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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWPO201500044 Correspondence WPO VSMP 2015-05-26 PHONE(434)2934251 (434)9770205 FAX(434)2965220 ROUDABUSH,GALE&ASSOC.,INC. INFO@ROUDABUSH.COM LAND SURVEYING A PROFESSIONAL CORPORATION 914 MONTICELLO ROAD ENGINEERING CHARLOTTESVILLE.VIRGINIA 22902 LAND PLANNING J.THOMASGALE.LS. WILLIAM S.ROUDABUSH.L S. MARILYNN R.GALE.LS. WLLIAM J.LEDBETTER.LS EDWARD D.CAMPBELL III.L.S. May 26, 2015 Albemarle County—Community Development Attn: Johnathan Newberry, John Anderson 401 McIntire Road Charlottesville, VA 22902 RE: Bundoran Farms Lot H-8D & H-8R BLA—Summary of Stream Buffer Discussion Gentlemen: It was requested that there be some sort of summary of the ongoing discussion as to reasons why it should be permitted to encroach into a portion of the stream buffer easement with an access road for the existing two lots. Reference should be made to plats by Roudabush, Gale & Assoc. that show the proposed new 30' Access Easement as it would leave Hightop Drive by way of an existing farm entrance, and an existing farm stream crossing. From there the Easement follows a path walked and marked in the field by NA Bundoran Farms and a County Representative on May 8th, 2015. With the exception of the existing stream crossing, at no point will the new drive way road bed or improvements get within 50' of the actual stream. The construction of the drive is intended to comply all County requirements with regards to a Mitigation Plan. What follows is an excerpt of the discussions,and reasons as to why NA Bundoran Farms feels this would be the best course of action, and the least detrimental to the property. On May 1, Josh Woodson General Manager for NA Bundoran Farms wrote: John[Anderson], Thank you for your time on the phone earlier this week. As requested, I am writing to you as a means to explain the proposed driveway on Lot H-08D and how it fits within Bundoran Farm and also how it will have the least amount of environmental impact. To begin, we are proposing a driveway that will provide access to 2 homesites (H-08R and H-08D) within a private pasture within the woodland of Bundoran Farm. The proposed road is to enter into within the 100'stream buffer with a replanting mitigation plan of a 2:1 ratio of planting versus disturbance for site stabilization. The reason that we are proposing the driveway route to enter within the 100'stream buffer is because we feel it will provide the least amount of impact environmentally. To go outside of the 100'buffer with the driveway, we would need to disturb a lot more earth with cutting,filling, and grading in order to provide a reasonable driveway access which would also require more protocols to ensure further site stabilization for E&S measures. More mature tree removal would also be required which would take away from the conservation efforts of Bundoran Farm's vision for sustainable development (see further explanation below). There is also a conflict with the approved septic field for Lot H-08D. If we go outside of the 100' buffer we would be required to move the septic drainfield and we don't foresee an alternative area for this without also falling into the 100'stream buffer as well. As a community, Bundoran Farm's concept and vision was founded on conservation in order to ensure that the agrarian landscape and agricultural components would remain intact in perpetuity. The way we were able to guarantee this was to blanket 90% of the 2,300 acres in an agricultural easement and forest use easement to avoid disrupting the beautiful landscape that we have been afforded in this part of the county. To further this, when planning this community we carefully placed a 2 acre homesite on each individual lot as a maximum limit of disturbance for a homesite development so that landscape, trees, and agricultural pastures would continue to be a part of the viewshed for not only the community but also from the public perspective. This is to include driveway and road alignments in order to not disturb the landscape and ensure that it would not negatively impact agrarian pastures used for rotational grazing of livestock and other agricultural uses. Because of the increased environmental disturbance and site stabilization, conflicts of existing septic field, and potential disruption of a pastoral field for agricultural purposes we would ask that you please approve our proposed driveway alignment within the 100' stream buffer and allow us to plant a 2:1 mitigation plan for proper site stabilization. Thanks for your consideration. Following the on-site visit with John Anderson on May 8; Josh Woodson wrote: Thanks again for your time this afternoon to review the driveway alignment on Lot H- 08D at Bundoran Farm. Per our conversation (and to add to the points sent last week in the below email chain) I am summarizing our conversation on site per your request. Again, we will submit the revised plat with the agreed upon proposed driveway and we will make sure to include the shaded mitigation plan on that same plat for reference. As a summary, We were able to determine that the driveway alignment within the 100' buffer would provide the least amount of disturbance to the environment and protected easement area. To add to the points in the below email I have added the topics discussed today in the following bullet points. • The proposed drive alignment will start with the closest edge of the drive approximately 67'from the stream and approximately 77'to the furthest edge of the driveway from the stream. • We were able to determine onsite today that with this proposed alignment within the 100'stream buffer, we would only be removing one mature poplar tree as opposed to removing 10 mature trees going outside of the 100' stream buffer for the driveway alignment. • The proposed driveway within