Having rendered an Order of Conditions during its July 27 public meeting, the Marion Conservation Commission finally put to rest the contentious matter of John and Pamela Lees’ plans to replace the old house and boathouse at 49 Water Street with a new residence and swimming pool.
The public hearing having been closed at the July 13 meeting so that no new information could be legally introduced during the July 27 proceedings, Chairman Jeff Doubrava presented his fellow commissioners a thorough Order of Conditions that with tweaks, the membership would unanimously vote to issue.
Point by point, Doubrava’s draft addressed the following findings pursuant to the state’s Wetlands Protection Act: Land Containing Shellfish, Fisheries, Storm Damage Prevention, Prevention of Pollution, Protection of Wildlife Habitat and Flood Control.
Special Conditions addressed permitted alterations of Coastal Beaches (105 square feet), Coastal Bank (190 linear feet), Salt Marshes (110 square feet) and Land Subject to Coastal Storm Flowage (37,215 square feet), but Doubrava emphasized in another section of the Order of Conditions the following stipulations: “All driveways, walkways, patios and pool surrounds shall be permeable – this is a continuing condition” and that all materials are to be removed from the coastal beach and salt marsh at the end of each day.
Under Appendix A, Doubrava itemized the following applicable interests of the Wetlands Protection Act: land containing shellfish, fisheries, storm-damage prevention, prevention of pollution and protection of wildlife habitat.
Part of the Order of Conditions is that it be written into the contractor’s contract, along with notification from the applicant to the commission of when work begins and the name of the contractor.
Under Special Conditions, the applicant shall have on site in the case of emergency erosion a minimum of 50 additional feet of straw wattle or siltation fencing or 15 hay bales and sufficient stakes. All erosion controls shall remain in place until a certificate of compliance is issued.
Under Runoff, former Chairman Shaun Walsh added to Doubrava’s motion that roof runoff shall discharge into drywells by writing in that sump pumps must discharge into drywells or the roof-runoff system.
Under Continuing Conditions, Doubrava edited No. 45 to read: “Discharge of water from the swimming pool into or adjacent to any resource area is strictly prohibited. The pool shall be plumbed in such a way as to prevent any discharge of pool water to jurisdictional wetlands resource areas.”
The commissioners were also agreeable to Walsh’s proposal of a more exact description of the scope of work listed in the Order of Conditions: “To demolish the existing house and attached garage and boathouse and to construct a single-family dwelling with attached garage, boathouse, and in-ground swimming pool, to repair the existing seawall and other associated site work.”
Despite an impassioned plea from land donor Ted Brainard, the commission voted a positive determination of applicability for the Sippican Lands Trust’s RDA application seeking permission to have volunteers dig a ditch to move ocean water in an effort to mitigate extensive phragmites in Brainard Marsh.
Jim Bride of the SLT, along with Ted and Liz Brainard who donated the land, said the plan is to reopen a ditch by hand to allow for increased ocean-water interchange to mitigate the extensive phragmites at the site. The ditch is to be hand dug by volunteers.
Bride said the northern portion of Brainard Marsh has healthy, native-species growth and salt-marsh habitat. Bride said the SLT is trying to replicate those conditions in the southern section. Bride said the dig would be 3- to 4-feet wide and 4-feet down, “maybe more depending on what we encounter.”
“It looks like a losing battle,” said Walsh, who was torn in the decision, stressing his support for a project that would reduce the amount of phragmites. “The thing is I don’t see how we could approve this under negative determination of applicability. This would involve coastal beach … this is just inside what they would consider the mouth of the Weweantic River.”
“So you’ve got a number of resource areas here. The work will result in an alteration. It is not a judgment on whether the work is beneficial, but you’re digging in (a resource area). … really requires a more, in-depth permit package. … I’m never one to put folks through process if there is no value in it, but in this case … I’d really love to see this area restored. But the proper application is a Notice of Intent.”
Michael Plummer, who is taking over the stewardship committee for the SLT told the commissioners that while he agrees the method would not completely solve the problem, he said the ditch is not a constant tidal but would help combat the phragmites as part of a multipronged approach. “We don’t want to go crazy; we want to restore and fight as best as possible,” said Plummer.
Clarifying the need for the NOI, Doubrava suggested the SLT request an ongoing ability to maintain the channel for a three-year period as part of an Order of Conditions that would presumably be the result of a satisfactory NOI.
Assing suggested working with Mosquito Control. Bride said the SLT has been working with Mosquito Control. “They have helped us with both (the northern and southern) sites,” said Bride.
Walsh suggested the SLT work with a wetlands scientist.
Ted Brainard spoke about the proposed technique being proven in that area, where he said he grew up. “What’s upsetting me is, here we have an opportunity …” He said the commission was “looking at it in the microscopic view, you should be looking at it in the holistic view. … I really hope that you change your attitude a little bit.”
Brainard called the proposed plan “a win-win for everybody.”
The public hearing was closed, and the vote rendered the positive determination necessitating a Notice of Intent filing.
In a continued public hearing, the commission voted to issue Alexander, Matthew, Martina Sanders Urquhart an Order of Conditions after Matt Leone of Schneider, Davignon & Leone, Inc. stood in for Davignon to summarize revisions to the applicants’ Notice of Intent to build a single-family home on Cross Neck Road.
Buttressed by a favorable letter from Natural Heritage and the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife indicating that the plan will not result in a prohibitive take of state-listed rare species, nor will it adversely affect the habitat, Leone noted the following changes:
The house has been relocated away from the wetlands (Flag B5 was 67 feet to the deck/porch wraparound and is now 78 feet away); the garage entrance was redesigned from right-side entry to front (reduces paved driveway area by 23 percent); expanded the distance between the proposed limit of work to the “no touch” zone from 15 to 25 feet; per request added a row of boulders to be placed permanently along the limit of work; moved pool discharge outside the buffer zone toward the northerly property line; redesigned the westerly side of the house to a walkout basement, resulting in a dramatic reduction in fill on that side and placed erosion-control blankets along the 2-to-1 slope on the westerly side towards the wetlands and coming away from the pool.
“I feel like it’s a really great improvement for the resource area and the wildlife on the site,” said commissioner Emil Assing. Walsh seconded Assing’s comments, calling the changes “excellent site improvements.” Conservation Agent Doug Guey-Lee said the changes addressed all of the town’s concerns.
In drafting the Order of Conditions, Walsh added straw wattle to hay bales for erosion control. Under Continuing Conditions, he added to a permanent, split-rail-type fence “or a row of boulders (minimum 2 feet in diameter) at 15 feet on center.”
The commissioners voted a Negative Box 2 Determination of Applicability for the RDA filed by Millie and Paul Seeberg for the eradication of phragmites at 13 Edgewater Lane.
The commission issued a Negative Box 2 and 3 determination for the Seebergs’ RDA seeking permission to drill a well on their driveway at 13 Edgewater Lane.
The Marion Conservation Commission was scheduled to meet on August 10 and is scheduled to next meet on Wednesday, August 24, at 7:00 pm.
Marion Conservation Commission
By Mick Colageo