##VIDEO ID:1ArRxmtf4pw## good evening and welcome to the January 20 2025 meeting of the East Council I'll call the meeting to order and ask that we stand for the pro con the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liy and justice for all that John did un and I would ask that we take a brief silence to reflect all the events going on both here and abroad thank you in accordance with Master General law this meeting is being supported by elcat and if there's anyone Miss in the audience if you could identify yourself Sarah Hanan and reminder publishing thank you so much okay at this time we can move on to public comments have Carolyn baros signed up uh to discuss the center Town District but I don't see her on yet if it's the council's pleasure we can continue and if she joins the zoom meeting we could return absolutely Council comments does any councel have a comment go through the chair sure um I've got a couple um so I've been contacted a couple different times over the last few months um asking if I would bring up um the fact that they're looking for contracts to be posted on our website whether it be Union contracts or town contracts um and asking if we can do something through transparency to do it so what I would be asking is that down the road not the next meeting you know maybe March April whatever if we could put on to the agenda just a discussion time to talk about maybe creating a bylaw surrounding transparency um and then whatever the council chooses the council chooses but at least this way here we will have been able to discuss it I know in the past the board of Selectmen had voted to put like employees pays up online and that happened either one or two years and then all of a sudden it never got revoked it just never happened again so and that that's the questions that have been uh put forwards to me and I said you know I don't have the answer we'll bring it to the council and talk about it um the second thing is I just like to ask Tom um if you could check with Kim um I had asked about a year-over-year revenue with the building department um if you get a chance yes thank you that's all I've got great thank you anything else hey Town manager report hi Tom good evening good evening how everybody doing great good um so I attached the latest reports from uh from the high school and editori uh construction um I don't know if you've driven by recently but you can start to see the steel peeking up over the building it's quite uh impressive to see how much went up so so fast in such a short amount of time um the school building committee obvious VI ly continues to meet uh we're monitoring the the project and we remain uh on time and on budget uh level one budgets uh for fiscal 26 were submitted by all departments on the 17th of January um and now that uh we have the the first iteration of Governor hil's budget um we can add the school Department's budget to that sometime at the beginning of the month uh end of this month beginning of February um and that'll sort of give us our first uh cloudy clear view of the of the budget um we're gonna you know obviously like like every year we'll we'll continue to work with the department heads to balance needs and uh fiscal policies and and look forward to another collaborative process um the town received notification last week we were awarded complete streets funding in in the amount of $446,900 another another good step forward to uh closing up our sidewalk gaps in town um we also received notification of a grant award in the amount of $70,000 um from the executive office of Housing and livable communities uh their planning grant program to support our zoning review and diagnostic uh which not by accident aligns with our bylaw review period this year um obviously that chapter 4 50 is uh a really heavy lift and so this will give us some technical support towards reviewing our our zoning bylaw so thanks Rebecca for putting that Grant another one uh um and the Chestnut Street Pump Station upgrade project officially kicked off uh we had a meeting with time Bond and massworks excuse me West Mass development um we should have a a they're preparing the documents for a bit opening in early March the Project's going to be phased out appropriately based on water usage so we may not have a whole lot of uh heavy construction going on during the summer months um so we'll we'll start phase it and then kind of back off and then finish up in the fall winter is is the the early schedule um some upcoming events uh Center Town District steering committee meeting uh tomorrow night Wednesday the 29th 6: pm. here at the COA um you know I'd like to uh encourage the public to keep coming and and giving their input as we uh uh now that we have the boundaries of the um the district now we can start um going over the what we want it to look like um which is really uh I would call it the fun part um and Cofe with the town manager Wednesday February 5th at 10:30 uh also at the COA that's all I got for tonight he the chair said at the same time that the public was invited to meet the Building Commissioner no he is at 8:30 8:30 to 10 I'm just gonna drink yes perfect cof the that's Ralph's kind of morning yeah so that was was that in the reminder yes and Facebook it was on Facebook on Facebook too okay um so yeah our new Building Commissioner will have a a sort of a coffee hour meet the meet the commissioner uh same day at 8:30 is that at the library no it's in the office oh it's in his office yeah great probably the only time he gets to be in his office thanks Ralph yep anyone have any questions or comments okay okay uh is there a motion then to return to public comments I'll make a motion second motion aced since John is remote all of them have to be roll call Jim yes Kathy yes Anna yes yes Maryland R yes and John yes okay so we're back to our public comment period hopefully she can hear us just he there hello can you hear me yes yes good evening okay I apologize I was having a little technical difficulty uh before you start if you could just state your name and address for the record yes absolutely my name is carollyn feros my address is 70 Fairview Street Great to make your public comment okay thank you very much um I am the chair of the center Town District steering committee I'm coming before the Town Council today to voice my concern and displeasure with the way members of the council are spreading misinformation and attempting to undermine the center Town District process this committee was charged with a specific task based on the 2021 East Long Meadow resilient master plan the community received the community one St for growth