Planning Commission Meeting
Minutes
October 29, 2007

Present:  Chairman - Larry Little, Tim O’Donnell, Patrick Boyle, Patrick Joy. Also present Chris Jakubiak and Sarah Franklin of Jakubiak & Associates and Frank Henry of the Planning Department.

Absent:  Glenn Blanchard

Call to order  Chairman - Larry Little called the October 29, 2007 Planning Commission Meeting to order at 7:30 PM.

Approval of Minutes: The minutes of September 24, 2007 Planning Commission Meeting were approved with the exception of two typographical errors that were noted and corrected on the final draft.

Commissioner Comments:

Patrick Boyle: Mr. Boyle told everyone he was brought up by the ethics committee and was found innocent of any violations.  He also announced again that he is a part owner of Silver Fancy Farms.

Mr. Boyle expressed his wish that all members on the board would have had a copy of the 1998 Emmitsburg Comprehensive Plan.  There is a lot of information here that we are not coming close to.

Larry Little:  Mr. Little announced next regular meeting will be November 26, 2007 at 7:30 pm.

AGENDA

Mr. Little nominated Tim O’Donnell as Vice Chairman of the Planning Commission.  Patrick Boyle seconded the nomination.

Vote: 4-0 approved

Mr. Little nominated Patrick Joy as secretary of the Planning Commission.  Tim O’Donnell seconded the nomination.

Vote: 4-0 approved

Per Mr. Little the town staff is to continue taking minutes.

Motion: To approve the proposed Sign Ordinance.

Motion by Patrick Boyle, second by Tim O’Donnell

Vote: 4-1 in favor - 1 opposed (Patrick Joy).

Daughters of Charity Land Use

Larry Little:  We had discussed this at the last meeting and we were looking at an institutional zone for all the properties owned by the Daughters Of Charity. It was originally discussed that there should be institutional as well as industrial zoning. There is not such a thing as an institutional zone in Frederick County, so we can be a first. We are going to investigate this.

Tim O’Donnell:  I had a chance to talk to some folks about institutional zoning and one thing I learned was some institutions might find this kind of zoning limiting in what they can do. As always we have to make sure we have an open dialog with those who would potentially be zoned this way. I know that the County is in the process of trying to create an zoning class of institutional.

Patrick Joy:  We would not be the first Frederick City has institutional zoning. It is an overlay floating district type idea. It’s in the Thurmont Region Plan. Before we designate, I think we should come to an understanding of what we mean as institutional zoning.

Larry Little: We need to be careful that some of the monies will come to Emmitsburg in the form of real estate taxes.

Patrick Boyle: We have nothing down about institutional zoning. What can go there and how it will affect the town. I want to make sure what goes there is for the institution.

David Thayler: I think there are some concerns about what institutional zoning is and that debate is best addressed when you adopt the zoning ordinance. I think what is different about this case is we have three separate unique institutions. The institutional zone should be directed to those. With respect to the Daughters, what we think will happen with the next ten or twenty years is that it will evolve into a retreat center and a conference center religiously centered. So what I would suggest to the Commissioners is that you put the planning designation on as institutional and this discussion we should have during the adoption of the actual zone.

Joe Lebhertz:  I would strongly encourage the development of an institutional zone and certainly for planning purposes. Basically in Emmitsburg institutions are the main economic activity. To have a well thought out zone reflects and accommodates those activities and the growth that may come with that makes sense.

Patrick Joy:  The reason I brought up what the use will be is not necessary for the actual zoning but it should be referenced somewhere text wise, not just a blue area on a map and never explained. We need to write down what we mean as institutional.

Larry Little: We should be in a position right now to approve or recommend an institutional zone be included in this presentation. With the idea in mind that with the right verbiage and so forth that we outline which types of properties and uses we anticipate to be included. Also including our comments which may relate to properties being used that could be added to our tax base. Anyone want to put together or form a motion of how we want to....

Patrick Joy:  Before we get to that, I would be willing to write a quick paragraph before the next meeting on developing a plan for institutional zoning that encompasses religious uses, educational uses whatever. Then we can actually debate.

Tim O’Donnell:  Could I burden you with one more thing. Could you follow up with Mr. Floyd on the Maryland Municipal League and the other groups he mentioned to have something created so we can have a second or third reference? Just to have a wider look at the language.

Patrick Joy:  Sure

Larry Little: When we get to a point to have what we want we can certainly involve town council or our attorney and then make sure we are on the right track and right verbiage and so forth and go from there.

Chris Jakubiak:  Mr. Chairman would you like us to look into the matter? We have drafted those types of codes before.

Larry Little: That certainly would help.

Motion: To accept the land use request from the Daughters of Charity dated July 24, 2007 for the purposes of land use designation for areas one through seven with one, two, three and seven being institutional and four and five highway service and six light industrial office.
Motion by Patrick, second by Patrick Boyle.
Vote: 4-0 in favor

Sarah Franklin of Jakubiak and Associates gave a brief power point presentation on the water resources element. The actual slide presentation and narrative is available on dvd.

