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2023-06-21 minutes.pdf

Minutes June 21, 2023 · 4 page(s)

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Centreville Planning Commission
June 21, 2023
7:00 p.m.
MINUTES
The June 21, 2023 Centreville Planning Commission meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Kara Willis, Chair; in
the Liberty Building, second floor meeting room. The following members and staff were present: Kara Willis, Chair; Tim
Zuella, Vice Chair; Mitchell Delaney, Secretary; Nancy Emerick, Member; Chris Jakubiak, Town Planner; and Betty Jean
Hall, Administrative Assistant.
Review of Minutes from Previous Meetings
a. Ms. Willis moved to approve the March 15, 2023 meeting minutes as amended. Mr. Zuella seconded the motion,
which passed unanimously.
b. Mr. Zuella moved to approve the April 5, 2023 work session minutes as presented. Ms. Willis seconded the
motion, which passed unanimously.
c. Ms. Willis moved to approve the May 3, 2023 work session minutes as amended. Mr. Delaney seconded the
motion, which passed unanimously.
d. Mr. Zuella moved to approve the May 17, 2023 meeting minutes as presented. Ms. Willis seconded the motion,
which passed unanimously.
Appearances
a. Informal Review; Proposed New Drapers Liquor Store; Paige Evans, Owner; Tom Davis, DMS & Associates, Jo
Anne Baker-Gebelein, Torchio Architects
• Mr. Davis stated this is a conceptual plan for a new liquor store. John and Paige Evans purchased the
property in 2021. They are looking into improving the property with a new building and parking while
keeping the existing business operational, demolishing the existing structure once the new building is
operational. Parking during the construction would be possible through easement agreements with the
American Legion.
• The property is zoned C-2 and is partially within the Intensely Developed Area by Critical Area
guidelines which have no restrictions on development.
• The conceptual plan shows an extensive landscape buffer along Rt. 213 with the parking lot beginning
about 30-foot from the property line.
• Ms. Evans stated the proposal is to increase the selling space of the store while creating more grab and go
options such as salads and sandwiches. There will be no indoor seating. The cooler space has been
widened and lengthened to accommodate the increasing number of selections available.
• Ms. Evans also stated there are some hardships with the current building including flooding every time it
rains because the asphalt roadway in front of the property has been built up so high the water runs straight
into the building; there have been multiple vehicular accidents when motorists attempt to back out onto
Rt. 213 from the parking lot; bottles continually fall from displays onto the floor when large trucks pass
by.
• Mr. Davis stated the State Highway Administration has reviewed and approved of the entrance and exit
points on the conceptual plan.
• Ms. Gebelein stated the building is about 104 feet long and about 50 feet wide at its greatest point. There
is a vestibule in the front to help screen wind. The kitchen is at the bottom left-hand corner which is
where subs will be created. The back area is storage, office, walk-in coolers and bathrooms.
• Mr. Davis stated the purpose of the informal review is to get some direction on mainly the parking layout
because the bulk of the parking is in front of the building; they are looking for guidance to be able to
move forward with the project through a formal site plan.
• Mr. Zuella stated this is not a liquor store, this is a convenience store.
• Ms. Evans stated there are multiple liquor stores within Queen Anne’s County that sell subs and
everything that this will sell. The store is comparable to Love Point Deli.
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• Ms. Willis stated the existing building does not have a full kitchen.
• Ms. Evans stated the Health Department is requiring a full kitchen.
• Ms. Willis stated there is a definition within the Code of what retail is and a definition for a convenience
store and a definition for carry-out restaurants. This concept is a combination of all three of those things.
There are size limitations for convenience stores as well. The proposed building is 5,000+ square feet
which is doubling the size of the existing building.
• Ms. Evans stated they are already selling all the things proposed to be sold in the new building.
• Ms. Willis stated the plan shows a full commercial kitchen, there are two fryers, a six-burner range, an
oven and a freezer.
