HomeMy WebLinkAbout1983-01-26 Planning Board Minutesn-_ates of the. meeting of january 26, 1983.
Chairman Mitchel called the meeting to order at 7:15 P.M. in Room 19,
52 Sanborn Street (the Community Center) with Board members K. Messina,
M. Rich and A. Burne present. Ms. Rich and Chairman Mitchel had been
meeting with Town Counsel and he agreed to continue his discussion
with the full Board. V. Adams from Historical Commission and B.-Hewitt
from LWV were also present as was a reporter from Reading Chronicle.
" Accessory Apartments
The Board discussed the draft proposal as sent to Town Counsel. Hr.
Cohen stated that he found no problems with the draft with the excep-
.tion of the limit of 100 of eligible housing stock- This may bring
up the question of due process under the law. Otherwise there were
no major problems and discussion on rewording ensued.
Upon a motion duly made and seconded, the Board unanimously voted to
adopt the following wording that would be forwarded to all Boards on
the proposed distribution listwith a special cover letter to be sent
tothe Board of Selectmen, League of Women Voters, Reading Housing
Authority and the Board of Survey for their input by February 1,. 1983,
so that this Board can finalize the wording before submission to the
Annual Town.Meeting Warrant which closes on Monday, February 14th.
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Page 2 - 1/25/83
Apartment/Circ
r
ulating Draft
y
Accesso
Planning Board
1983.-
27
.
,
January
DEFINITION:
ACCESSORY APARTMENT:
One or more rooms with kitchen and bathroo
a one family duelling originally
i
n
facilities
constructed as a one family dwelling for the
occupancy of a separate household from that
occupying the one family dwelling.
BY-LAW:
_
The purpose of allowing accessory apartments within
PURPOSE:
the Town is to encourage the alteration and/or
f housing units
construction of a limited number o
which will increase the. availability of rental
al
l
oc
units within the Town and will help to meet
housing needs without causing significantly
adverse effects on the character and municipal
re compliance
to
ensu
services of the community and,
d local planning standards and policies
t
e an
with Sta
concerned with land use, building design and
requirements of the health, safety, convenience and
general welfare of the inhabitants of the Toxin.
RESTRICTIONS:
The Special Permit Granting Authority may grant a
apartment, if, as
sor
y
Special Permit for an acces
a minimum, the following conditions are met:
a) The dwelling, in which the accessory apartmer',
is to be located, had an executed use and
occupancy certificate and was occupied prior
to August 1, 1982;
b) The accessory apartment shall occupy no more
than one-third (1/3) of the gross floor area
- (as of August 1, 1982) of the one family
dwelling of which it is part., exclusive of
any.garage, shed or' other accbsory use struc-
ture attached to or part of such one family
dwelling and shall contain as a minimum at
least 400 square feet of living space and as
a maximum. no more than 754 square feet of
living space.
c) At least one of the owner or w6ners of the one
family dwelling in which the accessory apart-
ment is located resides in the accessory apart-
ment or principal one family dwelling and shall
not be absent therefrom for a period not to
exceed one year and during, said temporary
absence said owner or owners shall not lease or
allow to be occupied by unrelated persons that
portion of the one family dwelling in which
they reside;
c.ay
Accessory pa tment Circu acing Draft
January 27,,.1983-Planning Board
d) The accessory apartment and any and all other
modifications to the principal one family
dwelling shall be designed so that the appear-
ance of the building remains that of a one
family dwelling. Any new entries shall be
located on the side or in the rear of the
building and any additions for access-and/or
egress shall not increase the square footage
of the original house by more than ten per
cent (100) and shall not increase the building
to land to more than a ratio of 1:5. Any L
other changes in the building shall comply
in all respects with the applicable provisions
of the Zoning By-laws;
e) All motor vehicles owned or maintained by occu-
pants of the building in which the accessory
apartment is located shall be parked off the
street and the location and appearance of all-
additional off-street parking shall not adversell
affect the adjoining properties, properties in
the neighborhood or the single-family appear-
ance of the neighborhood in general and will
cause no change to the "front yard parking area,
if any, as it existed on August 1, 1982;
f) There shall be no other apartment on the lot
on.which the accessory apartment is to be
located;
g) The accessory apartment shall meet all, building
code requirements and shall have properly
installed and maintained fire safety devices
for the protection of all occupants in the
entire dwelling;
h) Special Permits for accessory apartments can
be issued by the Board of Appeals up to a
limit of ten per cent (10a) of all eligible
one family dwellings in the Town;
i) Any other conditions, safeguards and limitations
on time or use as may be imposed by the
Board of Appeals.
PROCESS: An owner or owners of a one family dwelling may make application
to the Board of Appeals for a Special Permit for the alteration
and/or construction and occupancy of an accessory apartment in a
one-family dwelling incompliance with all of the above-listed
restrictions. The Board of Appeals will then post notice of this
public hearing in accordance with Chapter 40A, Massachusetts Gen-
eral Laws. The Special Permit for said accessory apartment will
be limited to the original applicant(s) and is not transferable
with ownership and separate application must be made to the
Board of Appeals when ownership of the principal one family dwellin
is transferred.