Betsey Forrence:  I think our water predictions are optimistic and our recent dry spell should have been a wake up call for everyone. There are a number of developments approved north of the Pennsylvania line that are getting water from the same aquifer.

David Thayler: The Daughters of Charity have been calling for the last two weeks to try to get the latest draft. It has been very difficult on everyone not to get drafts in advance.

Larry Little:  We have a copy with us today and they are available.

Libby Briggs:  We continue to have a fluctuation of data that is presented. I would again ask the board for some relation to the amount of time, energy and money that is being spent. The amount of data that is being presented to you, the board, on time to be reviewed, so you can make adequate comments. We the taxpayers have just about had it.

Leo Boyle: Back on May 22, 2007, the Silver Fancy Farm property was told it was going to be kept as low residential. I went to the meeting on October 1, 2007 at the Thurmont area meeting and spoke to Mr. Supercynski the planner and he had heard nothing and received nothing from Sarah, yet she told me back in May that all the land would be low residential and not agriculture.

She has not sent them anything about the Silver Fancy Farms. She is misinforming the board.

Chris Jakubiak:  We have not misinformed the board about a thing. The issue again is that the land use plan has to be revised to accommodate the water resources element. This is a change in state law. I did say at that meeting that Mr. Boyle suggested that the entire parcel be identified for development, I said yes, in fact that would be on the plan, but it occurred to us later when we received the guidance from MDE and the Maryland Department of Planning that we cannot have a plan that water is not available to serve.

Tim O’Donnell: For the planners just for the sake of clarity I think where we have a disconnect and I think we have a few of them and some are repetitive mistakes or miscommunications.  Others are presentation issues, I really do think we are trying to work for the same goal.  Going back to an issue that was presented from speakers this evening, from the commission meetings past and communication outside of the meeting with the planner.  It is more useful that everyone is on the same page and therefore that the page is there sooner.  That’s been a stumbling block for us making decisions consistently, that’s part one.  The other part is when we have these documents arriving late, there is a sense of urgency to be efficient in understanding them and we don’t get to that.  I really don’t feel that everyone has the full comprehension of what the documents are saying.  I don’t think we have a working knowledge of them and we don’t retain them.  I would strongly recommend that if Emmitsburg is a priority for this firm and I trust that it is, we get the documents much sooner.  I think this board would be satisfied with the hand drawn scanned pictures of a basic map of the town with colored pencil work to show when necessary the accurate lines that we are trying to deal with in parcels and property.  It's time consuming I understand but its also more cost effective in the long run.

Larry Little: When we ask for information its not being delivered to the board.  The information then is reviewed by the council and they certainly have a right to do that but you need to get it to us so its not a bomb dropping on us.  I’ve been asking Sarah for a long time about getting the information up here to us and Frank can only get it to us when the mail delivers it to him.

I looked at a couple prior reports.  Here is one dated September 21, 2007, there is a chart in there on water capacity.  I am going to ask the town council some questions. There is another well in Emmit Gardens that is not being utilized at this time.  What is an estimate for that well give us something to work with and how and when it can be brought on.

Chris Jakubiak: You are referring to well J?

Larry Little:  No, There is another well in Emmit Gardens.  We have an estimate of 100,000 gallons.  At the town meeting I heard 180,000 gallons.  Dave says we use 100,000 gallons.  So if it's 180,000, why not use 150,000 or 140,000 gallons.

What I’d like to see is the worst case scenario with all these properties zoned the way we had recommended and what the water usage would be and how they would fit on this chart.

Chris Jakubiak:  Show what the short fall in water would be?

Larry Little:  Yes, Where do we want to see our growth?

Tim O’Donnell:  If when we look at a power point presentation we can have a hard copy of it in hand.  I know it pains you to hear it but it makes it easier for everybody.

Patrick Joy: Tying in with some of the comments we had today the public wanted more information to actually see something before they arrive at the meeting.  Can we put this draft of section one and two in the web site?

Tim O’Donnell: That would be useful.

Frank Henry: They can always call.

Tim O’Donnell:  That’s the thing as opposed to involving town staff on a phone call. The web site is the direction we want to head in.

Frank Henry:  I got to figure, that’s a lot to put on the web site.

Patrick Joy:  It’s not hard to get on the web site.

Frank Henry: It might be, I don’t know.  I have to check.

Patrick Joy:  I would like to make a formal request that they put this on the web site.  I would like to make a motion that they put section one and two on the web site as well as the cover letter dated 10/22/07 from Sarah Franklin and also the detailed water information dated 9/21/07.

Motion: To put the above information on the web site.
Motion by Commissioner Patrick Joy, second by Commissioner Tim O’Donnell.
Vote:  4-0 in favor

• Water
• Land Use
• Transportation
• Daughters of Charity Land Use
• General Public Input

December Planning Commission meeting scheduled for December 13, 2007 at 7:30 PM.

Adjourned