grid? By other wires on poles that are gonna Be going from West Pomeroy Lane location to the array location Can you show those on the map? It's right around here is the point of interconnection is an existing pole. So is there a Is it shown on the plans? I've not seen it about a series of poles or wires that run from The array to Pomeroy Lane. It's along the west access road But where do they kind of they get from there there through that root? So these are proposed poles coming down along the side of the proposed gravel road Oh, it's by the right by the side of the access road. Okay, thank you Proposed poles along West Pomeroy, and then this is there we go, and then this is the Existing pole. That's the point of interconnection Okay, thank you Jack What is the status with the Conservation Commission and what are the outstanding issues that you're resolving other than the bridge? so our our status is we've had one meeting with them and our next meeting is a week from today and They gave us a checklist of items to address for the second meeting many involving Calculations and things of that nature, but do you have a list? Yeah, I don't have the entire list with me most almost all of those comments are already included in this plan set that you have a Couple of things that aren't on here This flood storage we're doing some flood calculations to determine whether or not there's a loss of Storage within the hundred-year floodplain Looks like they'll be just a little bit and so We'll we'll grade in some compensatory flood storage just to balance that out in the area, but everything else Relocating the road is one of them We shifted the array around a little bit. It was a lot of minor stuff But it's all included in this point. So I'm just referring back to my notes from the Conservation Commission meeting So some of the items of homework as the committee chair termed it for us Were to stake out the areas of work on the site to provide detail on the type of seed mix that we would use for the Slow-growing grass seed that would be planted in the areas of the array to provide them with a ongoing operation and maintenance plan primarily considering Not so much the operation and maintenance of the solar facility, but the operation is an operation and maintenance of the site The studies the structural reviews of the bridges they wanted some detailed math regarding the I think it's termed BLSF areas They One of the conservation Commission members noted that Potential perching areas for birds of prey you know may be removed from the site as Result of the construction and that he wanted us to consider where such birds could possibly perch Post construction our answer to that at a time was the there's going to be a bunch of poles. They could probably do the same on They there is a sewer easement On the property where there's an existing sewer line. They wanted us I believe to mark that Either more clearly on the plans or actually flag it on site And it's now on the new plan set and Although this wasn't something they wanted us to address they also talked about the town possibly employing a Third-party monitor to make sure that everything that we said we were going to do during the construction phase was being done and That's pretty much all of the outstanding issues that we intend to address next week. Thank you Chris I Believe there was also an issue related to the natural heritage the animals that are on the site and conservation Commission has asked the developer to address that issue and potentially provide some Alternative areas that would compensate for loss of habitat in the areas that they are developing and perhaps the Developers could speak to that issue so we are developing a What's the term natural habitat management habitat management plan? You know, it's actually our position that More natural habitat will be created as a result of this project than currently exists but still you know natural heritage once a habitat management plan which could potentially involve a Conservation easement on the property which we are currently developing David How long would you estimate the construction phase to be? I? Would estimate it at six months, but I'll defer to Chaz on that Yes, I'd like to talk for a minute about the Decommissioning plan which exists as part of the ZBA application on page 53 and for and following I think it's remarkably Appropriate that you included decommissioning plan We see so much these days about energy projects Which don't work out the way they were expected to work out and need to be decommissioned and the fact that you've included such a plan is admirable I'd like to question a few of the details in that plan on In in step to remove you sorry in step to removal You state under the under number F vegetation That once all the components of the PSES are removed the site will be returned to its present state with minimal work Its present state is a golf course You surely don't mean it will be returned to a golf course Because what do you mean by present state? Pardon me It'll be returned to grass regular, but that's not the present state The present state is a mowed carefully manic carefully prepared turf grass facility So I would say that our intention Was not to indicate that when the solar is one day potentially Removed that the property would revert back to a golf course property And if we gave that impression, I apologize we don't mean to imply that It's going to go back to you know bent grass or Bermuda or whatever it is But it will just go back to a natural grass field and Number one under vegetation that was number that was number two PSES does not need any trees removed Clearly that's incorrect because you're talking about the removal of approximately 200 Mature