Simsbury, CT - Zoning Commission Minutes

ZONING COMMISSION MINUTES

FEBRUARY 5, 2007

I. CALL TO ORDER

Austin Barney, Chairman, called the regular meeting of the Simsbury Zoning Commission to order at timeMinute15Hour197:15 p.m. at the Eno Memorial Hall Auditorium. The following members were present: Patricia Askham, Alexis Popik and Alternate Madeleine Gilkey. Also in attendance were Hiram Peck, Director of Planning, Lois Laczko, Commission Clerk, and other interested parties.

II. APPOINTMENT OF ALTERNATES

Commissioner Popik moved to have Commissioner Askham serve as Secretary for this meeting. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Gilkey.

Chairman Barney appointed Commissioner Gilkey to serve for Commissioner Delehanty.

Commissioner Askham read the Call.

III. PRESENTATION, DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE VOTE

a. Application of Thomas E. Vincent, Town of placeCitySimsbury – Owner, Gerard G. Toner, Director of Culture Parks and Recreation Town of Simsbury – Agent, for a Site Plan Amendment for the installation of a Challenge Course on property located at the Simsbury Farms Recreation Complex, 100 Old Farms Road. (continued from meeting of dateYear2006Day18Month12December 18, 2006)

Mr. Toner currently at a budget meeting. This item will be heard after items IIIa/IVa.

IV. PUBLIC HEARING(s)

a. Application of Phyllis Hoffman, Owner, T. J. Donohue, Attorney, Killian & Donohue, LLC, Agent for a Zone Change from R-40 to B-3 on property located at Hoffman Plaza West at 36, Albany Turnpike and addressStreet395 West Mountain Road.

Chairman Barney opened the Public Hearing. He requested that the applicant do their public hearing and presentation together.

T. J. Donohue, Attorney, spoke on behalf of this application. Attorney Donohue gave the affidavit for the sign posting to the clerk. He said that they began the process last November and have been to seven (7) town meetings. They are pleased with the interface with each agency and also that the Planning Commission has sent them to the Zoning Commission with a unanimous favorable reference. Attorney Donohue said that the draft Plan of Conservation and Development focuses specifically on areas that relate to what is before this commission this evening. He said that access management strategies are of paramount importance especially in any redevelopment of the Hoffman Auto property and that they have focused directly on an access management strategy which protects the homes on addressStreetWest Mountain Road. It will restrict for 25 years any commercial access through any of the properties owned by the Hoffman’s between Route 44 and addressStreetWest Mountain Road.

Attorney Donohue said that this is a 25-year old facility that they want to bring to state of the art condition with four of the premier retail companies in the nation. It will be a major reinvestment in placeCitySimsbury. They are proposing a plan that is designed to enhance and protect all the buffers and areas to the east and north.

Attorney Donohue introduced the professionals who will present information at this meeting. Ray Kehrhan will present the feasibility and economic impact study, Tom Daly (Milone & MacBroom) will review the maps and

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plans, Mark Arigoni (Landscape Architect – Milone & MacBroom) will present the site design details, Rich Kaiser will review the building design and elevations and Mark Vertucci (Fuss & O’Neill) will present the traffic impacts and considerations.

Attorney Donohue said that this record should include their application and submission materials from dateYear2006Day11Month12December 11, 2006.

