SUSSEX COUNTY PLANNING BOARD MINUTES NOVEMBER 6, 2017

Transcription

1 SUSSEX COUNTY PLANNING BOARD MINUTES NOVEMBER 6, 2017 The meeting was called to order by Chairman Borisuk at 4:10 p.m. The meeting is held in compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act, NJSA 10:4-2 of 1975, as amended. Present were: MEMBERS PRESENT: MEMBERS EXCUSED: STAFF PRESENT: ALSO PRESENT: Andy Borisuk, Chairman Gene Crawford Matthew Hannum, 1 st Alternate (4:10 p.m.) Lisa Chammings, 2 nd Alternate Bill Koppenaal, County Engineer Carl Lazzaro, Freeholder Director George Graham, Freeholder Member Wolfgang Gstattenbauer, Vice Chairman Michael Francis Mark Zschack Alice Brees, Principal Planner John Williams, Esq., County Counsel Tom Drabic, Transportation Planner Autumn Sylvester, Recording Secretary Chad Warnken, Esq., CMS Mid-Atlantic, Inc. Joseph Jaworski, P.E., CMC Mid-Atlantic, Inc. Michael Sheridan, Esq., Eco-Site/T-Mobile MINUTES A motion was made by Carl Lazzaro to approve the Minutes of October 2, 2017, as presented. The motion was seconded by Gene Crawford and carried unanimously. All were in favor with an abstention from Dan Flynn. Motion carried.

2 MINUTES Page 2 SITE PLAN/SUBDIVISION DEVELOPMENT REVIEW COMMITTEE REPORTS A motion was made by Gene Crawford to approve the Development Review Committee Reports for October 2, 2017 and October 16, 2017, as presented. The motion was seconded by George Graham and carried unanimously. APPEALS AND WAIVER REQUESTS A. WAIVER REQUESTS FOR FILE #9(PSP)17, CMS MID-ATLANTIC, INC. COUNTY ROUTE 623, LAFAYETTE TOWNSHIP: Chad Warnken said he is the attorney for CMS Mid-Atlantic, Inc., attending with Joe Jaworski, P.E., from Dynamic Engineering. Mr. Jaworski was sworn by John Williams. Mr. Warnken said the applicant is seeking waivers from the curbing and sight triangle easement requirement for an existing driveway. The driveway would serve the proposed cemetery located at County Route 623 and Route 15 in Lafayette Township. The existing driveway serves an existing rehab facility with an access easement across the subject property which has been in place for about years without any issues. Mr. Warnken said at the initial meeting, it was discussed that there may be development across the County road and the driveway be realigned at a later time. The applicant is agreeable to having the driveway relocated in the future and there has been conversation with the property owner across the road. The driveway relocation will be done at their cost. The applicant feels it does not make sense to put in curbing, if the driveway will be relocated. Mr. Jaworski said he met at the site with County staff and reviewed the plans with them. The existing driveway is wide enough to accommodate the proposed use. They incorporated striping and a stop bar into the design to make it more of a 90 degree angle onto the County road. The sight distance was measured, and there is adequate sight distance beyond the requirements. If the development across the road is completed, the driveway can be realigned. At that time, the curbing and formal sight triangle easements will be incorporated. Gene Crawford asked for an explanation of the driveway drawing. Mr. Jaworski said that the drawing is an enlargement of a portion of the site plans and that it shows the existing driveway. They are proposing to incorporate the striping to bring the driveway in at a 90 degree angle. This will be done using the existing pavement and will provide a better driveway intersection. The drawing shows another potential driveway, just to the south, which goes to the next property. When and if the property to the west gets developed, there will be an access point to Sunset Inn Road (County Route 623.) Alice Brees said there was a 2005 site plan on this property for Nouvelle Associates for a proposed commercial development. Mr. Jaworski confirmed that the driveway, which is shown on an angle, is the existing driveway. Carl Lazzaro asked what the width of the driveway is. Mr. Jaworski said the existing driveway is about 22. When it gets to the highway, it flares out. He confirmed that the centerline striping meets the lane width requirement.

