7_10_24 Planning Board Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Approved 8.7.24 people are unaware that dozens of Morrow Mill landowners including us have voluntarily 1003 put restrictive covenants on their properties requiring 10-acre minimum lot sizes so that 1004 their land can be protected from development for future generations. These restrictions 1005 go far beyond what the County requires in the unprotected watershed. It may be hard for 1006 a developer to understand, but those of us who live here do not have a transactional 1007 relationship with this land. We know that once agriculture and forested land is lost, you 1008 don't get it back. Playing by the County’s rules has meant that our property values have 1009 not increased the way property values close to town have. Though we may not get rich 1010 selling our land to a developer one day, this stability serves a greater good. It means that 1011 folks can still find smaller lots and homes that are affordable and young farmers have a 1012 chance of holding on to their inherited land because tax values are not sky high. It is only 1013 because the rest of us have played by the rules that this developer can now see our land 1014 as cheap and ready to be exploited for their suburban development. This project is 1015 unnecessary and unneighborly. I say unnecessary because without changing a single 1016 ordinance, they can build enough homes for all of the current members to live side by 1017 side, sharing resources and supporting one another like the rest of us do. I ask the 1018 planning board to respect the wisdom of the UDO and the vision outlined in the Land Use 1019 Plan 2050 and reject this proposal because it is wholly inconsistent with both, thank you. 1020 1021 Carol Mellon: Yes, first I'd like to say, I've had to make a lot of changes to my notes because, we were 1022 first told that there would be an assisted living center on the campus of the proposed 1023 development and it has since been changed to family care home. This seems like kind of 1024 an effort to shoe-horn this proposal into or toward approval, but let me continue. Our area 1025 does not have the infrastructure to support a large community of people needing frequent 1026 medical care. We are served by a volunteer fire and rescue squad that is not equipped to 1027 transport residents to relatively distant hospitals on a frequent basis and along a hilly, two-1028 lane highway with infrequent passing zones. Those needing skilled care would have to go 1029 elsewhere in any case since the planners of this community will not have any provision for 1030 that. Even if everything goes as planned from a financial point of view, a high-density 1031 staff intensive development will not only increase environmental pollution nearby, but will 1032 definitely increase the amount of traffic, air pollution, and noise. As one of our previous 1033 residences was adjacent to an assisted living center, we know that the required staff will 1034 be working around the clock as well, coming and going at hours that are now reserved for 1035 peace and quiet in our area. Again, I ask that you reject this proposal, thank you. 1036 1037 Anna Hatcher: So, for me personally, because of the concerns about the traffic which is going to grow, I 1038 don't know, probably three times more than we have originally, I think that one of the 1039 requirements for this neighborhood is they will go ahead and build a public bus station 1040 because people in age sometimes have challenges with driving good and paying 1041 attention, especially when it's getting dark. I think it has to be a requirement a public bus 1042 station, something like that. Next concern is the construction hours. I don't want to live in 1043 hell for the next 10 years, right? I came to this country from the huge city Kyiv in Ukraine 1044 5 years ago. I know what construction is, and at least it has to be mandatory that after 1045 5:00 p.m. no noisy construction work. It has to be documented. If you don't want us, with 1046 Chelsea to pull out my truck and block the entrance and exit and makes strikes and 1047 revolution which I know how to do revolutions trust me. And you don't want to have it in 1048 the county, right? So, no construction after 5:00 p.m., no noisy construction activities on 1049 weekends. It has to be documented and be a requirement to these people. Also, we 1050 would like to have and see a backup from this group, like a backup plan. Because they 1051 are in respected age, right? If they aren’t able to perform in 3 years, what's next steps. 1052