Ray Kehrhan, Professor and Assistant Director of the Center for Real Estate Urban Economic Studies at the placePlaceTypeUniversity of PlaceNameConnecticut. He said that he has been asked to do a feasibility and economic impact study regarding the 13 ½ acre site on Route 44. Mr. Kehrhan said that currently this site has four buildings with 44,000 square feet of space. The proposed redevelopment and modernization would include the construction and reconstruction of 115,000 square feet. He said that he did an economic viability study by examining the market for the products and services that are going to be offered at this location. Within a 20-minute drive time of the location there are existing retail sales for new and used cars of $800,000,000 and also within a 20-minute drive time for repairs and maintenance there are existing sales in the market place of $35,500,000. Mr. Kehrhan said that typically consumers will drive up to 20 minutes to buy or have an automobile maintained. He said that this properties location on Route 44/Route 167 is ideally located to support access to the market for buying and servicing automobiles. He also said that 68% of the retail dollars for this market comes from communities outside the Town of placeCitySimsbury. Mr. Kehrhan said a Best Buy is included in the redevelopment. Currently placeCitySimsbury has eight (8) businesses with 24 employees that provide goods and services for the home electronics industry. Within a twenty minute drive time of this location there is $202,000,000 in sales for the electronics industry with 77% of those dollars coming from outside the community of placeCitySimsbury. Mr. Kehrhan said that Munson’s Chocolate will still be located at this site and will continue to do well. He said that this properties location being along Route 44 (placeCityCanton down through placeCitySimsbury and placeAvon) is considered a premier retail location. This is one of the top three or four retail corridors within the state.

Mr. Kehrhan also discussed property tax revenues. He said that in 2005 the personal property assessment for this location was $590,000 with the real property assessment at $4,353,000. Taxes paid - $174,000. He said that with the proposed modernization/redevelopment the assessment for real property will be approximately $12,900,000 and projected personal property assessment at $1.2 million. This would generate tax revenues to the Town of placeCitySimsbury of $523,000. This would be a net gain of $350,000. Mr. Kehrhan said that there is also a one time additional fees that is associated with the new construction and redevelopment of $224,000.

Mr. Kehrhan said that there would also be a physical region economic impact because of an increase in employment. Best Buy will hire about 60 full time employees and Hoffman will require an additional 30 employees with their expansion. He said that the industry goes by a multiplier effect of 1.45 jobs created for every service and retail job. The regional employment will grow by roughly 120 jobs. The location of the property in the southwest corridor will capture the retail trade for the Route 44 corridor.

Attorney Donohue said that Mr. Kehrhan has provided a report electronically to Hiram Peck.

Tom Daly, Professional Engineer, Milone & MacBroom reviewed an aerial photograph (2004) of the site. The map also showed the borders for the Town’s of placeAvon and placeCityCanton, Simsbury Commons/Stop and Shop and McDonald’s. He showed on the plan where the B-3 zoning area and residential R-40 zone is located. The portion of the property that is subject of the zone change is located in the rear portion of the Hoffman property and the Markie property, which is about 5.7 acres in size. Mr. Daly described the rear portion of the Hoffman property as two areas. One area is a relatively flat with little vegetation that is used for storm water collection and is also a flat sandy soil area. The other area is located in the northwest corner of the site has very steep topography and mature vegetation such as evergreen trees. He said that the Markie property has a single family house located on it The property is wooded except for the subject home and driveway. Mr. Daly showed the commissioners a rendering of the zone change. There is a 50-foot right of way located in between the two subject parcels which connects to R-40 zone area located to the west.

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Attorney Donohue discussed the modification of the conservation easement. He explained to the commissioners that when this property was originally developed there was a 30-year conservation easement (about 22 years ago). They want to extend the term of the easement for another 25-years and change the area of coverage (larger than present coverage). They will impose, by use of the conservation easement restriction, an absolute prohibition of thru traffic from addressStreetWest Mountain Road to Route 44 and Route 44 to addressStreetWest Mountain Road.

