The Schuylkill Township Planning Commission held their regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday, March 17, 2010 at the Township hall. Members of the Planning Commission present were Mr. Reading, Mr. Quigg, Mr. Keogh, and Mr. Lange. Also in attendance was Mr. John Sartor, Township Engineer and his associate Ms. Mary Lou Lowrie from Gilmore & Associates as well as Mr. Morrisson and Mr. Parry from the Board of Supervisors.
On motion by Mr. Quigg and seconded by Mr. Keogh, and passed, the Planning Commission approved the minutes of January 20, 2010. No meeting was held in February.
Ordinance Codification Project – Mrs. Bird, Township Manager gave a brief overview of the codification project to date. General Code, the consultant for the project, has requested that the Planning Commission review and make their recommendation on any proposed changes to the Zoning and Subdivision and Land Development Ordinances prior to the final draft of the codified ordinances being reviewed and adopted by the Board of Supervisors. Mr. Sartor stated that there were seven reasons for the suggested SALDO and ZO ordinance proposed revisions: 1) requires Planning Commission input; 2) revise or eliminate sections that create onerous conditions or requirements that are typically not possible to achieve and from which the majority of applicants seek waivers; 3) eliminate discrepancies or conflicts with other SALDO or ZO sections; 4) relocate requirements to more appropriate sections; 5) revise or eliminate typos; 6) revise or eliminate unclear, confusing or irrelevant terminology or wording; and 7) revise requirements to be more appropriate.
Ordinance #2005-02, specifically the Post Construction Stormwater Management section, was discussed. Mr. Sartor stated that the SWM portion of the ordinance has been revised to be less cumbersome. References to out of state manuals have been deleted as well as repeated references to the PA BMP manual and other repetitive wording or phrases. Computation methods have also been removed. Mr. Sartor stated that an engineer should know what calculations to use. Also, unnecessary definitions have been removed from the text. Mr. Reading questioned if the changes were making the ordinance stricter. Mr. Sartor stated that if the proposed changes are adopted it would make the ordinance more user friendly without sacrificing the intent of the ordinance. Mr. Reading questioned the 5,000 square foot earth disturbance threshold vs. the 1,000 square feet additional impervious cover threshold that requires stormwater management; there are conflicting references with the language.
The Planning Commission will review the proposed changes for discussion and recommendation at the April 21 commission meeting.
330 Pawling Road – Mr. Rob Ratosky one of the owners of the former American Inks and Coatings property, has requested that a Letter of Map Revision (LOMR) be approved by the Township. The Township with conditions had approved a Conditional Letter of Map Revision (CLOMR) form last year. FEMA is requesting the LOMR be approved by the Township. Wording that states “Based upon the community’s review, we find the completed or proposed project meets or is designed to meet all of the community floodplain management requirements, including the requirement that no fill be placed in the regulatory floodway, and that all necessary Federal, State, and local permits have been or in the case of the conditional LOMR will be obtained” will be stricken from the form. Mr. Sartor proposed that the Planning Commission approve the form with the following conditions: 1) The Township receive all supporting engineering plans and calcs to understand and advise the Township as to what the Applicant is proposing to do and what effect the proposed project will have on the Schuylkill River floodplain within the Township boundaries; 2) The Applicant’s attorney provide the Township Solicitor with an explanation as to why the Section C Review Fee was not attached; and 3) the Applicant’s engineer revise the expiration date to reflect the new expiration date of the currently effective P.E. license. The consensus of the Planning Commission was to recommend to the Board that the LOMR form be signed based on the language being stricken and the conditions being met.
Valley Park (former Pasquale Property) Wetlands Mitigation Project – Mrs. Bird brought to the Planning Commission’s attention that the Township will be seeking a grant from DCNR for a 1/2 acre wetlands mitigation project in Valley Park. In 2008, the township took possession of a PA DEP permit from Westrum Development, the developer of Anderson Farm, for the installation of wetlands within the development. The developer was unable to install the wetlands and the Township took over the permit so that it could re-establish wetlands on a property that the Township now owns. Mr. Reading questioned why the Township at the time Anderson Farm was being developed did not require Westrum to fulfill its obligation to the DEP permit and the recorded plan to establish wetlands in the Anderson Farm development. Westrum could not establish wetlands as per the plan and permit due to the lot having been sold and the owner of the property not wanting the wetlands. The Planning Commission was adamant that the Township had taken over a permit that the developer was originally obligated to complete. However, in support of the Township seeking grants to fund the wetlands mitigation project to offset Township expenditure of the project, they approved a letter of support for the project.
There being no further business to discuss, the Planning Commission adjourned the meeting at 9:15 p.m
Respectfully submitted,
Mary Bird
Township Manager
Next Meeting: April 21, 2010