WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP ZONING COMMISSION MINUTES

February 20, 2007

The Washington Township Zoning Commission met in regular session on February 20, 2007 in the Meeting Room of Washington Township Government Center. Members of the Commission present were Mr. Rogers, Mr. Drain, Mrs. Zobrist, and Mr. Anderson. Mrs. Winwood was excused.

Call to order at 7:00 p.m.

The Pledge of Allegiance was recited.

Mr. Drain introduced and welcomed JoEllen Postle as Washington Township’s Development Services Director. Jesse Lightle, Washington Township Deputy Administrator, was also present and introduced.

MOTION – Mr. Anderson moved the minutes of November 21, 2006 be approved with modifications.

Motion seconded by Mrs. Zobrist.

VOTE - Mr. Rogers, yes; Mr. Drain, yes; Mrs. Zobrist, yes; Mr. Anderson, yes.

CASE Z-685B – Ferneding Investment Co., 5540 Far Hills Avenue

Request is for approval of a Planned Development Office 2 (PD-O2) second stage and final plan to redevelop an existing medical office building into an office building to accommodate an insurance company.

Mr. Rogers indicated he has had a business relationship with Ferneding Insurance for the last twenty years; however, Mr. Rogers feels he can be an impartial party in hearing the case and asked if there were any objections.

There were no objections to Mr. Rogers hearing the case.

Andy Ehrhart , Zoning & GIS Manager, presented the case.

Applicant represented by John Ferneding, 220 Ridgewood Avenue.

Mr. Rogers – Asked about the variance that was heard before the Board of Zoning Appeals.

Mr. Ehrhart – Variances for front and side yard setbacks and parking lot setback were granted.

Mr. Drain – Questioned the parking location and the east property line vegetation status, preservation and cleanup of same. Will they be able to keep the large pine tree if possible or will it be replaced with compact hedges?

Mr. Ehrhart – Noted that the buildings have no historical significance. Applicant has indicated that they will try to save the large pine tree.

Mr. Drain – Have the landscaping requirements been met?

Mr. Ehrhart – Yes, they meet the current requirements.

Mr. Drain – Would like to see mounding in the buffer on SR48.

Mr. Ehrhart – Stated that the Township’s SR48 sidewalk program would be significantly affected. The current change in grade would also make this difficult.

Mrs. Zobrist – Suggested the possibility of the buffer area being considered in the township’s sidewalk program, but no requirement for mound at this time.

Mr. Ehrhart – Indicated he would have the township’s engineering staff contact the developer when details of the sidewalk project are available.

The Board indicated they need to see a sample of the roof material that will be used. They also indicated that the basement plan is new information as well as the lighting.

Mr. Ferneding – Stated he has talked with Gary Huff, Township Administrator, regarding the sidewalk plan. They would like to maintain a safe line of sight for access onto the site. Mr. Ferneding was told that the project was on hold until late summer.

Mr. Ferneding – Met with the neighbors in October and discussed cleaning up the vegetation on the east property line.

Mr. Drain – Asked where trees will be added.

Mr. Ferneding – Showed which trees would be removed and indicated that conifers would be placed along the east property line. He assured the neighbors that there will be screening and the tree line on Manor Lane will stay in place.

Brian Smith, Architect, 1555 N. Euclid Avenue – Reviewed the plans for the roof and indicated that slate was too heavy and is cost prohibitive. He felt the synthetic slate, which requires membrane, is not time tested and may have water problems associated with it. The product proposed is an asphalt shingle which has the appearance of slate. Mr. Ferneding indicated the building will have casement windows with opening ability. Some will be fixed pane.

Mr. Anderson – Wanted clarification on the type of windows that will be used, whether they will be wood or metal.

Mr. Smith – Indicated the windows will be aluminum clad with either individual panes or mullions behind one pane of glass. They have not made a definite decision.

Mr. Anderson – Felt that the use of individual pieces of glass would have a better appearance.

Mr. Drain – Asked if the windows will have a grid appearance of if they will be a solid piece of glass.