Tom Daly, Milone & MacBroom, reviewed a conservation easement map showing existing conditions. He described the existing conservation easement with three different components. First there is a 40-50 wide conservation easement that runs along addressStreetWest Mountain Road. This was planted with dense vegetation (pine trees and white pines) when it was originally approved. There is also a central area location that has no mature trees. Storm water collects there and this comes off of the existing site. He showed the location of a small wetlands pocket. The third component is a finger that goes off to the west (towards placeCityCanton town line). This goes up the fairly steep slope and is heavily vegetated with pine trees. Mr. Daly said that as part of this application they are proposing to modify the conservation easement. He showed the commission members an aerial photograph map of the conservation easement with the proposed conditions. As part of the modifications they will be maintaining the width and character of the existing conservation easement along addressStreetWest Mountain Road. He showed on the aerial the area that they are planning to relocate, which is the storm water collection area. They are proposing a half moon type of conservation easement on the Markie property. This will wrap around the residential properties to the east, west and north and will provide a thick corridor and buffering to addressStreetWest Mountain Road. He said that they are also providing a 50-foot wide conservation easement to the north. One of the benefits of relocating the conservation easement is that they are going out of the area that does not have much in mature vegetation to an area on the Markie property that is pretty densely wooded and is a well established vegetated area. Mr. Daly said another benefit of the Markie site is that it is topographically higher. It almost acts as a natural berm. He showed the commissioners a cross section that showed the proposed parking and the proposed detention basin.

Mark Vertucci, Senior Traffic Engineer, Fuss & O’Neill spoke on the traffic impact study. He said that they have also prepared the STC application for this project. A full traffic study has been given to the town staff. He said that the purpose of the traffic study is to assess any traffic impacts. They did traffic counts during the peak hours on Route 44 at the site driveway intersection and also at the intersection with Route 167. The counts are projected out to the 2008 design year (2% per year growth factor recommended by DOT). This study included the expansion of the existing Honda and placeCityToyota dealerships, the new Nissan dealership and the new Best Buy store. The auto body shop, Munson’s and McDonalds are all adjacent to the site, but are existing and will not generate any new traffic. Mr. Vertucci said that they also reviewed accident data for Route 44 and measured site lines from the existing driveway. He said that this site has excellent access onto Route 44 at the existing signalized intersection. This will be the only access to the site and from a traffic operations perspective Route 44 at Hoffman driveway will continue to operate at an acceptable level of service during peak hours after the proposed expansion takes place. He said that Route 44 at the Route 167 intersection already experiences delays during peak hours with the existing conditions. However, the additional Hoffman traffic will not significantly increase that delay. There will not be any reduction in the level of service and no significant increase in queue lengths. Mr. Vertucci said that he had reviewed accident data at the Hoffman driveway and Route 44 and found that there were only 5 accidents per year on average. No abnormal accident patterns were identified at that intersection. He also reviewed site distances. There is excellent site distance from the existing driveway going up the hill towards placeCityCanton, which exceeds DOT criteria. He said if you look towards the east along McDonald’s site frontage there is a row of bushes which limits site distance. He is recommending that these bushes be removed to provide adequate site distance and also recommending that Hoffman relocate an existing “Do Not Block Intersection” sign. It now faces the Munson driveway and they are recommending that this be relocated to the McDonald’s driveway.

Mr. Vertucci said that they have received some preliminary feed back on their STC application from DOT. The drainage group has no comments on the project. The Planning Department has approved their traffic volumes

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and has no further comments. The Traffic Department is still working on their comments, but asked that they consider adding a left turn lane on Route 44 east bound into the site and also have commented on the proximity of the internal site driveway where Best Buy ties in with the main off and access driveway. The Traffic Department would like the applicant to consider moving it back a little bit. They also mentioned replacing the existing out dated microwave detector at the traffic signal at the driveway. Also mentioned was trimming the bushes in front of McDonald’s.

Chairman Barney asked what is the study area that was included. Mr. Vertucci said that the study area was Route 44 and the immediate vicinity of the site. He said that they looked at the Hoffman intersection of Route 44 as well as the Route 44 intersection with Route 167. Chairman Barney asked what is the span of the area. Mr. Vertucci said the distance was about 750-feet along Route 44. Chairman Barney asked about the proposed Lowe’s going in just past Hoffman’s signal. Mr. Vertucci said that the study includes background developments of other proposed, pending or approved applications, but there was nothing submitted on Lowe’s at the time of the traffic study. Chairman Barney said that he would like him to go online and take the standard published national material and tell them what the traffic impact of that Lowe’s will be.