3 MINUTES Page 3 The meeting was opened to the public. No comments were offered. The meeting was closed to the public. MOTION: A motion was made by George Graham to grant the CMS Mid-Atlantic, Inc. requested waivers for curbing and sight triangle easement. The motion was seconded by Gene Crawford. A roll-call vote was taken. Results were as follows: Andy Borisuk-Yes; Gene Crawford-Yes; Matthew Hannum-Yes; Lisa Chammings-Yes; Carl Lazzaro-Yes; and George Graham-Yes. Motion carried. B. RESOLUTION FOR WAIVERS FOR SITE PLAN DETAILS, FILE #22(PSP)17, F. DECKER AND SON, COUNTY ROUTE 644, VERNON TOWNSHIP: A motion was made by Lisa Chammings to memorialize the Resolution for the Fred Decker and Son Site Plan. The motion was seconded by Gene Crawford. A vote was taken. Results were as follows: Andy Borisuk-Yes; Gene Crawford-Yes; Matthew Hannum-Yes; and George Graham. Motion carried. C. RESOLUTION FOR WAIVERS FOR CELL TOWER DRIVEWAY, FILE #15(PSP)17, ECO-SITE /T-MOBILE, COUNTY ROUTE 616, SPARTA TOWNSHIP: Ms. Brees said that the applicant is here to discuss an issue about the proposed gate. Michael Sheridan, Esq. said he is with the law firm of Snyder and Snyder, LLP, who are the attorneys for Eco-Site/T-Mobile. He is here regarding the access road on County Route 616 in Sparta. During the October meeting, the requested waivers were approved. One of the conditions was that the access driveway be gated. Sparta Township had an issue about access to the driveway. They are concerned about emergency vehicles being able to get up the road at any time, especially for snow plowing. At the town meeting, when asked if there was a proposed gate, the applicant said there would not be a gate, because it was not a condition at that time. Sparta Township used that information when making their decision. The applicant understands and agrees that they do not want people who should not be there to access the road. They are now proposing to install No Trespassing signs to be located near the access on County road. They feel the signs will deter someone who turns onto the road without knowing it is a private driveway. When asked, Bill Koppenaal said the Resolution, as it was drafted, includes a gate. A motion was made by George Graham to modify the Resolution for the Eco-site/ T-Mobile Site Plan to remove the gate requirement. The motion was seconded by Gene Crawford. A vote was taken. Results were as follows: Andy Borisuk-Yes; Gene Crawford-Yes; Matthew Hannum-Yes; Lisa Chammings-Yes; Carl Lazzaro-Yes; and George Graham-Yes. Motion carried.

4 MINUTES Page 4 There was some discussion about whether there is any liability on the County s part if the access is not gated. Lisa Chammings talked about the potential of the road being used by off-road vehicles. John Williams said the Board had the option of tabling the issue and having the applicant ask Sparta Township to reconsider the gate. However, the County s jurisdiction relates access to the road and curbing. The issue of trespassers is a local issue. MOTION: A motion was made by George Graham to memorialize the Resolution for Eco-site/T- Mobile as modified. The motion was seconded by Gene Crawford. A vote was taken. Results were as follows: Andy Borisuk-Yes; Gene Crawford-Yes; Matthew Hannum- Yes; Lisa Chammings-Yes; and George Graham-Yes. Motion carried. D. RESOLUTION FOR WAIVERS FOR CELL TOWER DRIVEWAY, FILE #27(MSP)16, CELLCO PARTNERSHIP, COUNTY ROUTE 565, VERNON TOWNSHIP: A motion was made by Lisa Chammings to memorialize the Resolution for the Cellco Partnership Site Plan. The motion was seconded by George Graham. A vote was taken. Results were as follows: Andy Borisuk-Yes; Gene Crawford-Yes; Matthew Hannum- Yes; Lisa Chammings-Yes; Carl Lazzaro-Yes; and George Graham-Yes. Motion carried. DIVISION REPORT Bill Koppenaal said he would cover the Division Report under New Business. UNFINISHED BUSINESS None NEW BUSINESS A. NJTPA PLAN 2045 COMMENT PERIOD: Mr. Koppenaal reminded the Board that Tom Drabic spoke to them a few months ago about the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA) initiative to update its regional master plan, Plan They completed the draft update on the plan and they are now soliciting public input. Mr. Drabic will go over the plan briefly. The plan is available online and, if needed, the link can be sent to the Board members. Mr. Drabic has gone through the plan and he will talk about the initial things that the County highlighted through its review. Mr. Drabic said this plan has been in process for about a year. It is a federal requirement that the NJTPA must have its regional transportation plan updated every four years in order to receive federal transportation funds. He said the plan is more than 200 pages with a number of appendices. He felt the best thing to do was to send out a copy of the Executive Summary. Mr. Drabic said he went through the plan and the Executive Summary and prepared some preliminary comments which the County

