PLAN COMMISSION

APPROVED

PLAN COMMISSION

February 7, 2008

Troy Town Hall @ 7:00 p.m.

Hudson Wisconsin 54016

Members Present: Ray Knapp, Dan Pearson, David Wolf, Mark Mitchell,

Members Excused: Paul Mahler, Chris Mueller, Bob Rolle

Staff Present: Rob Jones, Cedar Corp.

Recording Secretary: Sharon Weide

Others present: Perri Schiltgen, John Salmon, William W. Heideman, Cyril Cernohous, Jon Sonnentag, Jeff and Rita Haney, Jan Cuccia, Charlie Macdonell, Jason Bast, Kernon Bast, Barb Geissler

Call to Order

Ray Knapp called the meeting of the Town of Troy Plan Commission to order at 7:04 p.m. followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.

AGENDA:

Approve Minutes;
Acknowledgement of applications for action as regulated by SDO;
Concept review – Meadow Valley of Troy – DCCI, East Cove Rd.;
Concept review – Cottonwood Ridge, (Wilcoxson property);
Review procedure for setback determination;
Review role of Plan Commission in Riverway Ordinance Review Process;
Building Permits/Utility Permits;
Committee Reports & correspondence;
Adjourn;

1. Approve Minutes;

Minutes of the January Plan Commission meeting were reviewed.

Mark Mitchell moved to accept the minutes of the January 3 Plan Commission meeting. David Wolf seconded. Motion passed, all in favor.

2. Acknowledgement of applications for action as regulated by SDO;

There were none.

3. Concept review – Meadow Valley of Troy – DCCI, East Cove Rd.;

Jon Sonnentag presented on behalf of DCCI Land Planners. Mark Mitchell asked to recuse himself from this discussion. Jon went on to say that this parcel in Section 17 was part of a concept plan during the planning for Meadow Ridge. DCCI is coming back now to begin work on this parcel. He stated that the developer has no time table set yet and it may be a year or two before work is started. However, the applicant wanted to allow sufficient time to complete all of the necessary approvals. All of the development rights needed for this project were transferred in at the time of Meadow Ridge of Troy. He distributed layouts to the Plan Commission and went on to describe the project and possible future connectivity to the remaining portion of Mr. Valley’s adjoining property and Mr. Woodruff’s property to the north. He noted that there is an agreement in place that Mr. Valley will grant a 10,000 sq. foot easement for the road across his property. Jon asked for clarification of what kind of connectivity the Town would like to see from the Deer Valley subdivision.

Ray Knapp commented that in an earlier review of this property the Plan Commission had clearly defined an expectation that there would be access for pedestrian traffic between Deer Valley and Meadow Valley primarily so children wouldn’t have to go out to Cove Road to get between the 2 subdivisions. Jon Sonnentag asked if it would be wise to have a meeting with the residents of Deer Valley to determine what fits. Ray reiterated the request for a pedestrian path but supported getting input from Deer Valley residents.

Rob Jones said that in Cedar Corp. feels the most important areas of discussion should be the road connectivity of the greater project area, the placement of storm water management devices (these will need to be substantial due to the amount of runoff), and the length of the proposed cul-de-sac until the property is further developed. He suggested the possibility of a 12 foot paved trail between Deer Valley and Meadow Valley so that emergency vehicles could get through.

Dan Pearson asked about the drainage easement and Jon clarified its location. All Commission members would like the Woodruffs feedback on the layout and how it fits with their vision for possible future development of their property to the north. Ray is also concerned about the buffering of the home on lot 35 and questioned if that home site could be moved, possibly into lot 1. David Wolf said he feels the project is laid out well. There was additional discussion around existing screening from Cove Rd.

Ray Knapp said that Mr. Schiltgen was concerned about the location of the road into this development and asked if road could be shifted to the north-east to partially address Mr. Schiltgen’s setback concerns. Jon said they may be able to shift the road but he felt this placement was the best due to the topography. Ray Knapp asked for public comment.

