Any person or persons who desire a determination as to whether the Act or the ordinance applies to an area, or work to be performed in an area, shall submit a written request for determination of applicability ("RDA") to the Commission in accordance with Chapter
287, §
287-4.
A. General filing requirements. All applications shall comply with the
following, except to the extent the Commission modifies these requirements
on a case-by-case basis or in its application forms or instructions.
(1) Nine copies (one original and eight copies) and an electronic copy
of an RDA and accompanying plans, along with a check for the appropriate
filing fee, shall be received eight business days prior to the anticipated
hearing date by certified mail or hand delivery to the Conservation
Commission at 3rd Floor, Planning Department, City Hall, 191 Cabot
Street, Beverly, MA 01915.
(2) Upon receipt of an application, the Commission or Conservation Administrator will determine, within two business days, if the application meets the minimum submittal requirements identified in Subsection
B below. Those applications that do not meet the minimum submittal requirements will be rejected until the necessary information is provided.
B. General plan requirements. In addition to and in conformance with
the requirements of 310 CMR 10.00, the following shall be submitted:
(1) An 8 1/2 inches by 11 inches copy of the USGS quadrangle map, or
other locus map, with the area circled showing the location of the
project.
(2) A plan of sufficient size and scale that completely and accurately
depicts the existing conditions on the site, the proposed project,
and all of the resource areas and associated buffer zones located
on the site.
(3) When the RDA is for the verification of the delineation of a wetland
resource area(s), the request shall be prepared by a professional
wetland scientist accompanied by a field-surveyed plan depicting the
existing conditions, the delineated boundary of the resource area(s)
with flag numbers and elevations extending off the project site.
C. Public meeting.
(1) The Commission shall hold a public meeting to consider the RDA and
shall issue a written determination within 21 days upon receipt of
such request. Prior to making a determination, the Commission may
require the submission of additional information deemed pertinent
to the determination.
(2) The Commission may continue the public meeting in the following instances:
(a)
With the consent of the applicant, to an agreed-upon date which
shall be announced at the meeting; or
(b)
Without the consent of the applicant, to a specified date for
the reasons stated at the meeting, including but not limited to additional
information from the applicant or others.
The Commission recognizes that dead, dying and compromised trees
can pose safety and property damage issues in some situations. The
Commission has established a "Tree Removal Request Protocol" to facilitate
the Commission's prompt administrative review of these situations.
In some situations, the Commission may approve tree removals administratively.
In others, the Commission may decide that a more formal RDA or NOI
is required. This administrative review process is optional and is
not a prerequisite to the filing of a formal RDA or NOI. The Tree
Removal Request Protocol is available at the office of the Conservation
Administrator and may be modified by a simple vote by the Commission
at a regularly scheduled meeting.