5 MINUTES Page 5 may want to consider. He said he has concerns about some of the heavy reliance on technology. However, since the plan goes out to 2045, by that time, some of the technology will be more realistic. The Plan 2045 has a close tie-in with Together North Jersey, the regional plan for sustainable development. The County was involved with this effort about three or four ago. Now that the County updated its Strategic Growth Plan and did an economic analysis, many of the trends that they have identified in the Plan mirror what the County plan envisioned. In the more urbanized area, there will be a higher population growth than what we re experiencing in Sussex County, but they are projecting that the County s population will be growing over the next 25 years. A big issue is a significant increase in freight transportation and traffic as a result of the improvements they are putting in at the port. The Bayonne Bridge was raised so that larger ships can come in with 20 containers. The County will see that traffic on the Route 80/Route 78 corridor, roads used by many Sussex County commuters. They are also projecting less driving by young people. This trend was also identified in the County Strategic Growth Plan update. The Plan 2045 identified a number of investment priorities. One is to increase overall system safety, not just for highways and bridges, but also for trains, buses and pedestrian safety. There was some discussion about the tunnels under the Hudson River. Mr. Drabic said that the tunnels are more than 100 years old and that they were significantly damaged by Superstorm Sandy. It was projected, if one of the tunnels had to be closed, it would cut train capacity from the north Jersey region into Manhattan by 75%. This would have a devastating economic impact on North Jersey. It has been estimated that it would cost $15-$18 billion to replace the tunnels. There are talks of splitting the cost with the federal government and then sharing the cost with New York. However, $4 billion is still a significant amount of money. The County is supportive of and recognizes the need to increase Trans-Hudson capacity, in particular the need for new Hudson River tunnels. Mr. Drabic said that the Engineering Division did a great job with the High Risk Rural Road funding coming out of the NJTPA. Sussex County is one of the highest recipients in the North Jersey region for that funding. Most of the funding is for construction, however the County feels if they could dedicate additional resources to concept development, design and engineering, it would help Sussex County move projects through the process faster. It would better enable the County to take advantage of available federal funding. The County is supportive of improving transportation demand management strategies, such as car-pooling, ride sharing and working from home. These are low cost strategies that have a big impact. The County also recognizes the need to improve goods movement and freight facilities in the region. One of the County s biggest assets is the NYS&W railroad. There is a facility at Sparta Junction which brings in a lot of commodities, such as sugar and propane. Since there is land available in that area, it is also one of the areas where the County could see an increase in development and growth.