Tom Daly, Milone & MacBroom, discussed the existing conditions at the site. He showed an aerial photograph of the site. The overall parcel area is 17.5 acres. He showed where the main entrance driveway off Route 44 is located with the first building on the right the placeCityToyota dealership and the second building on the right the Honda dealership. On the left side at the front is the Munson’s building and the rear portion is Hoffman Auto body. He briefly discussed the elevations saying that the overall site is relatively flat (elevation of about 300), but the back of the site is about 20-feet lower than the front portion (Rte 44). The only steep topography is located in the northwest corner of the site with an elevation of about 360.

Mr. Daly said that there are two wetland pockets located on the site. They have received wetlands approval. He showed on the plan where there are small wetlands on the border towards placeCityCanton that receives storm water runoff from Route 44 and the wetlands across the street and the other wetland located behind the Honda dealership. Both wetland pockets combined add up to less than 5,000 square feet. Chairman Barney asked Mr. Daly if the wetlands located on the north side of Route 44 flows to the south or to the west. Mr. Daly said that this flows to the north and explained to the commission how the runoff eventually discharges to an existing storm water detention basin.

Mark Arigoni, Milone & MacBroom, Landscape Architect, said that the actual entrance to the site will stay the same, but will be enhanced not only by the concrete and pavement system, but also the landscaping. Signage will also be enhanced. He said that it is important to remember that this is a redevelopment site, not only a development site. They will be upgrading what exists at this site, not just creating new. Mr. Arigoni said that one of the main components of the site plan was enlarging and expanding upon the existing buildings. The existing Hoffman Toyota building, which is to be expanded, will be going from an 18,000 square foot building to approximately a 26,000 square foot building. He showed the location on the site plan. Munson’s will be attached to a new Best Buy building. The Best Buy will be approximately 30,000 square feet with Munson’s about 3,000 square feet. The proposed new building that will house the Nissan Dealership will be approximately 36,000 square feet and two stories.

Mr. Arigoni said that they want to enhance and create an entrance drive that will get people easily through the site, as it now can be confusing. He said that there will be new tree plantings to create a focal point on entering. Mr. Arigoni said that car dealerships today want to separate their service departments from their showrooms. There will be visitor and inventory parking spaces in front of Hoffman Toyota, but a separate access drive just to the Hoffman Toyota service area. He showed this on the site plan. Mr. Arigoni also showed where the entrance to Best Buy and Munson’s would be located and also their parking area.

Mr. Arigoni discussed the site lighting plan and site landscaping plan. The site will be enhanced with new tree plantings with shade trees and ornamental flowering trees along the access driveway. There will also be a grass

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landscape buffer in between the parking areas. Mr. Arigoni submitted to the commission a package showing the site lights that they have selected. He said that all lighting will be directed back onto the site. The plan shows where the light fixtures will be placed on the site. Mr. Arigoni showed the commissioners a circulation plan for both vehicular and pedestrian traffic.

Mr. Arigoni spoke of the existing berm and buffer along addressStreetWest Mountain Road. He said that they plan to go in and clear the dead branches on the bottom. They would then go back in and plant some underscoring vegetation. This would enhance the existing buffer. Commissioner Popik asked what the time frame would be from clearing to filling the gap. Mr. Arigoni responded that he hopes this would be done simultaneously.

Rich Kaiser, Clohessy, Kaiser & Harris, Architect, said that there will be a positive impact architecturally on this site. He showed a photograph of the existing site. The Munson’s, and also the buildings behind it, were all built approximately 30 years ago. The placeCityToyota and Honda buildings were built about 20 years ago. Mr. Kaiser said that the current showrooms are functionally obsolete for the manufacturers that now have those franchises. The body shops and storage buildings will also be replaced. Mr. Kaiser gave a descriptive presentation on each building to the commission members also saying that the size of the Best Buy building will be approximately 30,000 square feet, Munson’s store will be 3,000 square feet, placeCityToyota will be 38,000 square feet, and Nissan will be 36,000 square feet.