Grant in June of 23 and it AC was accepted by the Town Council in September of 23 I want to make sure that there is no question that this is a fully Town managed initiative the center Town District steering committee has been meeting since March of 24 attempting to educate the public and members of the planning board and Town Council about the process of adopting a Centertown district and the possibility of 40R zoning the process of educating and engaging the community was a part of the requested Grant and the contract the town created with PV pvpc before we even had an opportunity to explain the purpose of our committee and to explain to the community what 40R is misinformation was being spread and has continued to be spread posts on social media by Town Council Members are being circulated that are spreading misinformation to deceive constituents and are confusing 40b with 40R 40b is the program created by the state of Massachusetts which allows developers to override local zoning bylaws in order to increase the number of affordable homes in municipalities where less than 10% of the housing is defined as affordable 4 R encourages communities to create dense residential or mixed to Smart growth zoning districts the committee has not even put pen to paper to construct a draft bylaw and Miss misrepresented information is being disseminated by some Town Council Members this undermines the work the steering committee is doing my personal confidence in Our Town Council Members ability and commitment is being tested we expect every one of you to impartially represent the best interest of the community for future growth I would encourage each of you to do your due diligence and become fully knowledgeable about the center Town District project you can reach out to the town manager's office for more information thank you for your time and for your attention thank you for your comment maybe I saw Jason on there too I wasn't sure if he was there for a public comment or not he's usually here okay is there anyone else in the public that wishes to make a comment in our public comment period I seeing none we can continue I have no Communications correspondence announcements this evening we are too early for our 6 public hearing so is there a motion to move to orders of the day until such time is at 6:15 to return to public hearing I make a motion to move out of order to number eight orders of the day to return to public hearings when appropriate second made and seconded any further discussion M uh yes Kathy yes Anna yes m a yes Marilyn yes Ralph yes and John on the yes okay great our first order of the day under financial matters is to $70,000 for the purchases and the cost for the feasibility for the roof at Maple Shade Elementary School want yeah yeah absolutely well hello hi everybody do you want so well I mean uh yeah I'll let you do all the heavy lifting uh obviously uh this this Maple Shade roof project was approved during Capital uh for the budget last year um similar process with feasibility and then project through msba I I'll let them handle all the the details but this is this is the sort of the first step of that that's a great um so exactly thank you evening everyone um as you've many of you have been part of before with msba projects they have a number of steps and a very uh structured process for every step of their um whether it be the core program or the accelerated repair program this is the accelerated repair program and we're in the very beginning stage we've been invited to take a look at the feasibility study and schematic design for the replacement of the roof at Maple Shade and before we get into a feasibility study agreement with them which is where they partner with um the cost of that study we have to go through um completing five what they call prerequisites one of those prerequisites probably the biggest one is appropriating the funding for the feasibility study once we've done that and we send the um certified vote to the msba we complete the other four uh prerequisites uh which are a little bit easier to complete um than the appropriation of the funding then we can enter into a feasibility study agreement with the msba and we have 14 months to complete that feasibility study if we successfully complete that feasibility study and all looks like it's uh a green light to go forward then you start to move in to the actual project and another funding agreement and another appropriation be on the table at the very beginning stage and I think Tom mentioned this was something that in last year's Capital cycle that we had recommended to proceed down this path because it had been on the capital project list for quite some years and if we were to try to fund the replacement of the roof on our own without any msba funding it would either wipe out our capital budget for at least one year with no other project or be something that we would keep kicking the can down the road because we couldn't fund at that time does anyone have any question questions or comments or this does not include the cafeteria or the gym Kathy you remember a few years back there you go if there's nothing else I'll entertain a motion I mooved that the town of East Long Meadow appropriate the amount of $370,000 for the purposes of paying the costs for the feasibility study and initial schematic design for the potential capital project to replace the flat sections of the roof at Mapleshade Elementary School located at 175 Mapleshade Avenue East long metal Mass including the payment of all costs incidental or related theto and for which the town of East long metal may be eligible for a grant from the Massachusetts school building authority msba set amount to be expended under the direction of the East Long Meadow school committee to meet this appropriation the East Long Meadow Town Council with the recommendation of the Town manager will transfer from the town's free cash set amount of $370,000 the town of East Long Meadow acknowledges that the mba's grant program is a non-entitlement discretionary program based on need as determined by the msba and if the mba's board of directors votes to invite the town to collaborate with the msba on this proposed repair project any cost project costs the town of East Long Meadow incurs in excess of Any Grant approved by and received from the msba shall be the sole responsibility of the town of East Long Meadow second motion's been made in seconded any further discussion Jim yes Kathy yes Anna yes I yes Marilyn yes Ralph yes and John a yes great we can proceed excellent thank you so much uh we look forward to seeing you February 25th the school committee