Also
in attendance were the Assistant Town Attorney Mrs. VanEmburgh, Chief Blue,
Town Engineer Mr. Glass, Town Planner Mr. Hamilton, Mr. Al Bond Economic
Development Coordinator and Mrs. Kathy Ruf for the Town Clerk.
At
APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF MAY 31, JULY 5 AND
Upon motion by Mr. Jensen
seconded by Ms. Scott-Taylor and carried unanimously, minutes of the meetings
were approved as written.
MS. ELIZABETH LUCAS TO ADDRESS COUNCIL REGARDING FIRE
SIREN
Ms. Elizabeth Lucas,
The President of the Council
referred Ms. Lucas’ request to the Fire Board for their consideration at their
August 15 meeting at
Mr. Jensen updated on
department activities and advised that SHA is working on the signaling near the
new substation.
MEMO FROM MAYOR WILLEY REGARDING APPOINTMENTS TO
BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
Upon motion by Ms.
Scott-Taylor seconded by Mr. Jensen and carried unanimously, the Mayor’s
appointment of Mr. Andy Cheezum to the Talbot County Housing Board and Ms.
Sindy Reyes appointment to the Affordable Housing Board was approved.
ITEMS BY CHIEF OF POLICE
Chief Blue asked for approval
for the following Public Assembly permits:
Upon motion by Mr. Jensen
seconded by Ms. Scott-Taylor and carried unanimously, the Public Assembly
permits were approved.
Chief Blue also asked for an
amendment for the previously approved Health Fair at
Upon motion by Ms.
Scott-Taylor seconded by Mr. Wendowski, approval for sound amplification at the
Health Fair was approved.
ITEMS BY THE TOWN ENGINEER
The Town Engineer stated that
they will paint the curb areas to allow parking to occur at the old gas plant
parking area on
ITEMS BY THE TOWN PLANNER
The Planning and Zoning
Commission will review three projects at their upcoming meeting.
ITEMS BY THE TOWN ATTORNEY
Ms. Van Emburgh, Assistant
Town Attorney requested an Executive Session for the advice of Counsel.
PRESENTATION OF PLANNING DEPARTMENT’S ANNUAL REPORT BY
MR. LYNN B. THOMAS, LONG RANGE PLANNER
Mr. Thomas summarized the
Planning Department’s Annual Report to the Maryland Department of Planning as
required by Article 66B stating that the Board of Appeals reviewed 29 applications,
the Historic District Commission reviewed 80 agenda items and the Planning and
Zoning Commission had 66 agenda items with 346 residential permits issued last
year.
The President of the Council
directed Mr. Thomas to make the report available on the Town’s website, the
Planning Department and the
Mr. Wendowski asked that a
year-to-date activity report with last year comparisons be distributed to the
Council members from the Planning Department.
The President of the Council
encouraged those interested to attend the next scheduled Zoning Ordinance
Workshop on July 27 at
PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER THE APPLICATION OF REMCO
PROPERTIES, LLC (the owner/developer) FOR AN AMENDMENT TO THEIR 51.5 ACRES PMR
PROJECT WHICH WAS APPROVED
At
Mr. Hamilton, the Town
Planner discussed the history of the project. He stated that the applicant is
back with a request to amend the shopping center to do a slight change to the
site plan. Mr. Hamilton stated that there is a slight increase to the square
footage of retail space. The Planning Commission did review this revised site
plan and unanimously recommended approval of this amendment which changes the
retail footprint of the project by about 20,000 square feet which is in store B
that is adjacent to the major retail store that they are adding. Also, the
hotel has moved up to a site up above with access from the
Mr. Sandy McAllister, Miles
and Stockbridge was present representing the applicant. He introduced the principals of Remco and
their traffic consultant. Mr. McAllister reiterated that this request was expected
and actually put into the original ordinance.
Mr. Michael Klemmer discussed
the new visual entrance and changes to the site plan. He stated that there is a
strong pedestrian connection and a real strong connection right from the
center. Mr. Klemmer stated that the hotel has also been moved. He stated that
the structure is a mix of textures but mostly brick.
Mr. Tom Alspach, Talbot
Preservation Alliance, asked if the hotel is a part of the PMR.
Mr. Klemmer stated that this
proposal takes the hotel out of the approved PMR.
Mr. Alspach stated that TPA
supports the project and has engaged with serious negotiations with the
developer. He discussed the 55 acres of permanent green space easement on the
entire parcel that will never be developed and will be part of the greenbelt
around
Mr. Alspach discussed the
future of traffic impact on
Mr. Alspach stated that he
will have Dr. Scott present the traffic information to the Council at a later
date.
Mr. Alspach asked if there is
a way to get some assurance that this project will look like what we are seeing
during this presentation. He asked where this application goes from here.
Mr. McAllister asked that the
record reflect how much the applicants appreciate TPA’s active support for the
project and that they continue to look forward to working together. He stated
that they are available should any questions arise after tonight’s
presentation.
The President of the Council
stated that the official public record would be kept open until the end of
business on Friday of this week. He asked that a consensus be taken at the
second meeting in August due to the fact that he will be absent from the August
1 meeting and he would like to participate.
The President of the Council
closed the public hearing at
Mr. Glass, Town Engineer,
requested that he be a part of any other presentation of the program regarding
traffic to look at input variables and the process of what data is going into
the program.
REQUEST FROM MS. JANE BOLLMAN, CHAIRMAN, FESTIVAL OF
TREES TO HANG A BANNER ADVERTISING THE FESTIVAL OF TREES ACROSS THE FRONT OF
THE TIDEWATER INN NOVEMBER 1 TO NOVEMBER 29
Upon motion by Mr. Jensen
seconded by Mr. Wendowski and carried unanimously, permission was granted to
hang a banner across the front of the Tidewater Inn November 1 through November
29.
RESOLUTION NO. 5857 AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR AND TOWN
CLERK TO OPEN/CLOSE ROUTINE BANK ACCOUNTS DURING THE TERM OF THE CURRENT MAYOR
Upon motion by Mr. Wendowski
seconded by Mr. Jensen and carried unanimously, Resolution No. 5857 was
approved following a roll call vote.
APPROVAL OF INVOICES TOTALING $478,835.67
Upon motion by Mr. Jensen
seconded by Mr. Wendowski and carried unanimously, invoices totaling
$478,835.67 were approved for payment.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
At
ADJOURNMENT
At 9:00 p.m., upon motion by
Ms. Scott-Taylor seconded by Mr. Wendowski and carried unanimously, the
regularly scheduled council meeting was adjourned.
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