Documents › Planning Board, 2025-09-02

minutes 4 pages

DRAFT Planning Board Meeting Minutes August 19, 2025 8:00 p.m. PRESENT: Rob Luntz John Ghegan Geoffrey Haynes Steve Krisky Eva Thaddeus ALSO PRESENT: Daniel O’Connor, P.E., Village Engineer Daniel Pozin, Village Attorney Len Simon, Village Board Trustee & Planning Board Liaison ABSENT: Nora M. Nicholson, Village Board Trustee & Planning Board Liaison 1. CALL TO ORDER Chairman Rob Luntz called the Planning Board meeting of August 19th, 2025 to order at 8:00 p.m. 2. PUBLIC HEARING a) Franzoso, Mark – 123 Grand Street – (67.20-3-22) – Amended Site Plan for proposed second floor covered porch extension John Ghegan made a motion to open the Public Hearing, seconded by Steve Krisky, and the motion carried, 5 -0. Charman Luntz invited comments from the audience and there were none. Steve Krisky made a motion to close the Public Hearing, seconded by Geoff Haynes, and the motion carried, 5-0. The Planning Board had no further comments and are all in favor of this project. Chairman Luntz read out the resolution with the one condition. Geoff Haynes made a motion to approve the amended site plan for the proposed second floor covered porch extension at 123 Grand Street, seconded by Steve Krisky, and the motion passed, 5 – 0. 3. NEW BUSINESS a) Patino, Rosa – 173 Maple Street (68.17-4-34) – Application for an Accessory Cottage Edward Iamicili was present in support of this application for an accessory cottage in the rear of the property at 173 Maple Street. The proposed accessory cottage will go in a space where there is an existing shed. The house is in the R-B Two Family Zoning District. The applicant received approval from the Zoning Board of Appeals for a side yard variance for the accessory cottage as the applicant plans to use part of the existing footprint of the shed for the proposed cottage. The proposed accessory cottage is 491 square feet, which is well withing the allowable range. It was confirmed that there is ample parking. Geoff Haynes asked about gas and electric and the applicant stated that this property was a two-family home years ago, so there are existing gas and electric meters at the main house, that they can tie into, but the applicant believes that the cottage will only use electric, not gas. Steve Krisky did ask if the homeowners planned to look for a long-term rental for the cottage, and the applicant believes that this is the case, but would have to confirm. The accessory cottage will not be easily seen from the street. It was noted that this accessory cottage will require a unique address so that it will be easy for EMS or other first responders to find the residence. Chairman Luntz read the resolution, including a condition requiring applicants to pay a fee to the Village in lieu of parkland. After much discussion, the Planning Board waives the parkland fee due to the modesty of the proposal, and the property’s proximity to Dobbs Park. Geoff Haynes made a motion to approve the accessory cottage application for 173 Maple Street with the amendment as discussed regarding waiving recreation fee for this application due to the modesty of the proposal, and the property’s close proximity to Dobb’s Park, the Planning Board also asked that the wording on the resolution be changed to say that the applicants must live on the premises, seconded by Eva Thaddeus, and carried, 5 - 0. b) Stibler, Ellen & Stephen – 13 Finney Farm Road (67.19-2-7.2) – Minor Site Plan Application for a New Single-Family Home Christina Griffin, and Karen Chubak of Christina Griffin Architects, Ralph Mastromonaco, and homeowner Ellen Stibler were present in support of the application. The architects started off by presenting their drawings for a new, single-family, 2,400 square-foot home with an unfinished basement. The proposed home is fully zoning compliant on an existing vacant lot. The architects showed some images that detailed many easements on the property, none of which will be impacted by this proposed new home. The architects went on to describe a driveway that would branch off Finney Farm Road and continue to a two-car garage. The primary suite will be on the first floor; there will be a small second floor and the amount of the basement to be finished will depend on the budget. The roof plan shows a plan to install solar. Dan O’Connor said that if the applicants wanted to have an accessory apartment in the future, they would have to come back for Planning Board approval. Ralph Mastromonaco, P.E., Engineer stated the homeowners wanted a minimalist operation. There is minimal disturbance to the lot. In each category, there is less slope disruption than the threshold, but all together, it goes over a little. The stormwater system takes the water from the driveway and roofs. When discharged, the water takes a route that does not disturb anyone. The erosion control plan was done in accordance with the States Blue Book. Geoff Haynes asked about the easements and the property owner, Ellen Stibler spoke of multiple easements on the property, including utility, view, recreation, and driveway easements, which are clearly marked on the plans. The house will have public water and public sewer, the applicants are working with