will potentially come back and talk budget again uh as Tom alluded to uh the the governor's budget came out today Chapter 70 is not uh the Panacea that we were hoping for but we'll continue to to work and hope for things to improve in the ways of Means Committee thank you for having us appreciate it thank you you thanks for coming thank you we are at 6 18 so we can return motion to our public hearing at 6:15 no we already voted okay so this isation of a public hearing for a proposed zoning bylaw Amendment fored photo voltaic installations and required second reading this was continued from December 10th 2024 the council members are Jim Liden Kathy H myself Marilyn Richards Ralph Paige and John torsha on Zoom I would ask the clerk to read the legal notice into the East Long Meadow Town Council will hold a public hearing on December 10 2024 at 6:15 p.m meting room on the of the Council on Aging located at 328 North Main Street for the purpose of addressing proposed amendments to the town of East Long Meadow zoning bylaw article 10 ground mount Ed photovoltaic installations this is a continuation of the public hearing held on November 12 2024 these amendments would add the definition of a parking canopy installation and add text to the definition of roof mounted installations add the exemption of small scale ground mounted solar pH photovoltaic installations from the site plan review requirement and and remove medium and large scale ground mounted so solar photov voltaic installations area dimensional and density requirements the public hearing may also be attended via Zoom webinar for the council G quagi Town Clerk cck of the council great thank you Genie since we have Rob our planning director here this would you mind just giving the council I know we've heard it before just a quick summary of how we got to this point in sure yeah so uh this has been an ongoing Amendment for a few months now um it seems that after two playe m subcommittee U meetings that went over this language um there were a few versions that were analyzed and those versions were combined together into this file product that's before you so included in your packets are two versions the first version includes all the edits which show in red with a line the deletions and then in blue underlined any additions to the text the text in this proposed document is it does reformat the um article 10 which mostly is just V photov voltaic installations the biggest of which is just to clean up the use of the term ground mounted photovoltaic installations and use the word solar throughout the bylaw there's also been a lot of censi of sections that seem to be too expansive um definitions were updated to reflect Uh current state law and we added parking canopy which was a big use category that was kind of left out of that for a while and we also made clear distinctions between the three different types of roof mounted solar projects you can do or my apologies PV projects you can do roof mounted which is allow by right medium scale and then large scale um there's also a category called small scale but that's grouped with roof mounted usually those are allowed just by a building permit the other two medium and large require site plan revew they're all Allowed by right for the do Amendment um it's just that the other two larger projects have the more rigorous review from the planning board so most of the changes occur in about the first seven pages of this in total there is about 11th 11th page has a sentence on it so I don't know if anybody from the playm subcommittee wanted to give an update on our discussions as well I thought we did have three meetings on this to talk about the changes um and yeah man that's pretty much all I had great thank you R yep is there anything you feel we should add from the planning matters sub committee I don't I don't think so I think Rob covered it all great okay at this time someone like to read the clean version that's more second reading to the record I would read up absolutely I would read part of it through the chair sure um the clean version has pretty much nine pages so I would make the suggestion I would start with page one if we want to go sure around and each pick up a page unless Anna really wants to read all of them no I thought you should you you helped write it start off okay um it'll say clean version this is the clean version article 10 uh photov voltaic installations amended 811 2020 and 41222 was page um subsection 410- 10.1 purpose at the purpose of this bylaw is to Pro promote the creation of new photovoltaic installations by providing standards for the placement design construction operation monitoring modification and removal of such installations address Public Safety minimize impact on Scenic natural and historic resources and to provide adequate Financial Assurance for the eventual decommissioning of such installations B the provision set forth in this article shall specifically apply to the location removal and modifications of all photovoltaic installations if conflicts may appear in other sections of the zoning bylaws for the town of East Long Meadow the criteria set forth in this article 10 take precedence subsection 450-1201 take installations proposed to be constructed after the effective date of this article this article also pertains to physical modifications that materially alter the type configuration or size of these installations or related equipment projects cannot be prohibited but can be reasonably regulated by the planning board for the purpose of zoning Conformity and the health and safety of the public subsection 450 death 10.3 definitions as used in this article the following term shall have the meanings indicated round mounted photovoltaic installation is a photovoltaic installation that is structurally mounted on the ground and is not mounted on a roof or other previously existing structure large scale ground mounted photovoltaic installation is a ground mounted photo Vol take installation that occupies 32,000 Square ft or more of surface area of solar panels surface area is the total area covered by the footprint of the photovoltaic installation definition medium scale ground mounted photovoltaic installation a ground mounted photovoltaic installation that occupies more than 2,100 square fet but less than 32,000 Square ft of surface area of solar panels surface area is the total area covered by the footprint of the photovoltaic installation parking canopy photovoltaic installation a photovoltaic installation that is mounted to a parking canopy structure which is more than 972 square feet in footprint and covering at least six parking