• Ms. Evans responded that is in the plan because once you have room you just never know. It is not being
put in right away, right now you can’t find people to work but it is in the plan because she wants the space
to do that if there is future growth.
• Ms. Willis stated this is something that would need to be reviewed by the Town attorney.
• Mr. Delaney recalled a previous text amendment requesting an increase in square footage for convenience
stores.
• Mr. Jakubiak stated the determination of use is important and this is really about what the principal type
of business is. Every business has something that you could conceivably find in another business. What
is most important to the Town in reviewing this is be sure the use does not impose negative impacts to the
surrounding properties, traffic, water, sewer, and landscaping.
• Mr. Davis stated the main reason for requesting the preliminary review was to address the parking and
they did not want to go through the site plan review process if there are issues with the parking and as it
turns out there are issues with the use. He asked if there is some sort of clarification that they could get
from the Town attorney on whether they deem this a convenience store.
• Mr. Jakubiak stated that type of determination is supposed to be referred to the Zoning Administrator.
Mr. Koogle is the official Zoning Administrator. If he makes the determination, then the Planning
Commission implements that determination. The Planning Commission can independently ask the
attorney for guidance on this issue.
• Mr. Jakubiak stated the site plan is missing a sidewalk and pedestrian connection from the street to the
store. The north side of the building could use some landscaping to buffer the long expanse of white wall.
• The consensus of the Planning Commissioners in reference to the parking in front of the business would
be allowable if there is extensive landscaping and pedestrian access on the property.
• Ms. Evans stated Love Point Deli is 4600 square feet.
b. Informal Review; Proposed Mixed Residential Development – Spring Street; Farmingdale, LLC, Property Owner;
Lindsay Dixon, Lacrosse Homes, Developer; Tom Davis, DMS & Associates
• Mr. Dixon stated Lacrosse Homes is trying to put this project together for multiple reasons. They are not
sure if they will be for sale or if they will keep them as rentals.
• Mr. Davis gave a brief history of the property and stated this proposal is similar to what was presented
back in 2008/2009 time period. Spring Street being upgraded to a wider width and the four buildings in
the back are the same exact layout as previously proposed. The four buildings to the front and left are a
mix of different styles. The two buildings to the back and left would be townhome styles but would have
garages attached to them. The two buildings fronting on Spring Street would not have garages but the
two buildings in the back have travel aprons.
• Mr. Davis stated the big issue is sewer allocations. The goal of this informational review was to get some
information from the Planning Commission and then go to the Town Council to request allocations.
• Mr. Davis stated 47 units are proposed at 9 units per acre.
• Mr. Jakubiak stated the previous approval for this property could have had a higher density allowance
through a Public Works Agreement (PWA).
• Mr. Jakubiak stated he suggests creating a buffer at the rear of the townhouse units so that the rear of the
units does not degrade the common area. How open space and landscaping is done in this community is
going to be important. If they are going to be rentals there needs to be very strong on-site management or
design incorporated into the project to mitigate against degradation so that it stays vibrant and healthy for
the long term.
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• Mr. Jakubiak also suggests landscaping within the parking island and/or facilitating that area as
stormwater management.
• Ms. Willis suggested turning the row of townhouses along Spring Street 180 degrees to allow the decks to
face the opposing row and providing the ability to include a streetscape with sidewalks along Spring
Street.
• Mr. Delaney likes the decks facing the existing woodland area. A path or more pedestrian access added
in general would be nice.
• Ms. Emerick stated if there were a path from this property to the school property that would be great.
• Mr. Davis stated he is unsure if children are allowed to walk to school.
• Mr. Delaney requested comments about the few units that are within the wetlands buffer.
• Mr. Davis answered typically you are allowed to disturb in the buffer provided a permit is granted from
Maryland Department of the Environment.
• Mr. Dixon stated in a perfect world they would be able to obtain the old American Legion property to
develop as part of this community as well along with the two other single-family homes on Spring Street.
• The Planning Commissioners came to a consensus that they are in support of the project.