trees at this point. This is within the decommissioning plan apparently. Yes, so You know, I would suggest that maybe that means that we don't have to remove any trees in order to remove the system from the property This is so this is well after the system has been that's not what it says. It says the proposed PSES Does not need any trees removed That's an error in our part and we'll remove it That's an error in the vicinity of 200 trees Sorry, yes, sir, it is error in the area of 200 approximately 200 trees. Okay, so will the recon that we will the recommission sorry will the Decommissioning include the replacement of those trees and if so, how are you going to replace 200 hundred year old trees? No, it will not Then the decommissioning plan is seriously an error, I would I would suggest because it does not Because it's all for the replanting of trees because yes It does not it says that you're going to return the area to its original state and it's not going to be replaced. I Would agree with that assessment. Okay, Jack So with the Massachusetts the solar program isn't that old so there's a lot of solar arrays that have been Built or in operation and so none of them have hit the 20-year lifespan What do you envision the potential of the solar being? replaced with another one or I'm just curious that the decommissioning would is a foregone conclusion that it goes away or What what do solar companies? Envision after the 20 years is it possible that that you replace it? so The question of decommissioning Comes up often and the reason why we include it as a routine matter of business is that a large number of solar arrays Especially those of this size and magnitude are not owned by the property owner They're owned by an investor or a third party which comes in and leases the property typically for a 20-year period And the towns You know across the state and other states have rightly Express concern that what happens at the end of this 20-year period when the system owner or Investor goes away So solar contractors started including decommissioning plans in this case. This is not the case Applied golf will be the owner and operator of the system So there it is not a foregone conclusion that it will need to be Decommissioned at the end of a 20-year period because there is no 20-year lease in place. There is no third party owner so If the gist of your question is When is it reasonable to expect a decommission? It's very difficult to say The modules that are going to be used in this project are Warrantied for 25 years and will likely pump out energy at a very significant clip for 30 or 40 years But at some point in the future it may make economic sense to either Replace the existing modules in the system with new modules Depending upon what the costs are 35 or 40 years from now and what incentives are available and therefore does it make economic sense to do so and If it doesn't it may make sense to remove the system from the property and do something else So I just wanted to explain why decommissioning plans are typically included why those concerns do not apply to this particular situation and You know is a decommissioning inevitable and I think the answer is No Thank you So I understand that golf courses are artificial by nature. There's they are altered landscapes to begin with and I Mean, I'm also partially concerned about the scenario in bitch after 20 or 25 years If the panels would be removed There is something that has really been altered in this landscape and at that point I Would wonder if there's a way to somehow secure Maybe not the replanting of 198 trees, but something that will restore this landscape to a certain degree And that's why I asked a question about the tree warden recommendation and the conservation Commission because this is Also a concern of my has been voiced. I think by a couple of other people here, so Chris, I think that's a recommendation that you could make to the ZBA that the Planting of trees be included in the decommissioning plan if I can just add in response to your concerns I sense that the The basis of your concerns are environmental in nature, so I do want to point out that this property With solar on it is going to be significantly more friendly to the environment Then as a golf course, right? There will be no chemicals. No pesticides. No herbicides used in the management of this facility like are presently used on the golf course and Because the areas in the 200-foot buffer zone Between the river and the array are not going to be manicured like they are currently Those habitats are going to be much more natural to the local wildlife Then they currently are Which could encourage additional breeding or whatever else might be a concern in the area and as I mentioned Our plan Very likely will include the creation of a significant conservation easement on the property Which would exist in perpetuity should this project come to fruition Yeah, I definitely appreciate that But I think in the event that this land would be decommissioned I guess this would be a fairly large area that would then be left entirely open and that's Where I would have some concerns, but just the end in the event I mean in I'm a tree hooker, you know, I I went into the solar business because I love the environment That being said 195 trees I would never try to minimize but in relation to 175 acre parcel of property It's not like this is a forest right now so the you know, although from an aesthetic perspective and from a You know historic perspective there are you know a lot of old trees on the property the The deployment of solar on You know approximately 20 acres of the 175 acres is not going to significantly alter the character of the property from a tree perspective We