spaces PV a method of generating electrical power by converting solar radiation into direct current electricity using semiconductors that exhibit the photovoltaic effect photovoltaic power generation employs solar panels composed of solar cells containing a photovoltaic material materials presently used for photovoltaics include monocrystalline silicone poly crystalline silicone amorphous silicone cadmium uh iide and copper indium gallium selenite sulfide photovoltaic array C ground mounted photovoltaic installations okay page two continuing with terms definitions photovoltaic installation a solar energy system that converts solar energy directly into electricity through an arrangement of pH tag panels rated name plate capacity the maximum rated output of electrical power production of the commercial photovoltaic installation in direct current DC roof mounted photovoltaic installation a photovoltaic system that is structurally mounted to the roof parentheses solid roof and not an awning material parenthesis of a building which includes residential dwellings commercial DW building buildings I'm sorry garages or any other accessory building structure roof-mounted photovoltaic installations do not include photoal take installations mounted to parking canopies parentheses or similar structures and parentheses small scale ground mounted photo take installation a ground mount Ed photovoltaic installation that occupies 2100 Square ft or less of surface area of solar panels surface area is the total area covered by the footprint of the photovoltaic installation solar energy radiant energy received from the Sun that can be collected in the form of heat or light by a solar energy system zoning enforcement Authority the building commissioner or an appointed designate is charged with enforcing all zoning bylaws of East Meadow subsection 450-1048 roof mounted photovoltaic installations are exempt from the site plan review requirements such installation shall be designed in a manner which minimizes reflection and or glare to the street or public right of way B no roof mounted photable take installation shall be construed installed or modified without first obtaining a building permit from The Building Commissioner subsection 450-1515 exempt from the site plan review requirement but shall adhere to the following design and operation standards one the construction and operation of all smallscale ground-mounted photovoltaic installations shall be consistent with all applicable local state and federal requirements including but not limited to all applicable safety construction electrical and Communications requirements two no small kale scale ground mounted photo voltaic installation shall be constructed installed or modified as provided in this section without first obtaining a building permit from The Building Commissioner three at a minimum vegetative buffers must be added to screen the length of the photoal take installation and 50% of the total height the photovoltaic installation including all accessories and pertinent structures shall be designed to minimize visual impacts including preserving natural vegetation to the maximum extent possible blending in equipment with the surroundings and adding vegetative buffers to provide an effective visual barrier from adjacent adjacent roads and ab buding Residential Properties regardless of the developmental status the sighting shall be such that the view of the photov voltaic installations from locations off site shall be minimal all small scale ground mounted photoal take installations shall be fenced hey four if installed in the same parcel as an existing residential dwelling all smallscale ground mounted photovoltaic installations shall be considered an accessory use and structure to the principal use and must adhere to the setback specified in chapter 450 attachment 2 table 3-2 of the code for the town of East lto section 45010 gener requirements for medium and large scale ground-mounted and parking canopy photovoltaic installations the following requirements relate to medium and large scale ground mounted and parking canopy photovoltaic installations a compliance with laws bylaws and regulations the construction and operation of medium or large scale ground mounted and parking canopy photovoltaic installations shall be consistent with all applicable local state and federal requirements including but not limited to all applicable safety construction electrical and Communications requirements all buildings and fixtures forming part of a photo voltaic installation shall be constructed in accordance with the specific criteria set forth herein B building permits and inspections a building permit is required after approval of the planning board for all medium or large scale ground mounted and parking canopy photovoltaic installations to be constructed installed or modified as provided in this article C the application for a site plan review for a medium or large scale ground mounted and parking canopy photovoltaic installation must be accompanied by the fee required for said site plane review site plan review and approv scale ground mounted and parking canopy photovoltaic installations shall be subject to site plan review and approval of the planning board as specified in article 9 of the zoning by laws for the town of Isam Meadow and in accordance with the additional requirements specified herein prior to construction installation or modification the plans and Maps the applicant is required to provide plans in accordance with Section 45094 all plans and Maps shall be prepared stamped and signed by a registered professional engineer licensed a practice in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts two required documents in addition to the requirements above the applicant shall provide the following documents a additional information on the site plans designed in accordance with 4 -9.4 One location of the ground mounted photovoltaic installation type of mounting devices access roads lighting ground equipment fencing electrical infrastructure and Associated equipment two plans for accessory buildings or other structures and location of details for all plans security measures hold on I'm just getting my page just okay oh sorry okay three all existing overhead util utility lines if applicable four blueprints or drawings of the photo Vol take installation signed by a registered professional engineer licensed to practice in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts showing the proposed layout of the system and any potential shading from nearby structures five one or three line electrical diagrams detailing the