Fairfax board wants more specifics on lumber yard fence plan

A plan to fence off a lumber yard from a Fairfax neighborhood to address nuisance complaints has been sent back the drawing board.

Planning Commission members said at a public hearing last week that they like the idea of the proposed 8-foot-tall fence, which would require approval of a height variance. But they said they need to see a detailed rendering of what the approximately 330-foot corrugated metal structure would look like.

“We don’t have an actual landscape plan and fence plan of what it’s going to look like,” said Norma Frogosa, chair of the commission. “We don’t have enough information to do a design review.”

The business is Fairfax Lumber and Hardware at 109 Broadway. The proposed fence is part of a plan to address complaints from neighbors along Spruce Road about health and safety issues related to noise and dust from the business.

The neighbors presented a petition to the Town Council last month seeking a remedy to their complaints. Neighbors said the problem has been an issue for years.

The problem was exacerbated after Pacific Gas & Electric Co. removed trees along Spruce Road, exposing the lumber yard to the neighbors.

The store management proposed a mitigation plan that includes asphalt grinding and wetting the gravel in the yard to reduce dust problems. The plan is underway now.

The council decided formed a subcommittee to work with neighbors and the business owners to oversee the project.

“There is some urgency to move this forward to address the concerns of the neighbors,” David Woltering, director of planning, said of the fence project. “But we want to make sure we do this in a manner that it’s enduring, it’s attractive and it meets the concerns of the neighbors and Fairfax lumber.”

Residents said they are concerned about the proposed use of corrugated metal. They said metal could be a safety issue as a conductor of electricity in the event of downed power lines. They also said that wood is more in keeping, aesthetically, with the character of the neighborhood.

Resident Susie Bergen submitted photographs of fences in the neighborhood.

“Everything is wood, and we’re not a commercial neighborhood. We’re not in an urban setting,” she said. “I think our preference is a wood fence.”

Charlie Cain, general manager of the business, said the project was designed with three goals in mind: aesthetics, longevity and fire safety.

Cain said decorative paneling is part of the plan, as is landscaping with shrubs and irrigation to create a green shield to act as a visual buffer between the fence and the neighbors across the street. He said metal is preferred by fire professionals who warned that wood is combustible.

“It looks like going forward we’re going to need to get an architect in here to draw some better plans for us,” Cain said.

The commission asked for more information about the choice of materials, the design and the landscaping plan.

Frogosa said town officials will continue to work collaboratively with the neighborhood and business representatives.

“We’re all in this together,” Frogosa said.

Town Manager Heather Abrams said the followup session with the Planning Commission has not been scheduled.