have no interest in removing any trees for instance on the south side of the Fort River We are not indiscriminately Removing any trees the only reason for tree removal in this project is to clear the area of the potential arrays and To mitigate shade And that's it so only the trees that absolutely have to be removed for those purposes will be removed Christine Just a couple other comments and positive without the manicuring so close to the stream or river you decrease erosion into the Rivers and I also want to say that be a lot of areas here that if that trees would be allowed to grow now So over that 30-year period I don't know if it will be 200 but a lot of trees will be growing in those areas correct because and they would just go Walk, you know naturally. Yeah, so there will be a lot of natural visit vegetation that will crop up as a result of you know this not being a golf course and I Don't mean to let my kind of natural Sarcasm shine a little bit But if the town wanted to plant a forest on their side of the river They could absolutely do that and plant 10,000 trees if they wanted to So I have a question which I'll pose first to staff and then perhaps the applicant about the decommissioning plan being that it's so far in The future that it would potentially come into play How is it envisioned that that document would be incorporated into any decision that the ZBA? Might make especially since it's kind of an affirmative Promise being made to take an action at a certain point as opposed to a restriction placed on the property The ZBA can include a condition that would require that when the project is decommissioned that they follow the decommissioning plan Or else that they need to come back to the ZBA to Propose a different type of plan and get that approved Thank you. Would you like to include that as a recommendation? I would like to include that as a recommendation And I was coming to a point where I think it would be worth Summarizing the recommendations that we discussed so far to the ZBA which included that they consider Requiring a construction logistics plan and if I understand correctly the recommendation regarding the trees that the ZBA consider Requiring that the decommissioning plan be modified to indicate that some are all the trees being removed for the project would be replanted David I Think that what was suggested by the applicant That I would encourage your recommendation being the creation of a conservation easement for the town That's not I don't believe that's been included in the application It is not currently that's part of our habitat management plan I don't know if technically the easement would be for the town Do you know the answer to that? You know it I don't know who the beneficiary of the easement would be but I can I can get that for you Sorry further there's been discussion about the potential Convancing of the balance of the property to the town. I'm not quite sure how that could be made a recommendation but it seems to be at this point kind of a Vegas promise, but but there's seen but at least to my mind. There's a lot riding on What happens to the rest of the property? So so I would I would characterize this as more Than a vague promise. I will tell you that multiple meetings have taken place between the property owner and the town And I would recommend that if you have questions about those meetings that you speak to Dave's I met I believe that's the Zomek. Yes, Zomek. Thank you. And to David your comment ZBA would not be making a decision about whether to convey or to accept some of this land on behalf of the town That's not within their purview. They'll be making a decision based on the same plans We're looking at right now Chris I was just going to say that as Doug has suggested there is no agreement yet between the town and the developer or the landowner and there may be some Money that changes hands as a result of a conveyance if it is to occur So it's all very Nebulous at this point and it's there's nothing sure about it. So Making a condition about that at this point probably isn't useful So we've discussed a number of recommendations to make to the ZBA or their Editions additional questions or comments or comments from the applicants. If not, I entertain a motion to forward those recommendations to the ZBA Do we have a motion Sorry, who moved I'm gonna move to make a motion to close the public hearing. There's no public area, right. We've got so To approve the Should all right, so make a motion to Tell the ZBA that we are Recommending approval of this project with the additional comments and issues that have been added Moved and seconded further discussion all in favor all opposed All abstaining So that passes Five one one Thank you so much for coming in. Thank you very much for having us. Yeah, it was our was the motion that we just passed To approve the proposal without any conditions The motion was to recommend the ZBA approval of the project with the conditions we discussed at tonight's meeting. I missed it Thanks again, thank you. All right, so we're gonna move on now. It's the next item on our agenda Maureen Pollock is a associate planner and she is following this project through the ZBA So she attended tonight to hear your comments. Thanks for joining us All right, so moving now on to the next item on our agenda is item for planning and zoning The zoning subcommittee report zoning subcommittee met this evening with our new member David has joined us. Thank you David for joining the ZSC We work tonight looking further at our priority list that we've been developing over the past several months which we intend to pass on to the town council in some form and So today we just revisited we didn't really make any revisions but