photovoltaic installation Associated components in electrical interconnection methods with all national electrical code compliant disconnects in overcurrent devices six documentation of the major system components to be used included including the PB panels mounting system and inverter seven name address and contact information for proposed system installer eight name address phone number and signature of the project proponent as well as the co-ops and prop prop owners if any and nine name contact information and signature of any agents representing the project component 10 trees with a dbh of 20 in or greater within project parcel Parcels shall be identified to determine tree loss along the inventorying of diseased or Hazard trees slated to be removed due to proposed development to move okay B documentation establishing legal access and control of the project site the project proponent shall submit documentation of actual or prospective ownership access and control of the project site sufficient to allow for Construction Construction and operation of the proposed photov voltaic installation to the planning board and the Building Commissioner C operation and maintenance plan the project prop proponent shall submit a plan to the planning board for the operation and maintenance of the ground mounted photovoltaic installation which shall include measur for maintaining safe access to the installation storm water controls as well as general procedures for operational maintenance of the installation D zoning District designation for the parcel Parcels of land compr comprising the project site submission of a copy of a zoning map with the parcel Parcels identified is suitable for this purpose e description of financial assurity that satisfy subsection 45010 uh 10.5 n f proof of liability insurance in the amount of 5 million or greater coverage G preconstruction Photos from the right of way and nearest of Butters these photos shall include tree coverage be invisible visualization of post construction photovoltaic installation development including perspectives from right of way nearest abing Properties or residential structures and tree coverage three the planning board May hire at the expense of the applicant Consultants to review the plan submitted if it determines independent expert review is appropriate for the interest of the neighborhood Andor the community in such event the planning board shall elect an expert to perform the review the applicant shall pay the estimated cost of set expert to the town collector Treasurer prior to any review being undertaken no site plan shall be approved until the total cost of said review has been paid by the applicant four the planning board May wave the submittal of various required documents for cause established in the site plan review record and its written finding that the documents are not necessary for the planning board to perform the review set forth herein F utility notification no Grid in intert photovoltaic installation shall be constructed until written evidence has been given to the planning board that the utility company that operates the electric grid where the installation is to be located has been informed of the photovoltaic installation owners or operators intent to install an interconnection of distributed generation offord systems are exempt from this requirement G area dimensional and density requirements one setbacks medium and large scale ground mounted and parking canop canopy photo Volta volt voltaic installation front side and rear setback shall be as follows a front yard the front yard shall have a depth that is consistent with the existing requirements of the district where it is located B sidey yard each sidey yard shall have a depth that is consistent with the existing requirements of the district where it is located unless said site is within or buts a residential district or residence where such a lot is within or ABS a residential D District or residence the sidey yard shall not be less than 50 feet see also subsection 450-1515 such a lot is within or ABS a residential district or a residence the rear yard shall not be less than 50 ft see also subsection 450-1515 photovoltaic installations the height will be limited to 20 feet H buffer strips one for medium and large scale ground mounted and parking canopy photovoltaic installations within rebutting a residential district or a residence the 50 Foot setback for either side or rear yards shall consist of 25 ft of a landscaped buffer said buffer is to consist of planting a minimum of 6 feet in height and planting and staggered to fill that 25t buffer area and keep keep the arrays from view year round two every abing property should be visually screened from the project area through any one or combination of the following location distance planning existing vegetation and fencing not to exceed 6 ft in height one upper uh upper tendent structure all oper tenant structure uh to to medium and large scale ground-mounted and parking canopy photovoltaic installation shall be subject to the accessory regulations concerning the bulk of the bulk and height of structures lot area setbacks and open space parking and building coverage requirements for the district in which it is to be located all such opportun structures including but not limited to equipment shelters equipment shelters storage facilities Transformers and substations shall be architecturally compatible with each other structure should be hidden from view by vegetation or and or joined or clustered to avoid adverse visual impacts and meet the zoning setback requirements of the specific District in which said structure is to be located J design and performance standards lighting lighting of photovoltaic photovoltaic installations shall comply with applicable laws lighting of the other parts of the installation such as oper tenant structures shall be limited to the required or safety and operational purposes and shall be shielded from abing properties lighting of the photovoltaic installation shall be directed downward and shall incorporate full cut off fixtures to reduce to reduce light pollution and shall not shine on a butting property any Lighting on the site will require the submission of a lighting plan and written approval from the planning board with recommendations from fire and police departments two signage signs at all ground mounted photovoltaic installation shall identify the owner and provide a 20 4our emergency contact phone number said signage should be should not exceed six square F feet and shall be visible at all times B photov Volt take installation shall not be used for displaying