6 MINUTES Page 6 The Plan 2045 called for streamlining the project delivery process. The County is in support of this. A large part of the Plan is to dedicate a significant amount of funding, about 70%, on improving and maintaining the existing infrastructure. Some of the highways, roads and bridges are years old. Mr. Drabic said that one of the areas that would benefit the County is to upgrade the signal systems on the major corridors. Another issue is to identify a source of funding mechanism for transit operations without using capital funding. Another big issue that will have to be dealt with in the near future is the funding for major improvements to the transportation system. The recent gas tax is not enough. Mr. Koppenaal said the Plan acknowledges the need to fund recommendations, but it doesn t get into the details of where that funding comes from. Mr. Drabic said one of the ideas that are being considering is a vehicle mile travel tax. Motorists will have to pay per mile and it will be devastating to those in the rural areas. Sussex County doesn t have significant transit opportunities; therefore we don t have any options other than to drive. Mr. Koppenaal said a letter will be sent out under the Department of Engineering, Planning and Economic Development. He is looking to solicit input in consideration of drafting a response. Planning Board members have the option of providing individual comments. He said if there are specific things that are of concern or interest to them, he would make certain they are addressed. When asked, Mr. Drabic said the deadline for comments is November 9. George Graham asked if there was anything in the Plan that would have a negative impact on the County. Mr. Drabic said he didn t see anything significant. Carl Lazzaro said the key thing will be the same problem that the County is dealing with now transportation. He also feels the County should not focus on agri-tourism and should develop industry and business. Mr. Drabic said he has concerns because NJ Transit was emphatic about not going west of Andover on the cutoff. They said west of Andover was Pennsylvania s problem. Mr. Koppenaal said the best we can do is to determine what in Plan 2045 the County has access to and how to leverage it. It is a struggle to be in a position to leverage. There are two components to the Plan and predominately, a lot of the funding sources are first and foremost driven toward construction. If some of these things can be freed -up to help the County augment the design end, it would go a long way. You need designs before you can do the projects, and you get the designs by having engineers and professional consultants do the work. They get paid through the County taxes. If you can change the ways that the funding sources are allocated, they can provide a little flexibility in getting funds to the County. Mr. Graham said the people that need transportation the most are taking jobs out of the County; but the people who do not have transportation have been abandoned. He said that is a big problem in the County, particularly with senior citizens. Mr. Drabic said that the County Strategic Growth Plan identified that we have an aging population in the County. There is a relatively high percentage of older population, which will increase by Mr. Drabic said that it is good to see the emphasis on safety. The County has been successful in the past with the high risk rural road funding. High risk rural road

7 MINUTES Page 7 funding can only go to rural areas. There is significant funding and there are only four counties in the NJTPA regions that have rural areas. If the NJTPA can dedicate more resources to concept, development and engineering, we can take better advantage of the funds. Those are improvements that would benefit Sussex County. Mr. Drabic talked about the improvements on County Route 519 that have made a significant difference. Mr. Koppenaal said if the Board has any comments, to feel free to provide him with them. A formal letter will go out, highlighting some of the issues discussed. He said they can go online and add comments on their own or send them to him and it will be included at a Department level response. Mr. Drabic said the NJTPA has a public comment period area on its website. They also have the Plan, all the appendices and links online. Mr. Koppenaal also said that while a smaller percentage of the funds may come to the County, a lot of County residents, particularly the ones that commute, will derive a benefit from major thoroughfare improvement. Money has gone to the projects done in Netcong with the circles, major improvements on Route 15 and Route 80. Mr. Drabic talked about new technology being discussed for adaptive signal systems. If the Route 206 corridor could have synchronized signals, based on volume, it could improve traffic flow. The same could be done on Route 23 and Route 15. George Graham said he does not feel that Sussex County should be judged on dollars. It should be judged on specific projects. The projects on Route 23 in Sussex Borough and Byram significantly changed how people get around. Mr. Drabic said the Route 23 realignment opened up additional land for economic development opportunities in Sussex Borough. The traffic flow is better and it s a lot safer. Mr. Drabic thanked the Board for their time. OPEN TO PUBLIC None ADJOURNMENT All business having been completed, a motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Gene Crawford. The motion was seconded by George Graham and carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 5:20 p.m.