Zoning Board discusses Sherbrooke Farms waivers and deadlines
The land for the proposed Sherbrooke Farms. Photo by Kat Sheridan
The land for the proposed Sherbrooke Farms. Photo by Kat Sheridan
Members of the Zoning Board of Appeals and the community voiced concerns over the drawn plans for Sherbrooke Farms, a proposed 156-unit 40B apartment building, which would be located at 489 Old Westport Road.
During the Thursday, April 30 meeting, the board discussed potential conditions and ways that the applicant should improve on their land plans.
Conditions were suggested by Nitsche Engineering and the planning board, most of which concerned clarification of the drawn plans, either in the form of a letter or in redone plans.
Specific concerns surrounded the fact that the land is split into three parcels, with architecture mainly happening on the 10.138 acre lot. They are asking for a waiver to combine the three parcels into one, as the developer Rick Lincoln owns all three under his LLC, Sherbrooke Farms LLC.
If combined, the development would only cover 7% of the land, which complies with the aquifer district requirements.
The Zoning Board also asked that the plans show the planting plans, as some of them only hint toward landscaping with an “LS” but don’t state specifics.
The Zoning Board’s counsel, Susan Murphy, went over the 16 waivers that were requested. The waivers concerned the building's height, parking lot size being 7.5 feet rather than 12 feet and removing any blanket conditions. A blanket condition is where the applicant asks for a waiver without stating specifically how they are going to differentiate from the zoning law.
The developer asked for blanket conditions about planting barrier plants to “whatever is on the final plan” rather than providing a plan.
The deadline to close the public hearing was extended from May 14 to June 11 to allow the peer reviewers from the Department of Public Works to review how Sherbrooke Farms would affect public water and sewer.
The development would be patching into a main that already has a private pump station, two local pumps and a sewer pump station.
Concerns brought forward by the public included the sidewalk and road potentially intruding on neighbors’ privacy and safety, as well as the fact that the buildings will be just over 60 feet from Old Westport Road.
The next meeting for Sherbrooke Farms will be held on Thursday, June 11 at 6 p.m.