any advertising except for identification of the operator or person responsible for the photovoltaic installation three utility connections all utility connections from the photovoltaic installation shall be placed underground however depending on appropriate soil conditions shape and topography of the site in any requirements of the utility provider the applicant May seek relief from the requirement from the planning board electrical Transformers for utility interconnections may be above ground if required by the utility provider however placement of the site sh uh site must be approved as part of its existing standard procedures four roads access roads shall be constructed to minimize grading removal of stone walls or Street trees and minimize impacts of environmental or historic resources five hazardous materials hazardous materials stored used or generated on site shall not exceed the amount for very small quantity generator or of hazardous waste as defined by the D pursuant to mass D regulations 310 CMR 30 or any Amendment or replacement and shall meet all requirements of the DP D including storage of hazardous materials in a building with an impervious floor that is not adjacent to any floor drains prevent discharge to the outdoor environment if hazardous materials are utilized with a solar electric equipment then imper uh impervious containment areas capable of controlling any release to the environment and to prevent potential contamination of groundwater are required a full inspection reporting establishing compliance prepared by the fire department will be required before the site plan can be approved go ahead or else Johnn I got yeah uh six noise sound or noise levels may not exceed 50 DBA at the boundary of the property seven pollinator friendly certification no large scale scale photo vot installation shall be constructed until proof has been given to the planning board that the project proponent has obtained pollinator friendly certification for the photo voltaic installation through the UMass clean energy extension pollinator certification program at a minimum of the silver certification level or other equivalent certification as determined by the planning board this certification must be maintained throughout the life of the installation eight daytime visual distraction all ground mounted photov voltaic installations must be positioned to minimize glare on any residence or public way and must not create a visual obstruction on a public roadway such as blocking the sight line of intersections or creating blly curves the applicant should submit ratings and technical specifications for the solar panels to ensure minim minimal reflectivity K safety and environmental standards one Emergency Services the ground mounted Andor parking can be photo will take installation owner or operator shall provide a copy of the project summary electrical schematic and site plan to the East Long Meadow fire chief upon request from the East Long Meadow fire chief the owner or operator shall cooperate with local emergency services in developing an emergency response plan and provide a copy of to the fire department all means of means means of shutting down the photo will take installation shall be clearly marked the owner or operator shall identify a person responsible for public inquiries throughout the life of the installation two land clearing social social erosions and habitat impacts clearing of natural vegetation shall be limited to what is necessary for the construction operation and maintenance of the ground mounted or parking canopy photo will take installation or other otherwise prescribed by applicable laws regulations and bylaws including any requirements of the Conservation Commission three fencing a chainlink fence no more than one quarter solid shall be installed around the installation at the setback line with a gate that is locked at all times which lock is to be approved by the fire department the fire and police departments shall have 24-hour access to the site there shall be a gap along the bottom the fence that complies with UMass clean energy extension pollinator friendly certification program standards one I monitoring and maintenance photovoltaic or L excuse me photo monitoring and maintenance photov voltaic installation conditions the ground mounted or parking canopy photov voltaic installation owner or operated shall maintain the facility in good condition maintenance shall include but not be limited to painting structural repairs and integrity of security measures site access shall be maintained as required by the zoning bylaw and applicable laws the owner or operator shall be responsible for the cost of maintaining the photo will take installation any access road or roads in ground maintenance two modifications no building permit for modifications to a medium or large scale ground mounted or parking canopy photo Vol voltaic installation shall be issued after the issuance of the initial building permit unless an amended site plan for said modification has been approved by planning board three annual reporting the owner or operator of the installation shall submit an annual report which certifies compliance with requirements of this bylaw in the approved site plan including control of vegetation noise standards and adequacy of Road access the annual report shall also provide information on the maintenance completed during the year and the amount of electricity generated by the facility the report shall be submitted to the planning board fire chief Emergency Management director Building Commissioner and Conservation Commission if a Wetlands permit was issued no later than 45 days after the end of the calendar year failure to provide such an annual annual report will result in a fine of $100 per day until the said report is received M abandonment or decommissioning one removal requirements any ground mounted or parking canopy photo will take inst ation which has reached the end of its useful life or has been abandoned consistent with subsection B of the subsection shall be removed the owner or operator shall physically remove the installation no more than 90 days after the date of discontinued operations or determination of the Building Commissioner that the installation is not being actively used for Meaningful photo volic generation the owner operator shall notify the Building Commissioner with a copy to the planning board by certified mail of the proposed discontinued operations and plans for removal decommissioning shall consist of a physical removal of all ground mounted or parking canopy photovoltaic installations structures equipment security