members and staff are going to be working over the next few weeks to develop further clarifying language About the items on the priority list any public comments. There's no public left So I'll take that as a no. Is there any other business under planning and zoning? Seeing none will move on to item five old business. We've already covered item 5a Which related to North Pleasant Street and Halleck Street any old business topics not reasonably anticipated Seeing none new. Oh, I'm sorry item 5a under old business was the signing of the decision So we will pass that around for signing This is the site plan review decision. You've already signed the Special permit decision. Yeah, so that'll be passed around for signature The new business item related to 236 North Pleasant Street is what we have already covered and then moving on to item 6b Open meeting law review and discussion of open meeting law requirements. We had received an email from staff about this. Is there further? Chris The town clerk wanted you to be aware of the requirements of the meeting law and bring it to your attention at this time Because we have a whole new group of people who are coming on board namely the town council and they are learning about all of these requirements and regulations and they wanted to make it clear to you what your Interaction might be with them if they come to one of your meetings or if you go to one of their meetings And and how you might interact so we sent out the email from the town clerk Along with this document on the open meeting law and there was also a presentation that was given by KP law To the town council and some of us attended and it was very interesting And we sent that to you as well and then after that mr. Burt whistle Wrote to me and said that he would like an opportunity to ask some questions and have a discussion about the open meeting law And so we put this on the agenda and so mr. Burt whistle might want to leave the discussion here. Yes, Michael Thank you very much for including this. I had a whole series of questions on the town clerk's communication to us Which were in my reading either either contradictory or confusing or That I didn't understand them because I don't I'm not a lawyer And I want to try to make Make my behavior on this body Both legal and appropriate and I guess the the first question has to do with the Town clerk's One two three four fifth paragraph on this on the second page second side Where it says Individual members of public bodies may attend meetings of other public bodies Provided they communicate only by open participation and so on and does that how does that apply to? Many of us who are representatives of this body to another body it seems to me that if as A member of the design review board for example, I expressed an opinion in that arena Well as a member of the planning board, I shouldn't express an opinion in that arena I'm very confused about how that works and whether I have a right to vote in both of those bodies on the same question Or exactly what my representation means My understanding is that your representation means that your conduit of information from one group to another and that you Are actually a member of the design review board So you have every right to participate in their discussions and express your opinions as you see fit in that arena and then to Bring that information back to the planning board and then express my opinion in the planning board and vote opinion and vote in Both bodies on the same issue Chris yes, that's the case Thank you, that makes me feel better now um Two paragraphs down it says if members of a public body attend a Site-visitor meeting of another body and they want to discuss matters raised They should do so they should request that a follow-up meeting of their own body be posted or an item be added to the future meeting agenda So the body can properly discuss the matter Alternatively a joint meeting of the two public bodies can be requested could be requested now Again, does this mean that as a member of the planning board? I cannot speak as an individual at a ZBA hearing or at town council Or could I request a joint meeting of those bodies or how does that apply? It's very confusing Chris my understanding is that members of The board may speak as individuals in another arena Providing it's not something that the planning board is going to be taking up in the future So if the ZBA is considering some project that the planning board won't ever Have on their agenda as a permitting item then you all may Go to another board meeting and say although I'm a member of the planning board I'm speaking as an individual at this time and then give your opinion I believe that would be the case if you went to the ZBA meeting about this Hickory Ridge project if the planning board We're also going to give a permit on this project that wouldn't be appropriate But since the planning board is only in an advisory role and has already given its advice I believe that you would be well within your rights to attend say a ZBA meeting about Hickory Ridge and Say that you are an individual speaking as an individual and present your opinion What if I were in the minority on a planning board vote as I often am and wish to speak in Objection to a planning board's Recommendation to another body would I then be would I be prohibited from speaking in that condition? I would suggest that You could of course speak as an individual I'm glad you would suggest that but it certainly doesn't say that in this memo that we got Chris I Think in that case you wouldn't be speaking on behalf of the planning board You would be saying to the zoning board of appeals I'm a member of the planning board and I had this discussion with the