Mr. Smith – The windows will have a grid design with divided lites either with mullions or true divided lites.

Mr. Ferneding – Anticipated approximately a dozen visitors per day to the building.

Mrs. Zobrist – Questioned the handicapped parking.

Mr. Ehrhart – Noted that handicapped parking will be addressed as part of the Montgomery County Building code regulation.

It was noted that there were not any comments from the fire department. Staff to follow up on the matter and confirm that they had no comments on the revised plan.

Mr. Anderson – Asked if the existing lights will be used and if they will cover the parking areas to the north and south?

Mr. Ferneding – The existing lights will be used on the north side. At this time, they have not made a decision regarding the south provision. They will need further study. He indicated there is no township requirement for lighting. He also indicated there is no light on the south side of the building; however, there will be motion detector lights on the perimeter of the building.

Mr. Drain – Asked for an overview of the landscape lighting.

Mr. Ferneding – Indicated the three-foot (3’) wall around the patio will have landscape lighting around the perimeter.

Mr. Rogers – Questioned if applicant will occupy the entire space of the building?

Mr. Ferneding – Yes. Currently they are able to occupy half of the space. They plan on utilizing the space for the business. The office will be open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday with an occasional Saturday.

Mr. Anderson – Will the building consist of real stone.

Mr. Smith – Yes, it will be cut stone. They have considered manufactured stone but the product did not seem to fit. The use of locally quarried stone is anticipated.

Mr. Drain – Noted that the plan details regarding the building materials are formalized and applicant will need to return before the Commission if these plans are changed.

Mr. Smith – Indicated they will not paint the stucco. They have reviewed the Portland cement stucco which has the color tints worked into the stucco. Mr. Smith reviewed the advantages of using hardy plank, which is a cement product, for the trim.

Mr. Drain – Questioned the type of signage to be used.

Mr. Ferneding – Indicated they were still working on the signage. The building does not have a sign on it and they would like to use a stone monument at the northwest corner of the site, which would be either internally or directly lit.

Mr. Ehrhart – Explained sign options. Mr. Ehrhart also noted the Commission can make general reference to compliance with the sign regulations.

Mr. Anderson – Asked about the chimneys and chimney pots, as well as gutters and downspouts.

Mr. Smith – Explained the gutters and downspouts will be commercial grade aluminum with a baked finish which will be a grey color. The chimney pots will be terra cotta with a traditional design seen on Tudors. The upper portion of the chimneys will be brick octagons with the bottoms being stone. The stone on the chimneys will be either buff or grey.

Citizens voicing concerns, questions and comments included: None.

Commission remarks, concerns and comments included:

Mrs. Zobrist – Felt it will be a gorgeous building.

Mr. Rogers – Agreed that this will be a great project.

Mr. Anderson – Indicated the building materials seem to be of high quality and feels the building will be true to the Tudor design.

Mr. Drain – Noted the drawings should be updated and the sign details should be worked out.

Mr. Anderson – Added that prior conditions should be met as well.

MOTION - Mr. Anderson moved in Case Z-685B to approve applicants request for approval of a Planned Development Office 2 (PD-O2) second stage and final plan to redevelop an existing medical office building into an office building to accommodate an insurance company, subject to: 1) changes as discussed to be incorporated on the drawings, including the signage reference; 2) staff comments; 3) previous comments and conditions from Case Z-685.

Motion seconded by Mr. Rogers.

VOTE - Mr. Rogers, yes; Mr. Drain, yes; Mrs. Zobrist, yes; Mr. Anderson, yes.

Case Z-685B approved with modifications.

In other business:

There was discussion and review of the upcoming Zoning Commission and Board of Trustees meeting schedules.

Zoning Resolution changes to Articles 1 through 4 which were recently approved by the Zoning Commission and the Board of Trustees were distributed to commission members.

Meeting adjourned at 8:20 p.m. A tape recording of this proceeding is on file in the Zoning Office.

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Harry Drain, Chairman

Washington Township Zoning Commission

ZC\Minutes\February 20, 2007