barriers and transmission lines from the site B disposal of all solid and hazardous waste in accordance with local state federal waste disposal regulations C St St stabilization or revation of the site is necessary to minimize erosion The Building Commissioner may allow the owner or operator to leave landscaping or design below grade foundations to minimize erosion and disruption to vegetation two abandonment absent notice of a proposed date of decommissioning or written notice of extenuating circumstances the photo Vol take installation shall be considered abandoned when it fails to operate for more than six months without the written consent of the planning board if the owner operator of the ground Mount or parking canopy or parking canopy photoal take installation fails to remove the installation in accordance with requirements of the section within 90 days of Abandonment or the proposed date of decommissioning the Town May seek an order from an appropriate Court to enter the property and physically remove the installation at a cost to the owner or operator of the installation and use the bond money being held and or place the municipal charges lean on the property for the cost of removal site restoration and all other related CLA costs including attorney fees if not covered by the cash Bond being held by the town Three Financial shity prior to any construction petitioners of large scale round mounted photov voltaic installations shall provide security and a cash bond to cover the cost of removal in the event the town must remove the installation and remediate the landscape in an amount determined to be reasonable by the planning for but in no extent to exceed more than 125% of the cost of removal in compliance with the additional requirements set forth here as agreed upon by the project proponent and the planning board or its final agent such shity will not be required for municipality or state owned facilities the project proponent shall submit a fully inclusive estimate of the cost associated with removal prepared by a qualified engineer which estimate must be reviewed and approved by the planning board work agent the amount shall include a mechanism for calculating increased removal costs due to inflation thank you John thank me and Genie we thought so too okay so now that we've done the second reading this is a public so anyone in the public that wishes to comment on this welome come for I see no one in the audience that wishes to make a public comment so I will close the public input portion of the public hearing and it is now up to the council if there's any questions comments deliberation and then any potential motions so before we make a motion through the chair um the only thing I saw was on page nine where currently it says number three Financial shity that three should be changed to the letter n and the financial shity should be involed and that would relate to um the reference which is on page four uh number e that says the description of financial C City that satisfies 450-1515 I didn't write the whole last part by the way that was already there thank you yeah I I have the sentiment that it was H well put together and definitely a lot of information in there the only thing that I saw I only caught it as we were just reading it was under 10.5 L which is on page eight we have annual reporting or it says failed to submit the report it would result in a fine of100 per day but I noticed that we don't have that in our corresponding chapter 500 Fe fine and penalty schedule let that go past I don't know if it's worth us adding that at the same time here since it is related to the same topic we're just adding the additional reference to the the fee that was outlined or the penalty that's outlined there which I think would be chap 50010 under planning and Community Development fines and penalties section B planning department another line to there for the annual report you missed but I don't know yeah I was just through the chair I was just thinking if that the $100 a day is I think that's comparable to the bylaw if you're in violation of a bylaw and I don't know call it out separately um it looks like our general bylaw violations are $200 we increases 200 well on the bright side eversource did get the report to us on time any fines so typically we're going to be looking at the bylaw fee schedule come June um what if we leave this with the recommendation that come June we add it to the fee schedule I'm good with that as long as we don't forget it got that Genie yeah good catch didn't even see it in Revenue it's all about revenue revenue yep catching on that I had does anyone have any I thought it read very well so then I guess maybe it was the readers given that I'll entertain a motion to close the public hearing so move second motion's been made and seconded to close the public hearing any further discussion Jen yes Kathy yes Anna yes yes Marilyn yes yes and John I'm a yes okay the public hearing is now closed Ralph would you like to make a motion to amend the spw that was presented change so do you want me to make a motion to approve it with the amendment sure either way um okay I make the motion to accept the proposed amendments to the town of East Long Meadow zoning bylaws relative to ground mounted photov voltaic installations including changing um on page nine number three to the letter n and making Financial City bold um and the rest as presented second motion's been made and seconded any further discussion seeing none Jim yes Kathy yes Anna yes I a yes Marin yes Ralph yes and John Amy yes great the first public here was abouts so this is a public hearing for the proposed zoning bylaw amendments related to the town conforming to the new affordable homes act allowing accessory dwelling units also known as adus this was continued from January 14 2025 the council members are Jim Liden Kathy Hill Hanna Jones myself Connor R Marilyn Richards yes Ralph Paige and John torsa I would ask theer to read the legal notice into the record East Long Meadow Town Council will hold a public hearing on January 14 at 6:15 p.m. media room of the Council on Aging located at 328 North Main Street pray first read of proposed amendments to the town of East slow zoning bylaws relative to the Amendments necessary for the town to conform to the new affordable homes act allowing accessory dwelling units adus by right amendments include the addition of subsection 450-5130 additional use dimensional and density regulations subsection 450-9444 111.2 terms defined table 3-1 schedule of use regulations and table 3-2 table of dimensional regulations of the East Lang zoning bylaw the