Perri Schiltgen stated that he does not want any setback imposed on his land. As such he feels the road should be constructed further to the north-east into Mr. Valley’s property. He went on to say that there should be buffer zones between the proposed development and the 3 adjoining properties that are zoned exclusive agriculture. He wants the developer to construct a fence between his property and Meadow Valley as there are currently snow-mobiles and ATVs that trespass onto his property and he anticipates that traffic will increase if more residents move in. Additionally, he plans to build a home in the future on this property and most likely will have livestock. He also expressed concern that in other developments the outlots are not being maintained properly by the home owners associations (HOA) and that as a result, thistle, burdock, buckthorn and box elder trees are growing. He would like to see something written into the HOA agreement that requires routine maintenance of outlots.

John Salmon contended that the existing storm water management system in Meadow Ridge of Troy is poorly designed and that DCCI should be required to correct it prior to developing any additional property. He stated that he would like a fence built by the developer along his property line and that it should be 5 wire, not 4. He said that when East Cove Rd. was realigned DCCI agreed to seed along the road, which they did, but no additional dirt was added. As weeds have grown up he thinks DCCI should be required to put in dirt and reseed. He stated that the homes on lot 35 and lot 31 are too close to his property line. He also feels that a road should connect Meadow Valley and Deer Valley due to safety and traffic concerns.

Jeff Haney (resident from Deer Valley) asked for clarification on the design and Jon Sonnentag made the explanation.

Ray Knapp asked the Plan Commission for their comments on encircling the development with fences. David Wolf felt that if the neighbors want a fence they should have one but the maintenance issues need to be addressed. Dan Pearson said the SDO requires that farmland be buffered and in the case of a fence asked who’s responsible for maintenance. Rob Jones said it is presently split between the HOA and the landowner and that this would normally be addressed at preliminary plat.

Ray Knap questioned the easement agreement DCCI has with Mr. Valley and how far to the east the road could possibly be shifted. Jon Sonnentag said he would have to look into it further but he feels the road placement as depicted is optimum. There was additional discussion whether the road would impose any additional setbacks on Mr. Schiltgens future home site, if the road was to the rear of the home.

Ray Knapp said that although the concept shows a long cul-de-sac, in the future this road would actually form a loop. Dan Pearson asked Jon what Mr. Valley and Mr. Woodruff were planning for future development. Jon said that there are no firm plans yet. Ray stated that when E. Cove road was reconstructed it was done to accommodate higher traffic and did not share Mr. Salmon’s concern about the road not being designed to handle future traffic levels.

Jason Bast stated that he thinks farmers should build the fences, not the developers. There was additional discussion about fences and buffering in general. Dan Pearson stated that there needs to be a balance between the development and the farmers. He said that if there is farming going on next to homes there will be conflict, so there needs to be compromise and methods to mitigate it. Ray Knapp recapped a couple points. He noted that the Plan Commission would like to see if the road, where it abuts the Schiltgen property, can be shifted to the east is feasible and that the buffering for lots 2, 3 and 35 needs to be reviewed.

John Salmon asked if the Town Board would address the runoff onto his property from Meadow Ridge. Ray asked him to come to the Town Board meeting and bring this up during citizen input, at which time a decision would be made whether it would be put on a future agenda.

4. Concept review – Cottonwood Ridge, (Wilcoxson property);

John Sonnentag represented Kernon Bast. He explained that during on-site soil testing it was discovered that the soils on the property were much less desirable than shown on the soil survey. The soils range from very heavy clay to sand and gravel. Because the heavy clay poses problems for road, septic and home construction Mr. Bast has decided to decrease the density and market a different product to the public. This new proposal calls for 10 home sites on the eastern portion of the property with a larger outlot along the ridge to the west. This would eliminate the view of any homes from Cty. Rd. U. Additionally, the proposal calls for a single cul-de-sac with a water feature on both sides at the entrance. An alternate plan for 15 homes was also discussed. The alternate plan would provide for future connectivity to the west.

Ray Knapp asked if Mr. Garbe had seen this layout, Jon answered no. There was discussion on road placement if the Mr. Wilcoxon develops and Mr. Garbe doesn’t.

