Central Avenue Subdivision Headed For Fifth Public Hearing
The Falmouth Planning Board wants to close the chapter on the Santos subdivision off of Central Avenue, but even after four public hearings some things remain unclear.
The issue that continuously reared its head during the first three hearings was an easement enjoyed by the applicant’s cousins—the Johnson family—that crosses the property from Central Avenue to Bournes Pond. There were some disputes over where exactly it should go, how wide it should be, and whether it should be marked, but prior to the start of its fourth public hearing for the subdivision on Tuesday, October 12, vice chairman James Fox made a definitive statement on behalf of the board.
“We have spent an inordinate amount of time trying to listen to everybody and talk about this,” he said. “But through the process it’s become clear that this has already been adjudicated, been to court, and decided. And nothing this board can do can override what’s already been done by the court. So as much as everybody’s tried to influence us and try to do things, we can’t do anything.”
Chairwoman Charlotte Harris added that the board is awaiting additional information and comments from both the project engineer and the town engineer.
Joseph Johnson, abutter and cousin of the applicant, raised another concern for the board’s consideration. He said stormwater runoff from the Santos property flows south, directly onto his property. This concern had been raised briefly in previous meetings but was never fully discussed because information was missing.
Mr. Johnson is concerned that the flow of runoff directed toward his property will cause a problem during storm conditions. He previously said that he felt it was unfair to direct the flow of water south toward his property, noting that town property borders the Santos subdivision to the north.
“We already contended that we were accepting of the four other waivers,” Mr. Johnson said, referring to plans for the project that have already been discussed. “But I’d like to hear [the engineer] present [the plans] again and if he has not fixed that problem with spillage over onto the Johnson property, we would be very unhappy and it wouldn’t be the end of the story.”
Ms. Harris said that the board will be taking no further action until it has heard from the engineers, as comments from the town engineer were submitted earlier that morning.
Kevin Klauer, an attorney representing the applicant, suggested that any outstanding questions are largely a concern for the engineers to sort out among themselves, and that nothing more can be done until more information is available.
“It seems to me to be really an issue that can be sorted between the engineers,” he said. “And to Mr. Johnson’s point—the engineering referral and at the last hearing, it was discussed that the runoff to the Johnson property was actually reduced from what exists currently. They’re reducing the existing runoff to less than what it is today.”
Mr. Johnson asked Mr. Klauer to clarify what he meant by this point but was cut off by the board, which voted to continue the matter until the next hearing on Tuesday, October 26.
“In order to really express our concerns we may have to consult an attorney, so that we can be on equal footing,” Mr. Johnson said. “We don’t really think that this is a fair hearing. Thank you very much.”