Chairman Barney asked what the status is of the 50-foot right of way. Attorney Donohue said that the 50-foot right of way is owned by a neighbor and they will continue to have dialogue with the neighbor.

Chairman Barney opened the public hearing to public comment.

Jennifer Giannini, addressStreet5 Bushy Hill Lane, distributed material on Trichloroethylene (TCE) and pollution prevention options fact sheets for industry. She said that TCE is commonly used in auto body and maintenance shops like those operating at Hoffman. It is used as a solvent to remove grease from metal parts and used as a paint remover. TCE ingested can cause liver and kidney damage, brain and nervous systems abnormalities, etc. It can also cause miscarriages and also could be a possible carcinogen such as childhood leukemia. She said that children and seniors are especially vulnerable to its toxic effects. Mrs. Giannini said that TCE was found in June of 2005 at over four times the drinking water standard in their water supply. They are very concerned about any future health concerns to their children and themselves. She said that they have invested considerable time and money to prove that there is TCE at their residence and that Hoffman Enterprises is the likely source. In November of 2006 DEP did additional sampling and now feel that they have enough evidence to investigate Hoffman. Mrs. Giannini said that rezoning will give the Hoffman’s the opportunity to relocate this contamination and make their pursuit and responsibility even more difficult than it has already been. Also rezoning may also create the possibility of introducing more contaminant into soils.

Commissioner Popik asked if there was going to be any upgrading of the systems for discarding the various solvents, etc. that are used in auto repair. Attorney Donohue said that the ground water system will be fully compliant. Mr. Daly said that his presentation spoke of surface water and storm water quality issues. He said that they will be required to obtain a DEP permit as part of the expansion process of the dealerships. Per code, all the water from each area of the buildings where the solvents, etc. are kept must go to sanitary sewer. It must go through an oil water separator, which captures the oil before it gets to the sewer. It has to be certified by a mechanical or civil engineer saying that it is installed properly, and Hoffman cannot get their permit from DEP until they get this certification.

Marnie Gantner, addressStreet382 West Mountain Road, discussed the buffer. She said that in 25 years that area has never been cleaned up. There is a mess of garbage, bottles, etc. Ms. Gantner said that now (after 25 years) Hoffman is talking about cleaning it up. She wondered if this would be only cleaned up this one time and again left for 25 years. She expressed concern on the location of the parking lot. This will be in her parent’s back yard and what

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they would have to look at. Ms. Gantner also asked about the creation of jobs and where they expect to get employees as other retail establishments are not able to get help.

Paul Flynn, addressStreet375 West Mountain Road, said that he is concerned about traffic issues on addressStreetWest Mountain Road. Another dealership will put more test drivers out onto the road as that is where they test drive the cars. He feels that traffic issues on addressStreetWest Mountain Road have been overlooked. He also discussed pollution and lighting issues also saying that there will be depreciation of properties on addressStreetWest Mountain Road. Mr. Flynn said that he opposes the changing of the Markie property to commercial use.

David Sherwood, Attorney, representing Betty Fiora (abutter and owner of property separating the Hoffman and the Markie property) had coverage questions. He asked why a special exception was not required when the proposed coverage is greater than 40% maximum allowed in a B-3 Zone. Attorney Sherwood said that he has tried to put together a history of the development of this property. He started with 1974 when a Special Exception was allowed for automotive use and briefly discussed his findings up to 1998. Attorney Sherwood gave the commission a set of the complete history of the Hoffman properties. He said that he feels that there are three areas of inconsistency in the historical situation. 1) Does the existing Hoffman development consist of the B-3 property or the B-3 property and the R-40 property? 2) How many parking spaces does Hoffman have now? 3) What is the percentage of impervious coverage in the existing Hoffman development? He also said that he would like to know when the 40% coverage regulation was adopted in placeCitySimsbury (between 1984 – 1990)? What is the acreage (according to Hoffman’s Civil Engineers) of the existing Hoffman B-3 land and Hoffman’s R-40 land? What is the square footage of the impervious coverage of the existing Hoffman property and also the square footage of the proposed impervious coverage? What is the number of parking spaces in the existing Hoffman development and what is the number of parking spaces in the proposed Hoffman development? Also, with respect to the proposed development are they treating the inventory storage areas as parking? Attorney Sherwood said that he hopes between now and the continuation of the public hearing something can be worked out that will be acceptable to everyone as this is important to the neighbor and the Hoffman’s.