Page 4 - 1/25/83
Accessory Apartment/Circulating Draft
January 27,1983-Planning Board
If the terms and/or conditions of the Special Permit for an
accessory apartment are not being complied with, such Special
Permit can and will be revoked in accordance with standard
enforcement procedures, or if all,. conditions are not met
within one year of issuance of the Special Permit, the Special
Permit will be null and void.
READING PLANNING BOARD
Barry J. Mitchel., Chairman
Kenneth G. Messina, Clerk
Maureen Rich
John W. Shaw
Alan R.: Burne
The Chairman and Board thanked Attorney Cohen for his time and
prompt attention to this proposal and Mr. Cohen retired.to Town
Hall for another scheduled appointment.
The Board then reviewed the overview which had been previously
distributed. Upon.a motion duly made and seconded, the Board
unanimously approved' the distribution of the overview along with
the proposed by-law draft:
D~ ; - 126/83
-16
:3 U
Re_i. ing Planning Board ,
January 27, 1983
DEFINITION:
ACCESSORY APARTMENT: One or more rooms with
kitchen and bathroom facilities in a one
family dwelling originally constructed as a
one family dwelling for the occupancy of a
separate household from that occupying the
one family dwelling.
This definition has been generally used through-..
out the State and in other communities in differ-
ent statese
BY-LAW:
PURPOSE: The purpose of allowing accessory
apartments.within the Town is to encourage
the alteration and/or construction of a
limited number of housing units which will
increase the availability of rental units
within the Town and will help to meet local
housing needs without causing significantly
adverse effects on the character and muni-
cipal services of the community and to ensure
compliance with State and local planning stan-
dards and policies concerned with land use,
building design and requirements of the
health, safety, convenience and general welfare
of the ,inhabitants of the Town.
The primary objective in the stated purpose is to
allow young people, older people and persons of
limited income the opportunity to find suitable
housing within the Town, while still maintaining
the appearance and general character of the
single-family district in Which such an accessory
apartment Mould be located and not requiring sig-
nificant increases in municipal services. This
Torn has had State monies held up under
Executive Order 711--215 and the Selectmen,
Housing Authority and Planning Board have
signed documents assuring the State that the
Town will continue to find ways to provide
affordable housing for all income levels within
the Town. This proposed by-law would* help to
ameliorate the housing problem within this
community while ensuring that all of the. building
code requirements are met.
RESTRICTIONS: The Special Permit Granting Authority
may grant a Special Permit for an accessory apart-
meat if, as a minimum, the following conditions
are met:
a) The dwelling in which the.accessory apartment
is to be located, had an executed use and.
occupancy certificate and was occupied prior
to August 1, 191827
This restriction was placed because as of this
date the public discussion by the Planning Board
on the proposed by-law change commenced and also
to avoid real estate speculation in this area.
b) The accessory apartment shall occupy no more
than one-third (1/3) of the gross floor area
(as of August 1, 1982) of the one family
dwelling of which it is part, exclusive of
any garage, shed or other accessory use struc-
ture attached to or part of such one family
dwelling and shall contain as a minimum at
least.400 square feet of living space and
as a maximum no more than 750 square feet of
living space.
`b
In ord-" to ensurE. t!,. a-*- the cor -ityf -!haracter
r-taintai!7-.Li, and to ;L.l. s-"-"C'
J
with housing shortages in the Town, the Board
feels that either the accessory apartment or
the main dwelling should be owner occupied and
allows for only brief absences by the owner(s)
of less than 1 year without leasing their unit-
The accessory apartment and any and all other
modifications to the principal one family
dwelling shall be designed so that the appear-
ance of the building remains that of a one
family dwelling. Any new entries shall be
located on the side or in the rear of the
building and any additions for access and/or
egress shall not increase the square footage
..of the original house by more than ten per
cent (100) and shall not increase the building
to land to more than a ratio of.lc5. Any
other changes in the building shall comply
in all respects with the applicable provi-
sions of the Zoning By-laws;
In order not to adversely impact the real estate
values of surrounding properties and to maintain
the single-family character of the neighborhood
in general, any modifications that are made:
including those for health, safety or building
code reasons, must, be compatible with the single-.
family appearance of the neighboring houses and
cannot increase the gross square footage of the
original house by more than 100. The density
requirement is to protect the neighboring and
abutting residents from overcrowding and for
health and safety reasons.
r
e) All motor vehicles owned or maintained by
occupants of the building in which the
accessory apartment is located shall be
parked off the street and the location
and appearance of all additional off-street -
parking shall not adversely affect the
adjoining properties, properties in the
neighborhood or the single---family appearance
of the neighborhood in general and will cause
.no change to the front yard parking area, if
any, as it existed on August 1, 1982;
One of the major problems with allowing accessory
apartments is the increase in the number of motor
veh- Iles and its impact on the single-family
house and surrounding properties. These restric-
tions are speci.fically.designed to maintain the
single-family appearance of.the house and to
prohibit any additional parking areas to the
front of the house, thus maintaining as much as
possible, the character of the.neighborhood in
general and disallowing any adverse impact on
surrounding properties due to the parking require-
ments for additional cars
f) There shall be no other apartment on the lot
on which the accessory apartment is to be
located;
This restriction is self-explanatory The Board.