Mark Mitchell said that he likes the new layout because it pushes the homes to the east, off of the ridge. Ray concurred. Dan asked for clarification on the road design if the 15 lot design was used. Kernon Bast discussed the clay and sand areas. He stated that in the 10 lot design, most of the lots would have below grade conventional septic systems. If the 15 lot plan is used, the stub road would go through a rocky area and all of the septics would not be below grade.

Dave Wolf asked for clarification on the drainage going into outlot 1 and questioned if the drainage direction had been changed. He was concerned with drainage issues with lots 1, 2 and 3. Jon did not think there was a change but said that he would check that again.

Ray noted that he had received a violation letter from the County concerning excavation on the property. Kernon Bast explained that sandy fill was being taken from this site to the development to the north to help in the construction of homes. He stated that he has explained this to the County and that the issue has been resolved.

Ray asked if there was consensus that the 10 lot plan is a good concept. The consensus was yes but Dan Pearson expressed concern that there were no adjacent land owners present. It was agreed that a letter would be sent to the adjacent landowners describing the project and directing them to contact Ray Knapp if there were concerns. If there were, a public hearing would take place.

There was another discussion about a fence between Cottonwood South and the Riedel property. Kernon Bast ended by saying that he would be willing to work with the Riedel’s on this issue and act responsibly. The Plan Commission reaffirmed their support for a fence between the two properties. Additionally, the Plan Commission agreed that it would be feasible to have the snow removal maintenance of the cul-de-sac handled by the County as there is no connectivity to it from the Town of Troy.

5. Review procedure for setback determination;

Rob Jones reported that he has written a draft letter to Brian Wert that describes the setback procedure but that Bob Rolle and Paul Mahler had not reviewed it. He will forward this letter to them via email for review. This item will be on next months agenda.

6. Review role of Plan Commission in Riverway Ordinance Review Process;

Ray Knapp reported that he received correspondences from Dan Bauman, WIDNR, in which Dan suggested that this would be a good time to review the Riverway Ordinances and application process for the Town. Dan had four bullet points that he would like to review – what is working well, what can be improved, what changes need to be made, and is the DNR ready to write an amended approval letter. Ray reminded the Plan Commission that the original riverway committee consisted of Bob Rolle, Gloria Wahrenbrock, and Charlie Macdonell. He then asked the Plan Commission members what role they would like to play in the process.

There was considerable discussion around this point with Mark Mitchell expressing the opinion that the committee should run with the process unless there are issues they feel the Plan Commission should be aware of and give input on. Dan Pearson agreed and felt the committee should bring major concerns back to the Plan Commission. Ray Knapp said he would like to hear firsthand what the issues are and that he would like to sit in on a few of the early meetings.

The Plan Commission agreed that it would make sense for the Riverway Committee to set up a meeting, in the evening, with the DNR and invite members of the Plan Commission and Town Board to attend for informational purposes. This meeting would be published so that members of the community could also attend.

7. Building Permits/Utility Permits;

Rob Jones reported that he still has not received a complete application from Comcast for the work they are doing in the Town right of way (ROW). Reportedly they are laying fiber optic cable on Radio Road and conduit in other parts of the Town. He reviewed that the application has come in piecemeal and that we are still waiting for payment. Comcast indicates that the Town should have payment within three to four days. He went on to say that the Town does not have the ability to deny them access to the ROW, but we do have the right require they file a permit and tell the Town what they are doing and how they will be doing it. He went on to say that under the ordinance the Town has the right to issue a citation back to the date that a complete application should have been filed. It was agreed that citations starting on January 14 was a reasonable date. Rob will create the body of a letter to be sent to Comcast and Ray Knapp will work with Shari to get a citation written up.

Building permits were reviewed.

8. Committee Reports & correspondence;

Ray Knapp handed out a map of the DOT proposal for Highway 35.

Dan Pearson reported that he has been invited to attend the Wisconsin Grazing Conference and give a presentation on farmland presentation and TDRs. He will be attending with the extension service.

9. Adjourn;

David Wolf moved to adjourn the meeting at 9:22 P.M. Mark Mitchell seconded. Motion passed, all in favor.