planning board and I chose to vote against Decision that they made I believe you could do that David And I'm no expert But it's my sense that your objection as a member of the planning board has already been noted and recorded as a member of the Planning board that's public record when you're then speaking at another body the ZBA in this case in your individual capacity That's a that's your individual voice your Your public vote has already been noted Christine that doesn't quite answer my question. Does that mean I can or cannot speak in that context Christine and Michael So I think like what Chris was saying in that case is David was also saying like your role as a planning board member has already been noted and in those minutes And then when you come to those meetings if you say I am on the planning board But I'm here to speak as an individual on this issue then you've separated yourself from the planning board and That's permitted Yes, David the metaphor that's I often use is you you're Acknowledging that you're wearing a different hat when speaking So that when you're speaking on as a member of the planning board That's the hat you're wearing when you're speaking in front of a different body as an individual you're wearing your hat Not the public not your role as a public member not as the public board's member Chris and then Christine so I would say that if If your appearance before the ZBA were to occur before you Voted as a planning board member then you would be Not speaking appropriately before the ZBA, but since the planning board has already acted and has taken its vote and This presumably will not be coming before the planning board again Then you may speak before the ZBA. It's only when things are Going to come before your own board and your own board is going to be acting in some way You don't want to prejudge something and let Your fellow board members know how you feel before there's a discussion Does that make sense? Yes, it does and the exception is when I'm a member of voting member of both boards as in the ZBA as in the plan design review board and the planning board Because the design review board regularly makes recommendations to the planning board Chris so that's That is perfectly fine and what you have been the way you have been conducting yourself is perfectly fine Thank you and the one more one way I'm sorry Well, just to click so the flip side of that I'm thinking about like you tack right I make it very clear that I am a liaison of the planning board when I'm there So maybe it's we all have to just kind of think of that when we're speaking sometimes different groups What group we're representing? Sorry, but I think Michael also has a voting capacity in his other Entities so he's a lot, but he's allowed to express his opinion there as As an independent person and as a liaison because he's he he has a voting Permission because he's also a member of the design board and that's how it was That's correct, and I don't want to further complicate your comment Christine, but you tack is a different type of entity. It's not a public Committee, I'm just saying we should wherever we are. We need to identify What we're speaking so it the It the design review board if Michael wanted to speak on something Not as a planning board rep then he should say like well now I'm speaking as an individual and not a planning board person But he has a voting right as a design review board member So he can vote and thinks and he doesn't have to clarify his planning board position That's different of what you're saying Chris I Agree with what party just said that since Michael has a voting right on the DRB that he can speak his mind at the DRB and then he can bring that information to the planning board, but he has a right as a DRB member He's not a he's not one of those liaisons that can't vote He actually has a vote in the DRB so he can express his personal opinion there And he doesn't have to say I'm not speaking. I mean he's speaking as a DRB member in that case He's not speaking as a planning board member. He's speaking as a DRB member So maybe that has to be cleared up sometimes We're just on a board and we can vote and other times we're a liaison And if you look at a lot of the wording on some of the boards and committees The membership is written as a liaison which in that case to me you are representing The group that you're coming from and you still of course can always speak as yourself But you have to identify that so that would technically be registered in the minutes or whatever or how people take your comment It's a different thing right at least for those two. I know exact right I believe every town entity on this list of committee and liaison reports the entity the member from the planning board has voting rights U-TAC is a slight exception as I described in pvpc is not a town entity Chris I'm not sure of this, but I think the Agricultural Commission may be an exception. I think that The planning board rep is a representative and not a voting member, but I can check that out Currently we do not have one of those Chris Parry offered volunteer to be a member of the agcom, but she has not yet been appointed So and neither has Michael been appointed to CPAC yet So those are things that need to be resolved and the town council is getting its feet under itself and slowly getting to these resolutions Are there other comments on this agenda item open meeting law Michael, I'm sorry I have two more The one-two-third paragraph of The town clerk's memorandum seems to suggest that that Members of the planning that that written communication is Deliberation and I want to make sure that as I did once before a Letter that I prepared For the planning board because I couldn't attend