felt it best to be specific in not allowing any
multi-family house the use of an accessory apart-
ment. This is consistent with paragraphs b and
e above
r
g) The accessory apartment shall meet all
building code requirements.and shall
have properly installed and maintained
fire safety devices for the protection
of all occupants in the entire dwelling;
To avoid one of the worst hazards - fire, the
Board was specific in stating that the entire
dwelling shall be protected by the installation
of properly installed and maintained fire/smoke
detection devices. As is usual, the accessory
apartment must meet all building codes in order
to be issued a use-occupancy certificate_
h) Special Permits for'accessory apartments can
be issued by the Board of Appeals up to-a
limit of ten per cent (100) of all eligible
one family dwellings in the Town;
In order to meet the needs of all persons that
want to live in the Town, the Board thought that
the use of accessory apartments would help-to,
ameliorate that problem.' In order to protect
the character of the neighborhood and the Town
in general, the Board felt that. 10% of the eligible
housing stock within the Town would suffice (this
would be approximately 500+ houses)
i) Any other conditions, safeguards and
limitations on time or use as may be im-
posed by the Board of Appeals.
Due to special circumstances or problems that a
single family dwelling may cause to the neighbor-
hood or Town in general, the Board of Appeals
have power to set further lirutations under this
provision.
- 1/25/83
`
PROCESS: An owner or owners of a one family
dwelling may make application to the Board of
Appeals.for a Special Permit for the alteration
and/or construction and occupancy of an accessory
apartment in a one family dwelling in compliance
with all of the.above-listed restrictions. The
Board of Appeals will then post notice of this
public hearing in accordance with. Chapter 40A,
MGL: The Special Permit for said accessory
apartment w2.11_ be limited to the original
applicant (s) and is not transferable with owner--
ship and separate application must be made to
the Board of Appeals when ownership of the prin-
cipal one family dwelling is transferred.'
If the terms and/or conditions of the Special
Permit for an accessory apartment are not being
complied with, such Special Permit can and will
be revoked in accordance with standard enforcement
procedures, or if all conditions are not met within
one year of issuance of the Special Permit, the
Special Permit will"be null and void.
The process as outlined in this paragraph delegates
the power to the Board of Appeals for issuing a
Special Permit for any accessory apartment within
the Town. It is clearly defined herein that such.
Special Permit is not transferable with ownership.
This protection is included to ensure owner-
residency and can be properly monitored and is
a safeguard which will, maintain the character
of the Town by not permitting "absentee owners".
If any portion of the restriction imposed for
accessory apartments is violated, then according
to due process, the Special Permit will be revoked.
This protection is necessary for abutting and
neighboring residents to make and have their com-
p1 in hearc? and acted upon.
- 1/25/83
f:
The Board discussed the wording of the cover letter to be. sent to
other Town Boards and Commissions and upon a motion duly made and
seconded, unanimously approved the following language for the memo:
TO: Town Boards and Agencies
FRO:? : Planning Board
DATE January 27, 1983
RE: Accessory Apartment Draft Zoning By-law Proposal
The Planning Board asks that you,review the enclosed "accessory
apartment" Zoning By-law draft. We„are seeking comments, sugges-
tions and any criticisms you may have on this proposal. We have
enclosed a brief explanation on each section of the by-law so that
you can see the process for determining which conditions this
Board felt necessary for the protection of the single-family home-
owners while still allowing an accessory apartment use for those
people who now find the house they occupy too big and physically
and financially too burdensome.
The Planning Board has been working on housing problems within the
Town and solutions to some of those problems for the past two years.
With Executive Order -215 requiring that the Town become less restric-
tive in its housing policies, the Board felt that the accessory apart-
ment by-law would answer and help ameliorate some of the Town's
housing problems. With the 1980 census figures, population shift,
input from MAPC, LTNV and other agencies, the members felt allowing
-accessory apartments in Single-Family Districts would maintain the
character and..appearance of the Town while allowing those citizens
that want to remain living in this Town the opportunity to do so.
The Planning Board requests that you give your careful consideration
to this proposal and formulate questions, comments and/or suggestions.
The Board will make an appointment with your Board/Commission to have
a representative meet and discuss this proposed by-law change.
A brief discussion on applicable areas of the By-laws also ensued.
Charles to the Table of Uses, 2,2.1.1., 2.2.2.1. and Special Permit
status for such an application will be further researched before
final proposal for warrant is formulated.
There being no further business before the Board, the Board voted to
adjourn at 9:50 P.M.
Respectfully submitted,
Kenneth G. Messina, Clerk