Zoning Board – Meeting Minutes

Wednesday, June 17, 2020 – 6:00 P.M.

 

Council Chambers, Westerly Town Hall

45 Broad Street, Westerly, RI 02891

 

A. CALL TO ORDER - Mr. Ornberg called the meeting to order at 6:05 p.m.

B. ROLL CALL AND REVIEW OF STAFF ATTENDANCE

           

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

 

MEMBERS ABSENT:            Chair Walter Pawelkiewicz

 

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

 

C. APPROVAL AND REVISION OF MINUTES – Consider, discuss and act on application decisions referred to staff for writing.

 

There were no minutes to approve.

 

D. CHANGES TO AGENDA Review, discussion, and possible action by the Planning Board on changes to the agenda - on the order in which items will be heard or known continuances.

 

There were no changes to the agenda.

 

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

 

            There were no pre-applications on the agenda.

Mr. Ornberg stated that Mr. Clemence is recused this evening as he has a prior engagement. He announced it was his last meeting as a Zoning Board member and he would be retiring. The Board thanked him for his service. Mr. Clemence left the meeting at 6:08 p.m. Mr. Ornberg said that Alternate Members Mr. Russo and Mr. Torres would act as full voting members in the absence of Mr. Clemence and Mr. Pawelkiewicz.

 

F. PUBLIC HEARINGS OLD BUSINESS – Consider, discuss, and act on application(s).

1. Burkholder, 250 Church Street, AP '45' Lot '20', Accessory Apartment, Special Use Permit

Atty. Romano said that Mr. Burkholder wanted to proceed forward this evening, but his opinion is that they cannot hear the matter this evening because the property is located on the border of Charlestown and residents in Charlestown were not notified nor was the town. Atty. Romano read into record the Rhode Island law for notifying abutting neighbors in a Special Use Permit application. He asked the Zoning Board to continue the matter to allow Mr. Burkholder the opportunity to appropriately notify neighbors. Mr. Ornberg said they would not open the public hearing. Mr. Burkholder asked to speak. Atty. Romano suggested that the Board allow him to voice his opinion.

Before hearing the applicant, Mr. Ornberg read into the record the rules and procedures for hearing application before the Zoning Board of Review.

Dennis Burkholder, of 250 Church Street, said notwithstanding all delays with the Covid-19 pandemic, he agreed to postpone the hearing to a date to be determined in June and said he wasn't informed until yesterday afternoon by the Zoning Official about tonight’s meeting. He said he has had months and followed all instructions of the Zoning Office. He said only yesterday this notification discrepancy was brought up by the attorney. Mr. Burkholder said he contacted the town of Charlestown, which said it is highly unusual and they haven't heard of it and as long as the applicant adheres to Westerly rules it should be fine. Mr. Burkholder reiterated that yesterday he was sent a memo to delay the hearing. He commented that it was a waste of his time. 

Atty. Romano said he only became aware of the situation this week and it is not his obligation to be sure that an applicant provides proper notice, but the notice requirements are very clear and the applicant is to notify all abutters even if in an adjacent city or town. Mr. Burkholder said he was told by Mr. Reichert that he would notify Charlestown and he asked for one more example where this has occurred before. Mr. Cioppa asked if the applicant had enough time between today and the next meeting to send the required notifications. Mr. Reichert said the legal requirement is it needs to be sent 14 days ahead and there are 14 days before July 9. He added that it is the applicant’s responsibility to send notification to abutters. Mr. Burkholder said he will start the process tomorrow but he thinks it is highly irregular and he already contacted Charlestown. Atty. Romano said he can use the same notice for Westerly for the Charlestown residents and does not need a different form.

Mr. Cioppa made a motion to continue the Burkholder application public hearing to July 9, 2020. Mr. Russo seconded the motion. The motion CARRIED by unanimous vote with no abstentions.

 

2. Kubisco, 3 Essex Drive, AP '127' Lot '83' Constructions of (2) sheds, Dimensional Variance

At the time of the agenda item, there was no applicant or representative present at the meeting. The Board tabled the business to allow for any late applicant or representative.

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

1. Amaral, 134 Potter Hill Road, AP '13' Lot '1-12' Addition of an accessory apartment. Special Use Permit

At the time of the agenda item, there was no applicant or representative present at the meeting. The Board tabled the business to allow for any late applicant or representative.

2. Turdo, 57 John Street, AP '77' Lot '166' Change of use from single to two family dwelling, Special Use Permit, Dimensional Variance

John Riley, of 65 Ashaway Road, was present on behalf of the application. Mr. Ornberg swore in the applicant for public testimony. Mr. Reichert said this application has been on the agenda for some time and thanked the applicant for their patience. He said the house at the address is a single-family home and they seek to make it a single-family home by putting a duplex in on the first and second floor, which requires a Special Use Permit in this Zone. Mr. Reichert described the lot constrictions to the Board. He said the Board should ensure the applicant meet all Special Use Permit and Variance request standards. He said typically hardship is difficult to prove for lot size requirements. Mr. Reichert discussed how the new Comprehensive Plan asks for several things, like creating more community housing, that the Board may want to consider in this application. He said staff has no recommendation.