the meeting is Permissible under the law it seems to me that it may not be because it is it is a it would seem to be a Serial what is a serial deliberation? I was going to comment that I don't consider it serial if you are just passing a message once and there's no response or Forwarding or anything and that's why we always indicate to handle those matters as such Chris The other thing was that that was clearly Something that was to be brought out in a public hearing and we did provide copies to all the board members And we provided copies to the public so that was a completely public document that expressed your opinion in that case So I didn't see any problem with that Good finally I'm completely confused by the last paragraph if attending a meeting of Another public body a conference or social event a public body should avoid any appearance that the body is discussing Municipal business. I have no idea what that could mean. I Mean, isn't any public body discussing municipal business? I mean, isn't that what they're for? Chris I Think that statement might be a little too broad I think what it's meant to say is that you shouldn't talk to other people that you see at that meeting About things that will come before your board in other words if you have a case that's coming before you about a new building that's going to be built downtown and You haven't held the public hearing it and some member of another board comes up to you at say the mass Municipal Association Meeting and says I want to tell you what my opinion of that new building is you have to say to that person Don't tell me now. Please write to the board and come to our public hearing and make your But I can't talk to you about that case because it's going to be coming before the board in the future So it doesn't mean that you can't talk about any municipal business at all You could discuss what the town council is doing or you could talk about the budget or you could talk about the police Coverage of your neighborhood or different things, but you can't discuss something that is going to be coming before the board Your board so I cannot talk to a member of the town council about something that's going to come before the town council Christine and then Chris I Just want to put in context that it's in a meeting of another body a conference or a social event I mean if you contact one of the counselors you can talk to them or if you bump into one person on the street But I think what they're saying is when you're in another Meeting or a conference or a social event and then there's that you might want to touch also on that There's two people talking and then if there's three of us somewhere even in a coffee shop I think isn't you know like talking that could constitute a meeting or Is it three or four? Do you know I'm saying Chris Chris? To be safe you're really never supposed to talk outside of a public meeting about anything That's going to be coming before the board even if it's two of you or three of you It's just getting into a gray area that you don't want to get into so I would recommend against that really So that as an individual well, that's the part I want to clarify. I am somewhat disenfranchised the whole point of this new town council system was that we had greater access to our elected representatives and if I cannot Access my elected representative and explain to her what I think about an issue. I I'm disenfranchised Well, I think this particular sentence we're looking at is referring to a public body Which I think is meant a quorum of a public body We've been speaking about it as if it's referring to restrictions on individuals But that is not what the sentence is saying It's talking about a quorum of a public body attending either a meeting of another body or a conference or a social event So I think it's really reiterating that which we already knew about how a public body should conduct itself Well, as long as it doesn't refer to an individual, that's right I'm okay with that, but if it deferred if it refers to us individually Then I got a problem Well, I've always been told that you know An example is if you go to the town landfill on a Saturday morning and someone approaches you and wants to talk about a project That's coming before your board the next Wednesday. You have to tell that person I can't talk to you now come before the board submit a letter whatever I can't talk to you now because it's coming before your board So that's probably true of the town council as well that you really shouldn't talk to them outside of a public meeting unless Yes, that's true and you can submit a letter to them You can come to their meeting and talk to them, but I don't think you're You're supposed to talk to them outside of a public meeting Jack Can you listen to them? Yeah, he said Jack said can you listen to them? No, you can't listen to them if they're talking to you about something that's going to be coming before your board If they're gonna tell you what they think about some site plan review application that's coming before your board You keep you have to tell them please come to the meeting Public hearing and please submit something in writing. I can't talk to you about this now because it's coming before our board So I think Chris is right and is airing on the side of caution here and kind of the standard that I have thought of is that all The board members should be acting with the same information and one way to get to that is to have Anyone that we may be speaking to submit letters to the board. I Would think that if a board member spoke to an individual Prior to a meeting about a matter related Something that was coming before the board if that board member shared all the details of the information