Planning Commission Meeting 5/26/20
EAST MARLBOROUGH TOWNSHIP
PLANNING COMMISSION
721 Unionville Road
Kennett Square, PA 19348
May 26, 2020 Meeting
- Attendance/Call to Order
Cuyler Walker, Chairman called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. on the on-line meeting platform, GoToMeeting. Additional Commissioners present;, Jane Donze, Mary Nell Ferry, Pat Montague, and Rob Jerger. A quorum was present, Neil Lovekin, Township Manager, and Hannah Christopher, Township Assistant Manager and Treasurer, were also in attendance.
- Public Comment Period
No public comments.
- Review/ Approve Minutes of March 31, 2020 and April 28, 2020
Donze made Motion to approve minutes of March 31, 2020 and April 28, 2020 Ferry seconded the motion. All voted in favor, Motion carried.
- Gerbron Subdivision
The applicant is seeking approval of a proposed lot line change. No construction is proposed at this time..
Three waivers are requested by the applicant under the SALDO: (i) Waiver of requiring the submission of both a preliminary and final plan to the Board of Supervisors and (ii) waiver of the shadow analysis and conservation plan submissions. Jerger made the Motion to recommend waiver of the requirement to submit the preliminary/final plans separately, Ferry seconded the Motion. All voted in favor, Motion carried. Ferry made the Motion to recommend waiver of the shadow analysis and conservation plan, Jerger seconded the Motion. All voted in favor, Motion carried.
Donze made a Motion to recommend Preliminary/Final plan approval to the Board of Supervisors, Ferry seconded the Motion. All voted in favor, Motion carried.
- Unionville School District
Lisa Donlon made a site visit today, 05/26/20, standing water was present. She will pursue this further with the applicant’s engineers.
Vandermark & Lynch Letter
Majority of the issues have been addressed, they include, Deed of dedication, addition of the overflow parking sign to the plan, confirmation from the Historic Commission that the barn on the property is a Class 2 structure and additional landscape buffer is not required. The applicant can comply with the storm water management issues, grading issues and revisions to construction, they are procedural in nature.
The location of the walking trail from the school bus parking lot to the softball field was discussed at length between all parties. The proposed trail is consistent with the zoning ordinance. The Board of Supervisors were okay with the location at the May meeting. Additionally, the Environmental Council had previously approved the location as well. Donze made Motion to recommend the District be able to build the trail in the proposed location, Ferry seconded the Motion. All voted in favor, Motion carried.
Additional discussion ensued about the trail running along Route 82 and Doe Run Road. Donze felt strongly about this issue, connecting trails in Unionville and that the project be completed in a timely manner. Lee suggested adding a note to the plan that the future construction of the trail run along Route as a future action in the 3 to 5 year range. The District would like to keep on schedule so that bids may be requested. Donze made the Motion to recommend the District’s construction of a walking trail along Rt. 82 be budgeted in three (3) years and built within five (5) years, Motion was seconded. All voted in favor, Motion carried.
Glackin-Thomas
Applicant will comply with the discrepancy in square footage on the landscape island and increase it to 190 sq. feet and increase the shrub height to meet the requirement to 48”, this will screen cars from the Doe Run Road side of the parking lot. Additionally, the applicant will comply with items 21-27.
Lisa Thomas requested the width of the macadam walking trail be 5 ft, this would meet the ADA requirement and would allow 2 wheelchairs to pass safely as well as bike traffic. Additional options were discussed to reduce the impervious area, Whitesel commented that he felt 5 ft is appropriate. Ferry made Motion to recommend the walking trail be 5 ft wide, Donze seconded. 4 voted in favor, 1 abstained. Motion carried.
TP & D
The review letter submitted recommended connecting the proposed walking trail to the existing roundabout on Route 82. Walker was inclined to make the recommendation as tying together walkways in the Township is a safety issue, Donze concurred. Whitesel is concerned with a requirement that the District be responsible for tying in to the walkway on the west side of Rt. 82 because that is not an on-site improvement on the applicant’s property. Ferry commented that she did not feel the District should be responsible for tying in the walking trail off their property. The Supervisors can further discuss with the District.
Additional Items
The School DIstrict was requested to get input from the Fire Department to confirm the Area can be properly accessed. The Fire Marshall confirmed access, however, they may not be aware of the equipment owned by the local Fire Department. The Commission stated that input from the Po-Mar-Lin Fire Chief was critical since he’s in the best position to evaluate whether there is adequate access for the specific vehicles in the region that may be needed to respond to an emergency at the site.
The School District had added a note to the plans that it would not make any changes or demolish the Class 2 historic barn without consulting with the Township. The DIstrict has initiated communication with the Chairman of Historic Commission to review the condition of the barn and renovation.
Public Comments-
Township resident Jeanne Best voiced her concerns with the 80 parking spots and the sight distance on Doe Run Road. She feels a traffic impact study should be conducted as there is a blind curve and 4 roads leading into Doe Run Road. Walker confirmed the traffic study performed for Toll Brothers community on Route 82 was required due to the pedestrian crossing, not traffic volume. Whitesel replied that the parking lots were planned to alleviate cars parking at St. Michaels and along Route 82, and that there were nowhere near 80 cars parked at St. Michaels. The applicant’s engineer commented that the sight distance exceeds both PennDOT’s and the Township’s requirement and 80 parking sports does not typically call for a traffic study.
Township resident Chris Manning asked if the baseball field has potential to be used by other sports, for example Southern Chester County Soccer, and if the gate will be used. Whitesel confirmed the fields may be used by SCCS, parking lot will be blocked to the access road, and would consider a crossing guard if needed.
Township resident Shelley May Mincer also shared her concerns about the parking lot and increased traffic on Doe Run Road. She also feels crossing guards may be needed when games are over in the late afternoon and plans for the barn.
The applicant noted that two waivers initially requested can be removed, they were both regarding the walking trail and trees to be planted and can be resolved with the Supervisors.
Ferry made Motion to recommend the District’s preliminary/final plan approval to the Board of Supervisors subject to compliance with the recommendations of the Planning Commission reflected in its Minutes and satisfaction of any unresolved issues in the consultant letters. Donze seconded the Motion, all voted in favor, Motion carried.
- Adjournment
Meeting adjourned at 8:35 pm
Respectfully submitted,
Lisa Henry
Planning Commission Secretary
Meeting Agenda
- Call to Order / Attendance
- Public Comment
- Review / Approve Minutes
- Meeting Minutes for March 31, 2020 and April 28, 2020
- Gerbron – 791 Wollaston Road – Review #2
- Applicant intends to adjust the lot lines of 2 parcels.
- Unionville Chadds Ford School District: Athletic Fields – Review #3
- Applicant proposes outdoor facility enhancements at the Unionville High School and Charles F. Patton Middle School located on Unionville Road. The outdoor enhancements include the installation of a multi-use synthetic turf field, a varsity softball field, a middle school baseball field, associated utility structures, paths, and an 81-space parking lot along East Doe Run Road.
- Adjournment
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