HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014-07-15 ad Hoc - Zoning Advisory Committee Minutes4
Town of Reading
Meeting Minutes
RECEIVED
TOWN CLERK
Board - Committee - Commission - Council: :(FADING. MASS.
Zoning Advisory Committee 101M AUG 19 A Of 31
Date: 2014 -07 -15 Time: 8:00 PM
Building: Pleasant Street Senior Center Location: Great Room
Address: 16 Lowell Street
Purpose: General Business Session:
Attendees: Members - Present:
David Tuttle
Jeff Hansen
Marsie West
George Katsoufls
David Traniello
Erin Calvo -Bacci
Members - Not Present:
Eric Bergstrom
Others Present:
Jean Delios - Assistant Town Manager, Community Services
Jessie Wilson - Community Development Administrator
Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Jessie Wilson, Community Development
Administrator
Topics of Discussion:
There being a quorum of the Zoning Advisory Committee (ZAC) the Chair called the meeting
to order at 8:00 PM.
Zonina Update to Board of Selectmen (Joint Meetinal
Ms. Delios presented a Power Point presentation to the Board of Selectmen (BOS). She said
that many issues with the zoning bylaw are discovered by the Community Planning and
Development Commission (CPDC). It was their recommendation that a comprehensive
approach be taken to update and streamline the zoning bylaw. After the funding was
approved, the Community Services Department issued an RFP for a Consultant to assist
with the project and the ZAC was appointed by the BOS. Over the several months, the ZAC
and the Consultant have been working very hard on revising the bylaw language. The key
she said is to propose language that will work for Reading. When the project schedule was
initially developed, the goal for a draft bylaw was July 15, 2014. She said that the
Consultant has prepared revised language in the form of a draft bylaw.
Ms. Delios continued with the presentation. She provided a background on zoning, pointing
out that Reading first adopted zoning in 1928. Since then, there have been many piecemeal
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changes to the zoning bylaw and in the 1990s the Town adopted very stringent regulations
because there was a fear of overdevelopment.
She told the BOS that the Zoning Update is needed because it is not consistent with our
goals as a Town, and it creates many hurdles for potential developers, homeowners and
property owners. She said that many times Applicants express frustration with the process
and In many cases the bylaw can even be cumbersome for staff to interpret. As such, Ms.
Delios said that the overall goal of the zoning update project is to simplify, modernize and
clarify the zoning bylaw. As for the schedule, she said that the final draft will be put before
November Town Meeting. However, with the anticipation of a Special Town Meeting in
September, the ZAC will likely recommend the Medical Marijuana zoning to be included on
that warrant. The Special Town Meeting will also be a great opportunity to update Town
Meeting members on the status of the proposed changes.
A big part of this project has been the public outreach component and by the end of the
process the ZAC will have held about 40 meetings. Of those 40 meetings, the ZAC has held
4 public forums, the last of which was in June. Ms. Delios added that during the public
forums, the ZAC utilized "Turning Point Technology" which is a hand held voting system
which enabled attendees of the forums to provide real live feedback to the ZAC. Ms. Delios
said there have also been a number of stakeholder meetings including meetings with the
Chamber, Rotary, Lions Club and a stakeholder breakfast. In addition an evening reception
was hosted by the Reading Co -Op Bank. To keep the public Informed, Staff has been
pushing information out via the bi- weekly updates as well as miscellaneous coverage
including RCN broadcasts, press preleases and various updates at relevant
Board /Committee /Commission meetings. Notices to Town Meeting members about the
project have also been mailed out.
As for the proposed changes to the bylaw, Ms. Delios said that key updates include adding
more definitions, including more graphics and developing a medical marijuana bylaw. The
ZAC also is proposing to remove the Wetlands Protection District as it is covered by the local
wetland bylaw and eliminate the downtown Mixed Use Overlay since the smart growth
district covers that. Overall the ZAC clarified, simplified and streamlined each section of the
bylaw. Another big topic which will continue to be worked on is the Accessory Apartment
regulations. There was a lot of feedback on this topic and the ZAC will continue to flush out
issues related to that section.
Ms. Delios then provided more specific details on the proposed changes
Medical Marijuana Bylaw
- The ZAC determined a location for the use which is the Industrial District with a 500 -foot
buffer zone to areas that children commonly congregate.
- The ZAC streamlined the language to not be duplicative of the state regulations
Accessory Apartments
- The ZAC is investigating allowing more "daytime government" review options.
- The ZAC streamlined and updated the language to meet current demographic trends and
needs.
- The changes allow more flexibility
Aquifer Protection District
- The goal is to lessen the burden for property owners required to install recharge systems.
- The Town is required to maintain the Aquifer Protection District, but the ZAC is proposing
to use "Best Management Practices" to give owners more flexibility.
Nonconforming Lots
- The ZAC modified the language to streamline and simply the process.
- Many lots became nonconforming after the change from S1O to S15 and those lots are
subject to the nonconforming regulations.
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- The goal is to make more use of "daytime government" for Issues that are consistently
being reviewed by the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA).
Ms. Delios also told the BOS that the table of uses and definition section is very Important to
ensure we have all uses accounted for (e.g. the dog groomer /washer). Another big change
proposed throughout the bylaw is to try and streamline the special permitting processes. If
a project requires a Special Permit for the "use" and if that project would also require Site
Plan Review, then the Special Permit Granting Authority would be changed to the CPDC so
the applicant would only need to submit to one board.
Ms. Delios stressed again, that the overall the goal is to simplify, modernize and clarify the
bylaw. The hope is to streamline the permitting process, use plain language and common
sense in the bylaw so that it could be used as a customer service tool.
Questions were received. It was clarified that any changes made in the future have to go
before town meeting, including any minor or typographical changes. It was also asked
whether there has been any thought Into periodic review processes for the document. Mr.
Katsoufis replied that there are a few items and issues that are too big to handle with this
update and that the CPDC or others will continue to work on those items after the work of
the ZAC.
Mr. Tuttle said that the bylaw is constantly being reviewed. Annual Town Meeting and
Subsequent Town Meeting are reminders for any potential placeholders on changes to the
document.
Ms. Cellos concluded the presentation.
(The Board of Selectmen Continued with additional agenda items and the ZAC no
longer had a quorum}
Ended approximately 8:30PM
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