that had been shared with them with the board Then I would think that would put the board on an equal footing and would not pose an issue But then that that level think you know if your criteria is I need to share with the board every single thing That I have a conversation with related to this project about it's a very difficult standard to meet And I think there's examples where so that information could be shared with a board member that's pertinent to the project And is then later shared by that board member to the board But I think you know Chris is right in the airing on the side of caution here I wonder if there's any difference between an elected board and an elected Operation like the town council and an appointed board like ours It seems to me that the premise of an elected board is that they are representative and the premise of the Planning board is that they're they're not we're not representative of anybody particularly We're theoretically representative of the whole town, but we're it's not this is not a representative body Whereas the town council is and if if if the idea of representative government is to hold We have to be able to contact those people who represent us Chris So you may want to speak to the town manager about that issue He's sort of the gatekeeper for us as far as approaching town council members and he may have some Advice for you on whether you can talk individually to town council members Christine I would like to know about that I've been on a lot of committees for a lot of years and to me This is called open meeting law and it was mostly based about not having a meeting that is not Hasn't been announced and there's an agenda in these minutes and about people deliberating Us amongst ourselves without being in a proper meeting and I've never seen it Slide so deep into one-on-ones talking to people my neighbors, whatever I think that should be clarified because to me open meeting is about the meetings And you don't want to be having a meeting without the proper transparency and Agenda Chris So in the past we've held Sessions with the town attorney where we talk about open meeting law We talk about conflict of interest. We talked about holding meetings. Would you like me to? Schedule something where you could ask your questions Specifically of the town council and it would probably be Lauren Goldberg who gave the presentation to the town council a couple months ago Christine if others want that in a meeting, but I know that takes time and all that but Maybe the town needs to have one of those that you invite everybody who's on committees to go and of course Then it could be on the TV and people could watch it that kind of thing even have some scenarios cooked out You know to help clarify people Or even ask committees maybe asked to write in questions and it could That way sort of as a group thing because I think it's the same things going to be said over and over and over again Okay, Jack There's got to be a YouTube video on how to conduct yourself Just don't stop it. Just don't comment on it when you share it with us Chris I Think that the presentation that Lauren Goldberg gave to the town council is on the town council website So you could go there and see that video and if I can find a link to it, I will send it to you Christine just one last thing so the one part that I cut and paste all the time out of this document is on minutes About once a year if I'm chair of a committee I send it out to all the members because it's amazing how the minutes vary and And how shocking some people are what is has to be included and what's optional and what doesn't have to be included So I've always I've said this for years Maybe one class that has that part but also like taking minutes a lot of new people come on committees and stuff And there's never any training or you know you get this and you're supposed to read it But the actual real-life application of it. I just very often see something gets lost Michael I just wanted to add in a kind of Snarky moment that even the Attorney General says that these are her opinions and that the next Attorney General may have different opinions Okay, anything else on open meeting law All right, we move on then to the next item which is PVPC memorandum and request for comments So I received this packet from PVPC which included their 2019 calendar major accomplishments and their top 10 resolves for 2019 Chris was this emailed out to board members Who would like Okay, so they're requesting comments by February 18th So if there are any comments from planning board members, they can forward those to staff or direct to PVPC Chris their preference You could also read it carefully and then talk about it at your next meeting if you want to Sure, we can put this on the agenda for next meeting Jack I have some very minor notes from the last meeting because it was They discussed point-by-point, but Nothing substantial if we want to talk about it next meeting. That's fine Happy to do so now Jack if you have comments on the document First of all, they're not prioritized Okay, number one isn't the most important I just thought some interesting notes that 75 percent of the towns in the Piner Valley Planning Commission are rural 75% And then going down to number 10 Which? regards Where the taxes go? Tim Brennan mentioned that Piner Valley Planning Commission isn't It's not treated equitably necessarily because there are Share that goes to an original Entities such as the MBTA which Piner Valley Doesn't really have something of that you know stature and so we're we're kind of Hemorrhaging a little bit with regard to our fair share there's that argument that could be made. I think that's about it though Okay, so we will place that again