Alison Swain, addressStreet245 Stratton Brook Road, also President of the Southwest Homeowner’s Association. She previously lived at addressStreet521 Bushy Hill Road (across from Stop & Shop). She said that berms do not work. They do not work against trash, pollution or traffic. Mrs. Swain said that she is against the zone change because this would extend a business zone further into a residential zone. She said that the property will decline as Hoffman will not make any improvements. She asked why they would grant a limited time period easement on this property as other developers in town have to grant part of their acreage to open space so then it would be permanently protected. Mrs. Swain asked if the existing catch basins located on the property will be tested prior to any work being done on the property? She expressed concern on the aquifer being compromised. She said that the Town is spending $11,000,000 to purchase the Ethel Walker property and a big part of this was to protect the aquifers. She asked how the sediment chambers that will be installed on the property are to be maintained? Mrs. Swain read a letter to the commission from John Slauenwhite, Vice President, Southwest Homeowners Association. He said that the proposed zone change in its present state is illegal. The letter states that in 1983 Robert Taylor negotiated a buffer zone separating the Hoffman property from the Dunbar property (now Markie) This buffer would exist in perpetuity and was extended from the west boundary of Hoffman, east to Bushy Hill Lane inclusive and north to the Dunbar property. The Southwest Homeowners Association is not in favor of the expansion of Hoffman into residential areas.

Ted Carey, addressStreet372 West Mountain Road, said that he feels that they are trying to put a square peg into a round hole. The property is already maxed out and the traffic patterns will only get worse. He also asked how they can have zero light with their lighting project? The light will not just stay within their boundaries. Mr. Carey said that in other towns, such as placeWest Hartford, auto dealerships are moving away into commercial areas, not buying residential areas and encroaching on the residents. Mr. Carey said that the berm area is filthy and Hoffman does not take care of their property. He said that he does not feel the commission should go any further on this. He has a lot of strong reservations.

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Joan Coe, addressStreet26 Whitcomb Drive, discussed how as land masses are becoming fewer and fewer you get to a point where you are going to infect neighborhoods. People who come to placeCitySimsbury and bought homes have expectations of not having commercial development in their area. Mrs. Coe said that commercial development that is already there and zoned as such is appropriate, but when you start moving that commercial development closer to homes you are affecting the quality of life, and that is not what placeCitySimsbury residents expect. Mrs. Coe said that this is not fair as these people have made a lifetime investment into their homes. Their investment is being ruined. She said that when you start changing zones you need to look at the entire picture. She also discussed contamination as this is a serious problem mentioning that her own well had been contaminated by the Culbro tobacco fields. She said that before anything is done to any land in town you have to be sure that there is no contamination at the site. If contamination is found, it should be addressed and cleaned up. This is a quality of life issue and it is dangerous. Mrs. Coe also asked about the trucks that would be coming into the Best Buy Store. Where would they be coming in?

Harold Bender, addressStreet6 Maureen Drive, Southwest Homeowners Association, objects to the commercial use of residential land and to a parking lot placed on the Markie property. Mr. Bender gave a power point presentation showing and discussing, among other concerns, the incomplete landscaping of the berm and lack of maintenance, pollution problems such as TCE and brake fluid in the ground water, parking lot runoff, broken and missing curbs, broken pavement, construction debris, garbage and tires being dumped. Mr. Bender said that what they are looking for is to end the commercial streak permanently, and establish a permanent conservation easement. He asked are they on an aquifer or not? He asked that car wrecks and garbage be contained. Mr. Bender said that fire access was first mentioned today. He also asked about truck deliveries and when car deliveries will be made (day or night?). He said that along with some of the considerations and Hoffman’s track record he would like to see a bond posted that can be used to remedy some of the problems.

