August 14, 2024 Planning Board Special Meeting Transcript - WEHI

38 (Pages 146 to 149)38 (Pages 146 to 149) Page 146 1 but my question was a little different. My question 2 was: Is it your responsibility as an architect to 3 consider the environmental impacts of your design 4 and to consider any harmful -- or mitigate any 5 harmful impacts there might be? 6 MR. APPEL: So my responsibilities are 7 to follow the laws, regulations, ordinances and all 8 applicable codes that govern the project, so that 9 is, you know, that's what I need to do, and that's a 10 minimum standard, not a -- so that's what I would be 11 looking at. 12 MS. BENNETT: Okay, understood. So 13 when you say "all the applicable laws," so 14 regulation, like the wetlands, the Protection of 15 Wetlands Act, that would be something that you 16 should consider if there were wetlands on the site. 17 MR. APPEL: And that -- that is 18 something that is under the -- other consultants 19 would be working on giving us that information. 20 MS. BENNETT: Are you saying that the 21 architect for the site who's designed the plan 22 should not be familiar with where the wetlands exist 23 -- 24 MR. APPEL: Of course -- 25 MS. BENNETT: -- and whether or not -- Page 148 1 MS. BENNETT: Understood. So your 2 wetlands expert, if they designated that the 3 wetlands on this site was of extraordinary resource 4 value, you would have to take into consideration the 5 setbacks; is that correct? 6 MR. APPEL: I would follow the -- the 7 regulations and metrics that they provide. 8 MS. BENNETT: Okay, and that includes 9 the setbacks, correct. 10 MR. APPEL: Of course. 11 MS. BENNETT: Okay. You think -- 12 CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Excuse me. Excuse 13 me one second, I'm sorry to interrupt but -- 14 MS. BENNETT: No problem. 15 CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: -- CME Associates, 16 our engineering firm, on their July 29, 2024 letter, 17 No. 15 describes the wetlands freshwater boundaries, 18 and the Planning Board has also engaged Wayne DeFeo 19 & Associates, who is an environmental consultant. 20 So there are and will be environmental information 21 available to the public. 22 MS. BENNETT: Okay, and I -- I'm sorry 23 to cut you off, Mr. Bagoff. So I will ask those 24 experts the questions that I have that is pertinent 25 to them, but I do believe that members of the public Page 147 1 MR. APPEL: Of course, I am, but I 2 don't delineate those wetlands, I am not the -- 3 MS. BENNETT: I understand. 4 MR. APPEL: --

nent 25 to them, but I do believe that members of the public Page 147 1 MR. APPEL: Of course, I am, but I 2 don't delineate those wetlands, I am not the -- 3 MS. BENNETT: I understand. 4 MR. APPEL: -- expert -- 5 MS. BENNETT: I understand. 6 MR. APPEL: The applicant hires 7 experts who do that professionally. 8 MS. BENNETT: I understand. But 9 knowing where the wetlands are delineated and 10 understanding the law on the wetlands, their 11 resource value, et cetera, that would impact your 12 design, right? Where you could design and build a 13 building, correct? 14 MR. APPEL: Well, the situation is 15 that there are various consultants that will work as 16 a team together -- 17 MS. BENNETT: Right. 18 MR. APPEL: -- that way -- 19 MS. BENNETT: Right. 20 MR. APPEL: -- you don't have this 21 tremendous overlap of responsibilities. 22 MS. BENNETT: Right. 23 MR. APPEL: I defer to people who are 24 far more skilled in their experience and education 25 than I am on wetlands. Page 149 1 who are here tonight asked questions about the 2 environment that if the expert could answer then, he 3 should have been permitted to answer them, and I 4 believe that Chairman and the applicant's attorney 5 suggested that they were inappropriate at this time, 6 so I would just suggest, to the extent that people 7 wanted to ask about trees, I saw trees on his -- his 8 renderings, so to the extent that they wanted to ask 9 about trees, at least you should have given some 10 latitude for that, but I -- but I don't want to -- 11 you have competent counsel so I'm sure you'll be -- 12 I'm sure you'll be, you know, but I think that you 13 should let some people ask some questions of this 14 expert because this expert just said that he has to 15 consider the environment and he has to mitigate any 16 negative impacts in the environment that he can with 17 his design. 18 MR. PLOCKER: No, no, that's -- I just 19 want to be clear -- 20 CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Wait, wait, 21 everybody, one at a time. 22 MS. BENNETT: Should I read from 23 the -- 24 CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: No. 25 MS. BENNETT: -- licensure?