the water department and they are testing valves as there was previously a house on this property that was knocked down. As per the plans, silt fencing is indicated for erosion and sediment controls, however Chairman Luntz suggested that erosion control practices should be more robust, and in addition to the silt fencing indicated on the plans, hay bales should be used during construction. Geoff Haynes reminded the applicants about rules around rock hammering and the applicants stated that there will only be a small amount of hammering. Chairman Luntz approves issuing a steep slope permit. The Planning Board stated that the applicant paying the recreation fee is appropriate for this application. It was reiterated that the erosion control should be more robust and Ralph Mastromonaco said that they could double it up. A tree that will need to be removed due to its proximity to a retaining wall is listed on the plans. The applicants designed around all the existing easements. There is both gas and electric power coming in, but the homeowner does not plan to use gas. Eva Thaddeus made a motion to approve the minor site plan application for 15 Finney Farm Road as written, seconded by Steve Krisky, and carried by a vote of 5 -0. 4. OLD BUSINESS a) Review Statement of Consistence from Waterfront Advisory Committee for Facilitation of Quaker Bridge Replacement Project The Planning Board discussed receiving a letter with concerns from a resident regarding the Quaker Bridge Replacement Process, and the Planning Board stated that the bridge project was not in their prevue, they were only looking at the tree removal application. Matt Hunt from Creighton Manning, Kelly Schuman Ekes from Creighton Manning, James Yost of GAI Consultants and Angelo Sgobbo of Westchester County were all present in support of the application via Zoom. The Planning Board reviewed the memo from the Waterfront Advisory Committee dated August 13th, 2025. The WAC recommended four changes to the Coastal Assessment Form and the Planning Board received a copy of the new Coastal Assessment Form showing that the changes were made. The WAC identified several polices in the Local Waterfront Revitalization Program (LWRP) that were relevant, and made a recommendation of consistency. The Planning Board was satisfied with the WAC memo and added the following resolutions: 1. The County will plant 35 new trees, each 2-inch caliper and 6-8 feet tall, except for Tulip and Red Oak trees which will be 4-inch caliper, on Village property and provide an additional 44 trees to plant elsewhere in the Village or provide funds for trees to be planted at a later date. Any funds shall be placed in the Village’s Tree Preservation Fund. 2. That, the four (4) Ash trees be removed from the planting list and replaced with other species on the list. 3. That, the walking trail shall be reestablished and tress should planted a minimum of 10- feet from the center line of the trail. b) Tree Removal Application from Hugh Greechan Jr., P.E., Commissioner of Public Works and Transportation, Westchester County for the removal of multiple trees for the facilitation of the Quaker Bridge Replacement Project Matt Hunt from Creighton Manning, Kelly Schuman Ekes from Creighton Manning, James Yost of GAI Consultants and Angelo Sgobbo of Westchester County were all present in support of the application via Zoom. Matt Hunt showed a table that showed the proposed replacement trees as well as their growth rate. Eva Thaddeus expressed concern about the Ash & Elm trees that were proposed, as she did not think those trees would survive. James Yost stated that he was okay not using the Ash and Elm trees and replacing them with other species shown on the table. The Planning Board also stated that the proposed Red Oad and Tulip trees should be 4-inch caliper, rather than the 2-inch caliper that the other proposed trees should be. Kelly Shuman Ekes stated that they will not be able to plant all the replacement trees on site, so 35 trees will be planted and the rest will be a credit or go into a monetary pool. The Planning Board said that any funds received for replacement trees should go into the Village’s Tree Preservation Fund. Geoff Haynes asked about the existing trail and it was noted that a condition will be added to the resolution stating that the walking trail will be reestablished and trees will be planted a minimum of 10-feet from the center line of the trail. The Planning Board noted that there will be a three-year warrantee on the new trees, and Steve Krisky added that a tree expert should be the one inspecting the trees, three years after they are planted. Geoff Haynes made a motion to approve the resolution for a Tree Removal Permit for Westchester County with the amendments listed above, seconded by Eva Thaddeus, and the motion carried, 5 – 0. 5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – Draft Minutes August 5th, 2025 Rob Luntz made a motion to approve the Planning Board minutes of August 5th, 2025, seconded by Eva Thaddeus, and the motion carried by a vote of 5 – 0. 6. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the board, the meeting was duly adjourned at 10 :15 p.m. Karen Stapleton, Secretary to the Planning Board