New Business
a. Annual Report – Chris Jakubiak, Town Planner
• Mr. Jakubiak reviewed the Annual Report short form that has been updated from last year.
• In Mr. Jakubiak’s opinion the most important element of the report is that there were four residential
permits issued in 2022.
• Ms. Willis moved to approve the 2022 Annual Report with the one amendment of correcting the year to
2022. Mr. Delaney seconded the motion, which passed unanimously.
Old Business
a. Draft Comprehensive Plan Discussion
• The acronym list developed by Mr. Delaney will be inserted into the Comprehensive Plan after a Table of
Contents.
• Collector streets and primary local streets will be removed from the acronym list.
• R – (residential, zoning code??) will be changed to R-1, R-2, R-3 – Residential Zoning Districts based on
density
• YMCA to be deleted.
• MD – Maryland to be deleted.
• U.S. / US – United States to be deleted.
• WWII to be deleted.
• Footnote on bottom of pg. 33 Town’s Zoning Ordinance web address needs to be changed to
townofcentreville.org
• The ordering of chapters will be as follows:
o Introduction
o Population
o Municipal Growth
o Land Use
o Housing
o Community Facilities
o Water Resources
o Natural Environment
o Transportation
o Implementation
• Mr. Jakubiak stated the current plan says when properties are annexed the developer should set aside land
for land application or otherwise develop land application capability for the Town. The future may be the
current land application property is used but newer technology is used as well such as, injection wells.
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The Town sees real potential in injection wells because the creek cannot take any more and land is not
available. Developer obligation upon annexation would be to build the Town’s capability broadly
speaking, not just dealing with land application. The Town is likely to be funded for a wastewater
treatment facility upgrade to one million gallons per day. To serve the Town’s growth potential there
would need to be up to 1.25 million gallons per day. The plant will be built in a way that modules can be
added in the future to increase capacity. The Community Facilities and Growth Areas chapters will need
to have new text concerning annexation.
• Mr. Jakubiak stated two of the major infill parcels are critical area zones that are highly restricted. One of
those is the Carter Farm. Without a growth allocation density is limited and it will be much more like a
single family, lower density development with about three units per acre, probably less because of the
open space and forest planting requirements. If there is a reluctance to introduce more density of housing,
particularly in the corridor of Rt. 213, then policy a statement that it is in the Town’s interest to strictly
apply the Critical Area Regulations and not allow growth allocation on these properties which would
dump out traffic to the highway. There are grounds for land preservation, protecting the environment and
preservation of open space. All those things are achieved by a statement about not allowing growth
allocations. This would be inserted in the Land Use chapter.
• Mr. Jakubiak further explained the growth allocation process empowers the Town Council to negotiate
and achieve things that might benefit the Town as well. So, in exchange for the added flexibility of
development density the Town has been able to get land dedicated for the greenway and the developer’s
construction of the trail that would go through the greenway. Without the growth allocation there is
significantly less ability to acquire that open space and make that a park system along the edge of the
creek.
• Ms. Willis stated it is already required in the Comprehensive Plan.
• Mr. Jakubiak stated the Comprehensive Plan is a policy document, it is not a requirement.
• Mr. Jakubiak suggested the subdivision regulations should adopt a standard for required open space. It
should be of ample size and could include the dedication of open space that is in a critical area buffer,
where that buffer would connect to a bigger greenway network using 1,000 square feet of open space per
dwelling unit as a baseline for all future developments.
The next work session will be held on the 5th of July. Mr. Jakubiak will not be in attendance on July 5 and August 2.
Adjournment
There being no further business, Mr. Zuella moved to adjourn the June 21, 2023 Planning Commission meeting.
Ms. Willis seconded the motion, which passed unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 9:25 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Betty Jean Hall
Administrative Assistant
Action Items
• Approved the March 15, 2023 meeting minutes as amended.
• Approved the April 5, 2023 work session minutes as presented.
• Approved the May 3, 2023 work session minutes as amended.
• Approved the May 17, 2023 meeting minutes as presented.
• Approved the 2022 Annual Report.
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