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News/Events - Meeting Minutes

MEMBERS PRESENT: Dorothy Cook, Chairman; Paul Scott; Tom Nash; Arthur Wood; John Murphy. ALSO PRESENT: Susan Phippen, MBTA Ombudsman; Bill Limbacher, Planning Board Chairman.

1. MEETING CALLED TO ORDER. Chairman Dorothy Cook called the meeting to order at 7:05 P.M. in the copy/coffee room of the Town Hall.

2. ACCEPTANCE OF MINUTES. On a MOTION by Mr. Scott, SECONDED by Mr. Murphy, the Minutes of the Meeting of September 14, 2005 were approved with amendments (4-0). The Minutes were unanimously accepted as amended on a MOTION by Mr. Scott, SECONDED by Mr. Murphy (4-0).

3. REVIEW OF CORRESPONDENCE. Ms. Cook read a memo from Susan Phippen to the Commission on Disabilities that was cc’ed to the TRRC, regarding accessible parking at the MBTA parking lots.

4. NEW PLANS SUBMITTED FOR REVIEW.

A) THREE COMMON DRIVEWAY SPECIAL PERMIT APPLICATIONS/LOTS 1-8 CJC HWY. Mr. Scott said that the TRRC has no jurisdiction over curb cuts on the State highway (Route 3A). Mr. Murphy said the applicant should make sure the hammerheads are long enough to safely accommodate access and egress of emergency vehicles. Mr. Scott said that there is a site distance issue at the intersection of the driveways and Route 3A. Ms. Cook said that part of the application deals with this issue. Mr. Scott dictated the following memo to be sent to the Planning Board: The TRRC has reviewed the plans for the above permit applications, and we have the following comments: we question the layout of the hammerhead in terms of adequacy and size for turning of emergency vehicles. We also point out that permits will be required from MassHighway for the curb cuts. We strongly suggest the applicant obtain these permits prior to Planning Board approval of the common driveways. All were in agreement to send this memo as dictated by Mr. Scott.

5. OLD BUSINESS.

A) TRAFFIC ISSUES/N. SCITUATE AND GREENBUSH RAIL STATIONS. Ms. Phippen said that she took the N. Scituate sidewalks issue to the Board of Selectmen and that although they agreed that continuing the sidewalks beyond the MBTA limits would be useful, this has not been included in the Streetscapes plan. Regarding the First Parish Road/Elm Street intersection, she said that this is at final design; regarding queuing from Elm Street to the grade crossing on First Parish Road, she said that she doubts whether the queuing will ever go as far as that; and the intersection is outside the limit of the MBTA work. Mr. Scott said that there is a conflict in the approach in a westerly direction with those traveling in the easterly direction. He said that this may present a problem in the future, and if so we can look at this again at that time. He said the current intersection design dates back 40 years, and the Town now has much more traffic than it did then. There was a discussion about a gas tank on Elm Street. Ms. Phippen also went over road closure conditions, as per her memo. She discussed closures of the grade crossing section of First Parish Road; Hollett Street; and North Scituate. Mr. Murphy asked about the Greenbush roundabout; Ms. Phippen said that design is still at 60 percent, and that the Town has not had any correspondence on this since April. She said that the roundabout will take 12 weeks to construct. Mr. Scott asked if there is any correspondence confirming that the roundabout and the North Scituate/Route 3A intersection will be complete before the trains begin to run. She said that there is not; and that passenger service is expected to begin in April 2007. Mr. Scott asked that the TRRC see copies of the correspondence between the Town and the secretaries of transportation in preparation for putting this matter on the November TRRC agenda: Discussion: concerns alterations Route 3A at Greenbush and Henry Turner Bailey Road. Mr. Scott suggested banding together with other communities where Route 3A usage will be affected by the T. Ms. Phippen said that in Cohasset the train station empties onto Route 3A and this will not be signalized. B) 52 LADDS WAY. Mr. Scott said that the hearing is now closed. Mr. Scott had some comments about curb cuts and parking.

6. NEW BUSINESS.

A) ACCESSORY DWELLING SPECIAL PERMIT/330 TILDEN ROAD. This application arrived after the agenda was set. The TRRC reviewed these plans. It was agreed to send a memo to the Planning Board as follows: The TRRC has reviewed this plan and it does not show detail of the offstreet parking other than the two-car garage. Assuming the parking is in front of the garage, we recommend construction of a hammerhead on the right side of the driveway to facilitate a safer exit onto Tilden Road, as the TRRC is concerned about the site distance at the intersection of the driveway and Tilden Road.

In other new business, Mr. Nash asked if there is an emergency evacuation plan for the Town. There was a brief discussion on this subject. Ms. Cook asked if there was ever a stop sign on the telephone pole opposite the Hatherly School driveway. No one knew. There was a discussion about crossing guards, and whether they should be trained to direct traffic.

7. ADJOURNMENT. The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, November 1, 2005. A workshop on updating the Traffic Schedules is planned for Tuesday, October 18, 2005. On a MOTION by Mr. Scott, SECONDED by Mr. Murphy, the meeting was adjourned at 9:05 P.M.

Respectfully submitted,

Jean Martin