on our agenda for our next meeting Are there any new business topics not reasonably anticipated any anr subdivision applications no form A's upcoming ZBA applications Any upcoming SPP SPR sub applications? All right planning board committee in the A's on reports PVPC. We just spoke about anything further on that I had mentioned to Chris the presentation of the last meeting The speaker was from the Massachusetts Aging healthy aging collaborative, which I wasn't familiar with but it I thought it was very interesting and There are a number of towns and counties that have I'm not sure certification is the right word, but Berkshire County is is deemed an age-friendly Area, I think Northampton just got it a few other towns Have it but Amherst doesn't and I thought it would be a worthy Initiative for the town to take on that they get that and then it's extended by AARP and When it comes down to it it really deals. It's not with ADA type matters, but it's it's more Related to other things and there is even a component of facilitating Folks with dementia and you know other aging issues, so it's not all about accessibility You know to see my So, you know a lot of it is inclusion and equity and things like that I know that the town has an aging Council, you know, so maybe they take it up Pursuit, but a lot of it comes down to just improving signage Having facilities that you would think you know having a restroom you would you know someone downtown wondering I would know where to go and We get lost and that sort of thing. It's just it's just an interesting The thing that I think Amherst Because although we have all the the you know college students in that having To accommodate our senior citizens is pretty important and it's a small thing But it's something I think would be in the best interest of the town to to acquire Great. Thanks Christine So Jack I noticed on number eight of that 10 List it said begin a pilot project with pre-nation of tucca pea holy oak and south Hadley did they talk about that is that something that if it goes well then they would look for other towns to do the same thing and could Amherst Stay on top of that Yeah, so that that was a I'm looking at my notes a little confused here but but so Pioneer Valley Planning Commission took three towns and Well, so there's three towns and it's it's a pilot program in terms of they got funding And they're and they're going through This process and with the assistance of Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, so they're not on their own It's it's a Pioneer Valley Planning Commission where they're helping and whereas I imagine if Amherst would do it It would we would be on our own to to implement the age-friendly measures Chris Every year PVPC puts out a what a circular that Requests or invites us to apply for funding for projects and so it could be that next year We might apply for funding for a project to help us become an age-friendly community So I should tell you that this year we've applied for funding for technical assistance to look at our streetscapes and I talked a little bit about this with the zoning subcommittee tonight The idea is that we have a streetscape design guideline that is fairly old it was developed in the early 2000s and a lot of it doesn't make sense anymore particularly with regard to the way the sidewalks are designed and Possibly our benches and our lighting certainly isn't You know the dark sky compliant so looking at all those things We may want to come up with a new set of Streetscape standards and Pioneer Valley Planning Commission if we get this grant Would help us to get started on that I found my notes. This is like on the front page. That's all but So it's chickpea holy oak and South Hadley and it's a collaborative effort and they got a grant from Tufts help plan foundation and the four tenants are Developing an action plan and then there's a aging livability score that the mass Healthy aging collaborative maintains and Amherst is on there and the third is a community engagement methods and Then coming up the fourth would be regional age friendly initiatives Great anything else from PVPC? That's it. Okay CPAC we just heard is vacant, but Michael's being appointed waiting on action from town council Is that correct Chris? So people who have been nominated can feel free to attend meetings You just won't be able to vote until you're actually Appointed and I'm working on that. I'm nudging the town manager and others to Bring this to the town council party Or how do we find out? Are you asking about town council meetings? No, no, I'm asking about I see when does the ad come meet when does CPAC meet? Yes, I can share that with you Okay, great. Thanks design review board We've met fairly recently last week I think and reviewed and approved Three new sign requests for the downtown area Great. Thank you The affordable housing trust met last week spent most of our time discussing an RFP that's going to be Put out related to the East Street school project Seeking submissions for developers of mostly affordable housing on that site So looking to get that Put out in the next in the coming months So any subcommittee we already discussed UTAC housing has not met in I think over a year Economic development same downtown parking working group Just that the town should be making a public announcement in the next week about how a consultant has been brought on to start working on parking Great. Thank you Report of the chair happy to be starting off another year with the planning board enjoying our new Facilities here. This is quite the upgrade. So thanks to the town for all their hard work on that report of staff I have no further report. Thank you. All right, then we're adjourned. Thanks everyone