Chairman Barney said that this public hearing will be kept open and continued. He said that many questions have been raised that need to be addressed. He would also like a letter from the Fire Marshal.

V. PRESENTATION(s)

a. Application of Phyllis Hoffman, Owner, T. J. Donohue, Attorney, Killian & Donohue, LLC, Agent, for a Site Plan Approval for redevelopment on property located at Hoffman Plaza West at 28 – 44 Albany Turnpike, 36 Albany Turnpike and 395 West Mountain Road.

This item was presented with Item IVa.

III. PRESENTATION, DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE VOTE

Gerard Toner, Director of Culture Parks and Recreation, spoke on behalf of this application for a Challenge Course. This would be located at the Simsbury Farms Recreation Complex behind the houses at 82 and 86 Old Farms Road. The course would consist of a climbing wall, and utility type poles with a series of ropes attached to them. The course is used in recreation and education and also outdoor wilderness training. Mr. Toner said that they had applied for, and received, a grant for this course. The course is at an introductory level, but he feels that it is a worth while component and will compliment the other facilities at the Simsbury Farms Recreation Complex. Mr. Toner said this course can be used for any age and they have found that a lot of young people and adults that are involved with the course are often people that may not succeed or have satisfaction with traditional sport and games. From an educational standpoint youngsters do thrive and develop self esteem and leadership with a challenge course. Mr. Toner said that one of the concerns expressed at the last Zoning

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Commission meeting was the facility after hours. The placePlaceNameCulture PlaceTypeParks and Recreation Commission has unanimously endorsed this project, but do understand the concerns that Mr. Grace had expressed at the last Zoning Commission meeting and also at the placePlaceNameCulture PlaceTypeParks and Recreation meeting. This will be run just like they run any other facility and safety is the first and foremost concern. Mr. Toner said that he did talk to three other municipalities that have a challenge course to ask them about any after hour problems. Those municipalities have had minor vandalism. He said that they take most of the apparatus down at night. Mr. Toner said that they would operate this challenge course to the letter of (and within) every standard. He also mentioned that they do have staff from timeMinute0Hour77:00 a.m. through timeMinute0Hour0midnight during the week days. Also, the police do monitor and patrol the area. The area is also fairly visible. Mr. Toner mentioned that fencing is not a viable alternative, but lighting (such as a spot light) might accomplish the concerns mentioned.

Commissioner Askham moved to approve the application of Thomas E. Vincent, Town of Simsbury – Owner, Gerard G. Toner, Director of Culture Parks and Recreation Town of Simsbury – Agent, for a Site Plan Amendment for the installation of a Challenge Course on property located at the Simsbury Farms Recreation Complex, 100 Old Farms Road.. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Gilkey and passed unanimously.

VI. DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE VOTE

b. Application of Phyllis Hoffman, Owner, T. J. Donohue, Attorney, Killian & Donohue, LLC, Agent, for a Site Plan Approval for redevelopment on property located at Hoffman Plaza West at 28 – 44 Albany Turnpike, 36 Albany Turnpike and 395 West Mountain Road.

VII. APPROVAL OF MINTUES of dateYear2006Day20Month11November 20, 2006 and dateYear2006Day18Month12December 18, 2006

Commissioner Popik moved to approve, as amended, the Minutes of November 20, 2006. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Gilkey and passed unanimously.

Commissioner Popik moved to approve, as presented, the Minutes of December 18, 2006. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Gilkey and passed unanimously.

VIII. DISCUSSION

IX. STAFF REPORTS

a. Report from Zoning Enforcement Officer, Howard Beach.

b. Report from Planning Director, Hiram Peck.

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Commissioner Askham moved to adjourn the meeting at timeMinute30Hour2210:30 p.m. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Popik and passed unanimously.

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Patricia Askham, Secretary