Waterford Design Review Board approves site plan for Congregation Beth El synagogue

The Town of Waterford Design Review Board voted April 7 to approve site-plan PL 26-8, clearing the way for Congregation Beth El to build a single-story synagogue at the property listed in the meeting record as 33 Kenyon Road (the project plans in the packet are titled '33 Canyon Road').

The project team, represented by civil engineer Mike Otts of Summerhill Civil Engineers, architect Dave Atkinson of Atomistic and landscape architect Henry Thomas, presented designs for a building the team described as residential in scale and materials. Atkinson said the building will be roughly 44 feet deep and about 96 feet long, with a vaulted sanctuary and ancillary spaces including offices, a commercial kitchen and accessible restrooms. "It's intended to stay in a very neutral palette," Atkinson said, describing stone veneer wainscot at the front, vinyl siding on other elevations, fiberglass-painted columns and asphalt shingles with a small standing-seam metal roof over the entry.

The architect estimated the sanctuary would seat about 100–120 people and said the structure would be under 4,000 square feet; the transcript records those figures as project estimates rather than exact capacities. Board members pressed the team on parking: the plan shows roughly 38 marked parking spaces, and project representatives said the congregation expects large gatherings only a few times a year and plans to use an adjacent gravel area and an open field as overflow when needed.

Landscape architect Henry Thomas emphasized native and low-maintenance plantings to screen parking, soften the street frontage and blend with undisturbed wetland areas at the rear of the property. "Largely our plant list is natives and cultivars of natives," Thomas said, and the plan calls for a low-mow lawn mix, low-meadow edge plantings and a wet-tolerant seed mix in the stormwater basin to support habitat and pollinators.

The project team also presented a photometric lighting plan showing LED parking fixtures at 3,000 Kelvin, photocell/timer controls, black post-mounted luminaires and building-mounted emergency lighting at entries. Atkinson noted mechanical equipment would be in an attic area with one or two small compressors likely sited at the rear or side of the building; final compressor placement was not decided.

After questions and brief discussion about roof color, lights and planting choices, a board member moved to accept the plans "as presented"; a second was given and the board carried the motion in a voice vote. The transcript does not identify who moved or seconded the motion; the chair announced assent and thanked the applicants. The meeting then moved on to approval of prior minutes and adjournment.

Next steps: the approval clears the design-review stage recorded in PL 26-8; the transcript did not specify outstanding permit conditions, building permit timelines, or required follow-up items beyond the items addressed in the packet.