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Date: 6/6/2023
WHATELY — James Ross, principal of JDR Builders, appeared before the Planning Board for a site plan review and public comment on a commercial building proposed for Egypt Road, parcel 6-0-04-03 on the assessors maps for the town.
Ross told board members and a resident attending the online meeting the tools and machinery of his construction business take up too much space at his home in South Deerfield. The proposed building, with a footprint of 4,896 square feet, about 49 by 100 feet, will be used for equipment storage.
“I have so many tools you can’t believe it,” Ross said. “This’ll keep them all under one roof. It’s really for storage. I want them all out of my back yard.”
Planning Board member Brant Cheikes raised several issues, parking, acceptable tenants and wetlands concerns. Ross intends to rent out two bays to commercial tenants. Drainage on the site, adjacent to the town’s aquifer protection zone, was also a concern for an unidentified resident who called in.
“Two years ago they wanted to put a dump out there, but it’s in the aquifer protection area,” the caller said. “It’s surrounded by water.”
“The parcel is not in the aquifer protection zone,” Cheikes said. “This parcel might be near the edge of the aquifer protection zone, but it’s entirely outside of it.”
The caller, a woman, asked if the building will have a cellar. She said, “You’ll have a swimming pool if you put in a basement there.”
Ross replied that he built the home next door to the property under consideration. On that project, he hit water 48 inches below the surface of the ground. The new building will have a frost wall, footer and a poured slab floor. The building will be connected to the town’s water services and generate tax receipts.
The property is unsuitable for residential uses, Ross said, because there’s a trash hauling business across the street and the railroad tracks run close to one side of the property. The area is located in the commercial zone of the town. The property is zoned for commercial uses and any tenants Ross rents to must be in the same type of business.
Board member Tom Litwin suggested there should be some codified limits on the type of tenant allowed in the building. Ross knew he can only rent to tenants in a business similar to his, since the activities in the building are under his application.
The caller was concerned that commercial development would spread down the road and impact residences.
“This is a residential area. People have spent a lot of money to live here. I would just not want it to become a mess,” the caller said. “I don’t want to see any more commercial [development] farther down that road.”
“It’s a valid and appropriate use in the commercial district,” Cheikes said. The caller was not aware the zoning of the area had been changed at annual Town Meeting in 2021. “At this point, what the Planning Board is trying to do is not stop it, but establish conditions to protect the health, safety and welfare of the neighborhood.”
Ross assured board members the property will not become an eyesore. He said commercial vehicles rarely park at his home. His use of the proposed building won’t increase traffic. A small dumpster will be positioned beside it, but he intends to do attractive landscaping, including ground covers like arbor vitae. Ross said some trees will be taken down, but that will happen anyway, when municipal water is installed.
“There’s a water main going right through there, so when they put the main in it’ll rip up those tree roots,” Ross said. He will consult with Keith Bardwell, highway and building superintendent, about replacements. “Wherever he wants them, I’ll put them.”
According to Ross, the engineering has been completed for installing the water main. He told the board the Conservation Commission approved his plans for the property. Board member Sara Cooper reiterated the wetlands adjacent to Ross’s property must be protected. “It’s a sensitive spot,” Cooper said.
The Planning Board voted unanimously to grant JDR Builders a permit for the building on Egypt Road.