the 100' buffer will not impact the approved septic field whereas going outside of the 100'buffer will go right into the septic field. • Staying inside of the 100'buffer would also cause less disruption to the pastoral areas that are used as a part of the agricultural easement within Bundoran Farm. Part of Bundoran Farm's conservation efforts are to maintain 90% of the 2,300 acres in an agricultural easement and the driveway placement outside of the 100' buffer would restrict the use of that pasture for agricultural purposes. • Another part of Bundoran Farm's conservation efforts are to limit the amount of visible disturbance of roads and construction within the 2,300 acres and by allowing the driveway alignment within the 100'stream buffer, we will be able to use more of the trees to visually buffer the driveway from the view of the road and it will tuck into the landscape more effectively. • We will utilize the 2:1 mitigation plan to further screen the driveway from the homesite view and community road view within the stream buffer and that will also provide twice the amount of stabilization than we disturbed within the buffer. Thanks again John. 1 think with the above bullet points along with the below topics discussed in my previous email that we are taking the path of least resistance and will cause less disturbance on the environment and protected agricultural easement area. Please let me know if you need anything else. To which John Anderson responded: After meeting on-site 8-May, driveway alignment discussed in the field may be approved. Ref. Sec. 17-604.A.(i); 17-601.B./D. Sec. 17401 Management of stream buffer, Each stream buffer required to be retained or established pursuant to section 17-600 shall be managed as provided herein: A. Target vegetative cover. The prekned vegetative cover in a stream buffer shall be a native riparian forest with ground cover,shrub,and tree canopy layers. B_ When evaluating a development design under subsection(C), when native vegetation may be isturbed or removed under subsection(D)and sections 17-603 and 17-604,and when stream buffers arc maintained under subsection(E),native vegetation shall be preserved to the fullest extent possible. C_ Incorporation into development design.Each stream buffer shall be incorporated into the design of the development by keeping stream buffers in open or natural spaces,and out of residential lots or areas of active use,to the fullest extent possible. D. Retaining native vegetation; disturbance or removal. In order to maintain the runoff, erosion, nonpoint source pollution control,stream temperature,and ecological values of the stream buffer, no native vegetation within the stream buffer shall be disturbed or removed,regardless of the size of the area affected,except to maintain the stream buffer as provided - Kion E that native vegetation or engage in any activity,authorized by sect E. Maintaining the stream buffer. Each stream buffer shall be maintained in as natural a condition as possible. Sec. 17404 Types of structures, improvements wad activities which may be allowed is a stream buffer by program authority. Structures, improvements and activities may be authorized by the administrator in the circumstances described below,provided that a mitigation plan satisfying,the requirements of section 17-406,is submitted to,and approved,by the administrator. A. Within the landward 50 horizontal feet. On a lot within the fifty(50)horizontal feet of a stream buffer that is the most landward (furthest from the if the structures, improvements or activities either:(i)would be for necessary infrastructure (ii) would be on a lot that is within a water supply protection arm where t e stream u er protects an intermittent stream and the lot is within a development area.In all cases under this subsection,any new building site and sewage disposal system shall be located outside of the stream buffer. Various emails detail impacts of alignment that avoids the stream buffer entirely. Avoiding the buffer entirely destroys irreplaceable mature native vegetation, and, in my view, the revised alignment discussed 8-May presents less impact to the environment while preserving forested/agricultural characteristics vital to Bundoran Farm (easements/covenants). Please submit a revised plat to Johnathan Newberry, Plan Review Coordinator. He will distribute to Engineering for review comment. Plat review may yield comments unrelated to stream buffer. As favor, collect points distributed across email into a single document. Please reference: site visit, Area (SF) of stream buffer impact (drives Mitigation requirements), alternatives considered (minimization efforts), and Lot numbers. A single document will support request. I appreciate your patience, the care and attention given to resource preservation efforts at Bundoran Farm. To Follow up on the above comments: -Please see the plat submitted to Johnathan Newberry for distribution. Total square footage of the new 30' access easement that falls within the 100' Stream Buffer is 16,267 Sq.Ft. However it is not intended in any way shape or form to grade/rework the entire 30' strip to create the drive. Assuming a 10' drive way width that follows on grade — there will only be disturbed 5,745 Sq.Ft. for the drive way bed. It is safe to assume that there may be some additional grading beyond just the drive bed, but this route was selected to help minimize impacts and grading, and the actual end disturbance area will be substantially closer to the 5,745 Sq.Ft. As a further point of reference — the existing 30' Access Easement (approved and recorded in DB 3789, Pg. 5) that this BLA is attempting to vacate and replace cuts a 9,824 Sq.Ft. swath through the 100' Stream Buffer in much steeper terrain. Please let me know if you require further documentation. Thank you, Clint Harmon, L.S. Roudabush, Gale&Assoc.