public hearing may also be attended via Zoom webinar information relating to this bylaw is available for public inspection at the town clerk's office electronic version at the town's website for the council G quag great thank you Genie okay uh the quick summation Anna would you like to give an overview from the meting matter subcommittee where we left off uh sure we met last week and I think was that our second meeting on it no that was our first meeting first first meeting yeah because our first reading was a couple weeks ago um I think we're pretty much um close to finalizing it just had a couple like we just had to clean it up a little bit and other than that I think the content was pretty it didn't change much right maybe a couple I think it was the definition of what was it gross Flor FL area yeah and was there one more uh I think the rest of it that I recall and then we just cleaning up some references consistency of AD adus versus yeah accessory dwelling units but we're meeting this week so we'll hopefully have it for you guys in a couple weeks right so given that we since this is a public hearing it'll be open to the public now if anyone wishes to make a comment but then I don't believe we're equipped to fully vote on this at this time and we'll continue it to our next meeting ending finally so if there's anyone in the audience you're welcome to make a public comment at this point I see no one online or in the audience so I will close the public input portion of this hearing it's up to the council if there's any are we going to close the public inut or just vote to continue it again till the next meeting the public hearing portion that way there gives if someone comes at the next meeting any adjustments they'll have a chance to speak then bring it back to the board yeah we're not closing the public hearing but just for tonight's purpose just just clarification yes um so if there's any questions or comments that the council has otherwise I would entertain a motion to continue it until our next meeting on February 11 I move to continue the public hearing with the proposed amendments to the town of East small Meadow zoning bylaws relative to the Amendments necessary for the town to conform to the new affordable homes act allowing accessory dwelling units adus to February 11 20 2 at 6:30 second it's been made in seconded to continue any further discussion seeing none Jim yes Kathy yes Anna yes I'm a yes yes Ralph yes and John I'm a yes okay we will continue that our next thanks Rob thank you rob thank you rob under orders of the day we have the acceptance safety equipment Grant in the amount of 19 $1,000 is there a motion I'll make a motion I make a motion to accept the firefighter safety equipment Grant in the amount of $199,000 for Massachusetts General Law chapter 44 section 53a second motion made in seconded any further discussion seeing none Jim yes Kathy yes Anna yes I yes Marilyn yes R yes and John I'm a yes we have next up the acceptance of the Community one stop for growth Community planning grant for $70,000 I make a motion to accept the community OneStop for growth Community planning Grant in the amount of $70,000 per Massachusetts General Law chapter 44 section 53a second motion May been seconded any further discussion seeing none Jim yes Kathy yes Anna yes yes Marilyn yes Ralph yes and John great then we have next up accepting the complete streets funding program Grant in the amount of 46,9 76 I uh I make a motion to accept the complete streets funding program Grant in the amount of $446,900 General Law chapter 44 section 53a so I think made executive any further discussion none Jim yes Kathy yes Anna yes M yes Marilyn Ralph yes and John I'm a yes all of those are great news so yeah thank you excellent coming and next we have uh authorizing the town manager uh to enter into a contract with Motorola Solutions for the body warant I just provide a quick update yeah this was uh again the the everything's covered and it wasn't really a five-year contract it was more of five years of service uh but just to play it safe we thought it would be a good idea to have your permission to do so and I the contracts with you have the all the paperwork in okay anyone have any questions on that yeah your time frame Tom in terms of like uh rolling it out and being fully equipped uh I believe I was insistent on this agenda because it's I think February 4th I think they will be on site uh next week oh okay yep that's great such a good and I'm assuming there's training and all types of stuff yeah they they'll they they'll run through the whole the whole game that's awesome sounds great hey if there's no other questions I'll approve I motion to approve the town manager to authorize a contract with Mo roller solutions to support bodyw warn cameras for a period which exceeds three years per Massachusetts General Law chapter 30b section 12 second motion made and seconded any further discussion being none Jim yes Kathy yes Anna yes I'm yes Marilyn yes Ralph yes and John and I'm a yes great thank you thank you Tom next we have approval of minutes I make a motion to approve the January 14 2025 Open Session minutes second option made it seconded any further discussion seeing none Jim yes Kathy yes yesam yes Marilyn yes Ralph yes and John yes great executive session minutes I make a motion to approve the January 14th 2025 executive session minutes second made and seconded any further discussion seeing none yes Kathy yes Anna yes I a yes Marilyn yesal yes and John yes hey the minutes are approved y we have no old business uh under new business the only item we have are action items so for our next meeting we have the three CPC public hearings we will have our continued Adu bylaw public hearing we'll have our planning board joint meeting to discuss the Centertown District to help get the council and planning board aligned on what questions or comments or direction we might like to see and then School uh the school will be on our February 25th meeting I thought they were on the 11th okay and thank you I will try to add pending space that contract transparency topic either to February 25th or our first meeting in March somewhere around there and then at our next meeting I'll also have the bylaw Review Committee appointment announcements for anyone that submitted their interest to me that's everything that I'm aware of anyone think I miss all right yeah that point is there a motion to adjourn so moved second motion made in seconded any further discussion nothing Jim yes Kathy yes Anna yes I a yes Marilyn yes Ralph yes John yes have a great night everyone hey we are joined at thank you