There was discussion about the approval of the new Comprehensive Plan and what the current plan includes that is similar to the housing goals of the 2020 plan. Mr. Reichert said the timeline for any changes is quite lengthy and change to housing opportunities or density could take one to two years to complete. Mr. Torres clarified that this housing topic is not addressed in the Zoning amendment suggestions that are currently going to Town Council.

Mr. Brockway said this lot, like a lot of the lots, is narrow and deep and walking around the neighborhood there are multiple multi-family houses currently existing with narrow and deep lots. Mr. Reichert said the characteristics of the neighborhood is relevant to the Special Use Permit approval. There was further discussion on how to analyze the standards of the applications as well as how to justify it by the current Comprehensive Plan. Mr. Russo said the Board has had to consistently fight with dimensional Variances within neighborhoods and we consistently allow for new houses or additions. He finds this very similar and it conforms to neighborhood characteristics. Mr. Ornberg said since it is the largest lot in that area, the hardship is the stumbling block of the required width versus the width today and in view of Comprehensive Plan goals a Variance would be warranted in this case.

Atty. Romano read into the record from a court case how the Zoning Board should determine a hardship. 

Mr. Riley said he is looking to better the community with this project and there is adequate parking off street that does not impede John Street. He said there is also a garage for storage. Mr. Torres said for them to approve it they have to approve all five categories and one is hardship and the onus is on him to meet requirement of hardship issue. Mr. Riley said he would like to thank the Zoning Office for their help through the entire process. Mr. Reichert asked the applicant to express to the Board how they should interpret and refer to the hardship and his unique situation relative to this application that constitutes a degree of severity that allows him not to adhere to spirit of the Ordinance. Mr. Riley responded that he believes two families coming to Westerly is better than one and the multi-family home would benefit the community. Mr. Reichert asked if he could gain lot frontage from neighbors. Mr. Riley said he had conversations with neighbors and they told him no, in regards to using frontage. Mr. Reichert asked if there was a way to make lot frontage on John Street, to which the answer was no. Mr. Reichert asked if there was any way for Mr. Riley to increase the size of the lot and he said no. Mr. Reichert commented that the applicant would be left with a single-family home where two families would benefit himself as well as the applicant Turdo, who also did not create the lot. Mr. Reichert added that the lot was created well before the 1998 Zoning Ordinance and it meets all standards except for the frontage. There was no public comment. Mr. Reichert did note for the record that there was a letter of opposition on file with the Zoning Office. Mr. Riley said he is not aware of the letter. Mr. Reichert said he had a discussion with one of the neighbors and he shared concerns and he read the Zoning Ordinance to craft his objection. He said if you only read the Westerly Ordinance, the neighbor is correct, but as we have discussed, State law is different in many cases, and the objections of the neighbor did not have merit because State law is different and for that Mr. Reichert apologized to the neighbor and said so in an email, as well. Atty. Romano said the neighbor, who was not present at the meeting, had notice of the public hearing because he filed his objection and he was sent a copy of the agenda.

Mr. Brockway made a motion to close the public hearing. Mr. Cioppa seconded the motion. The motion CARRIED by unanimous vote with no abstentions. 

In a poll of the Zoning Board, all members were in favor of the application, except for Mr. Cioppa who voiced a concern with making decisions based on something that might happen and he stated he hasn't seen a hardship proven so denying the application would have no negative effect on the applicant.

The Board called a recess at 6:55 p.m. The Zoning Board meeting was called back into session at 7:08 p.m.

Mr. Torres read into the record the details of the Turdo, 57 John Street, AP '77' Lot '166' application, including the description of the lot and neighborhood Zoning districts, testimony given at the public hearing on June 17, 2020, the content of the Zoning narrative, and documents entered into the record during the public hearing, and granted the Zoning Official administrative approval authority on non-substantive and made a motion to approve the Special Use Permit for the Turdo application, granting a 23-foot Variance with no conditions. Mr. Russo seconded the motion. The motion CARRIED with a 4 to 1 vote with Mr. Cioppa voting no.

The Board revisited the Kubisco and Amaral applications to see if anyone was present to represent them. There was no one present from the public. There was some discussion on the July agenda.

Mr. Cioppa made a motion to move the Kubisco application to the August 5, 2020 Zoning Board meeting. Mr. Torres seconded the motion. The motion CARRIED by unanimous vote with no abstentions.

Mr. Cioppa made a motion to move the Amaral application to the August 5, 2020 Zoning Board meeting. Mr. Brockway seconded the motion. The motion CARRIED by unanimous vote with no abstentions.

Mr. Cioppa made a motion to place both the Kubisco and Amaral applications at the end of the August 5, 2020 Zoning Board agenda. Mr. Torres seconded the motion. The motion CARRIED by unanimous vote with no abstentions.

For the record, Atty. Romano said by 7:23 p.m. neither applicant had appeared at the Zoning Board meeting in person or via Zoom and that is why both applications were continued.

 

H. ADJOURNMENT - Mr. Brockway made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 7:25 p.m. Mr. Torres seconded the motion. The motion CARRIED by unanimous vote with no abstentions.

Respectfully submitted,

Stephanie J. LaSota

Minute Taker