http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/local_regional/fram_developers08252002.htm
Planning board wants to rule the earth: Framingham wants to cut back on property leveling and denuding by developers By Peter Reuell Sunday, August 25, 2002 FRAMINGHAM - They're known for digging into details like road width and lighting plans, but Planning Board members now want to have their say on the very earth projects on which sit. Sparked by several recent contentious proposals, planners are urgently working on an "earth removal bylaw," and may present the new regulation to voters at Town Meeting this fall. "What this does is give us a measure of control," board member Larry Marsh said. "It isn't so much you can't level a property, (but) it should be part of the plan." The new regulation's aim is twofold: putting controls in place to restrict developers from both the wholesale levelling and filling of properties. If approved, the regulation would allow the board some oversight of the process, and include penalties for developers who ignore the regulations. How the review process would work and what the penalties might be haven't yet been worked out. Though work on the bylaw has taken on a new urgency in recent months, the picture has been muddied by the town's own regulations. The only district that explicitly allows for earth removal is the manufacturing district. But current regulations do not allow for any enforcement should a developer begin stripping land outside the manufacturing district. "Right now we have a situation where earth removal is not defined," explained Planning Board Administrator Jay Grande. "It really is not regulated by any particular bylaw and it would be very difficult to enforce. I think what we've been working on ... will go a long way toward filling that need." This isn't the first time the bylaw idea has come to the board. "I brought the subject up last march," said Grande. An early draft of the bylaw was circulated in the Planning Board office this April, he added. "We've been yakking about it for awhile," he said. "Obviously, it took on a new urgency with some of the recent activity." That new urgency is largely the end result of three subdivisions. The first two projects, both overseen by developer Chris Kotsiopoulis, left board members so frustrated they may seek the power to ticket developers who violate board decisions. In one case, crews crossed more than 100 feet onto neighbor's property while cutting down dozens of trees, an area that is now being filled. In the other case, Kotsiopoulis several years ago denuded a property off Wayside Road. A sudden rainstorm following the cutting caused a major landslide, destroying a nearby vernal pool. The third project to prompt the recent bylaw push is the Ford's Meadow development. The project was originally proposed as a cluster development, but developers are now hinting at a desire to level the property. "There's no question that there is some recent experience with subdivisions ... that's driving us to do something about it right now," Marsh said. "But it's also a recognition on our part that there needs to be some protection for the neighbors and abutters." Board member Sue Bernstein, however, said the board isn't looking into the regulations in a knee-jerk reaction. "I think that's what focused attention on it," she said, of the projects. "Once we become aware of issues, we try to address them. In planning and land use, new situations occur that didn't in the past, and you have to show now we have to amend our regulations to deal with these situations." A backer of the earth removal bylaw, Wayside Inn Road resident Steven Orr, urged the board to go one step further, with a suite of regulations designed to protect residents. Along with the earth removal rules, he wants the board to adopt tree-cutting rules and rules laying out which order developers must get approvals. "It's crucial," he said. "It's absolutely crucial. Those three things are going to be the difference. This is what's going to protect property values. "It's drop-dead important," he added. "As a long-term goal, this is one of the most powerful things that's been done in the town of Framingham for a long, long time." -- -Time flies like the wind. Fruit flies like a banana. Stranger things have - -happened but none stranger than this. Does your driver's license say Organ -Donor?Black holes are where God divided by zero. Listen to me! We are all- -individuals! What if this weren't a hypothetical question? [EMAIL PROTECTED] [ To unsubscribe, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=unsubscribe Archives available at http://www.mail-archive.com/ For help send mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web interface at http://frambors.syslang.net]
