A. CALL TO ORDER

Mr. Pawelkiewicz called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.

B. ROLL CALL AND REVIEW OF STAFF ATTENDANCE

MEMBERS PRESENT:      Chair Walter Pawelkiewicz, Vice Chair John Ornberg, Members Doug Brockway, Larry Cioppa, and Jeffrey Russo, and Alternate Member James Torres.

MEMBERS ABSENT:         None.

STAFF PRESENT:              Director of Information Technology (IT) Marc Tate, Administrative Officer and Zoning Official Nathan Reichert, Solicitor Todd Romano, and Minute Taker Stephanie J. LaSota

C.   APPROVAL OF MINUTES  

There were no minutes to approve.

D.   CHANGES TO AGENDA – Consider, discuss and act upon schedule change for Applications

There were no changes to the agenda.

E.   APPROVAL OF DECISIONS - Consider, discuss and act on application decisions referred to staff for writing.

There was no approval of decisions to discuss.

F.    PRE-APPLICATIONS - Schedule public hearing date for Application(s). Consider and approve application waivers.

There were no pre-applications.

G.  PUBLIC HEARINGS OLD BUSINESS - Consider, discuss and act on application(s).

There was no old business to discuss.

H.  PUBLIC HEARINGS NEW BUSINESS - Consider, discuss and act on application(s).

There was no new business to discuss.

I.   STAFF COMMENTS

1. Review of Zoning Ordinance Changes presented to Town Council.

Atty. Romano introduced the subject for discussion, which was reviewed at Monday’s Town Council meeting. Mr. Cioppa asked for further explanation of the changes regarding accessory dwelling units. Atty. Romano described the change. Mr. Cioppa expressed concern with the change creating more low and moderate income (LMI) housing and referenced the Comprehensive Plan having more multi- family homes accessing the Town sewer. He said it could be an opportunity for deception. Mr. Cioppa also stated concerned with the Zoning Official making the final decision. He said Westerly is a parochial community and if the Zoning Official turns down someone of importance that person’s job could be on the line. Atty. Romano said the proposed Ordinance change takes accessory dwelling units out of the mix and only permits accessory family units. He added that there has been talk about the units for LMI or renters in order to meet part of the State mandate for LMI but that’s not being considered at this point. Atty. Romano said the Ordinance will define what accessory dwelling family units will be permitted and there is not much leeway in that and if someone disagrees with the decision, they have a right to file an appeal to the Zoning Board. Mr. Brockway asked how seasonal rental units in Town effect the LMI percentage. Atty. Romano said the Planning Board Solicitor Atty. Scott Levesque knows more on that topic. Mr. Reichert said for Westerly to reach the 10 percent requirement for LMI housing it would need about 550 new units of LMI, according to the Comprehensive Plan data. There was further discussion of how the 10 percent LMI requirement is calculated.

There was brief discussion on language in the Solar Ordinance not changing regarding clearcutting forested land.

Atty. Romano confirmed that the Zoning Board members knew the new standard for issuing Special Use Permits.

There was discussion on the memorandum dated May 29, 2020 summarizing the proposed Zoning amendments. Mr. Pawelkiewicz said it was a very useful document. Mr. Reichert left the meeting at 6:22 p.m. to create copies of the memo for Board members whom did not have one.

Atty. Romano described the proposed change to building height requirements and the allowance of five feet of freeboard versus three feet. There was further discussion among the Board.

The Board discussed how it would become of aware of administrative decisions. Mr. Reichert said so many decisions are made daily so if they are following the Zoning precepts, there are provisions to appeal, but there is inherent trust placed in the Zoning Official to carry out the Ordinances. Mr. Torres asked how to keep a Zoning Official in check with decisions because if he is approving things within the Ordinance then he is within his rights. Mr. Reichert said appeals require a complaint from resident, such as an abutting neighbor. Atty. Romano said just because a Zoning Official can waive submission requirements on applications, doesn’t mean he has all authority. He said the Board will still see an application for final review. Mr. Reichert said he would personally err on the side of having more information available rather than granting a waiver outright. The Board has authority to ask for any information they want from an applicant, he said.

There was discussion on the progress with E-permitting. Mr. Reichert said they are investigating a system like the Building Department uses for permits. He said this can greatly reduce paper budget costs for the Town and applicants.

There was brief discussion on the proposed changes to the Sign Ordinance.

In discussion on the Downtown Parking Ordinance, Mr. Reichert said some of the regulations are stifling development. He said there is an artisan manufacturing caveat to allow for businesses of 1,500 square feet or less to have successful small business in the Downtown area.

Referring to the May 29, 2020 memo summarizing the proposed Zoning amendments, Mr. Reichert said there are three versions of it created since May 29, 2020. He said Town Council referred it to the Planning Board in May, but there is another Town Council meeting in August to discuss the amendments and the Planning Board’s recommendation. Mr. Reichert encouraged the Zoning Board to participate in that hearing. Mr. Reichert said they will need to update the Zoning Board rules and procedures in a workshop meeting to be scheduled in the future.

J. CONFIRMATION OF NEXT REGULAR MEETING DATE – August 5, 2020 7:00 p.m. K.

ADJOURNMENT  

Mr. Ornberg made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 7:02 p.m. Mr. Brockway seconded the motion. The motion CARRIED by unanimous vote with no abstentions.

Respectfully submitted,

Stephanie J. LaSota

Minute Taker

Approved by vote of the Board on September 2, 2020