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Date: 12/15/2021
EASTHAMPTON – A controversial proposal to change the zoning of a residential property to Highway Business was recently withdrawn by the petitioner.
Members of the City Council’s Ordinance Committee were scheduled to walk the grounds at a site visit on Dec. 11, however City Planner Jeff Bagg confirmed to Reminder Publishing that the request had been withdrawn.
Keith Cernak, owner of 7 Groveland St., had sought the zoning change for the parcel in order for it to match the zoning of three abutting parcels he owns that are currently in the Highway Business district. In addition to the property in question, he owns parcels at the corner of Groveland and Northampton streets, the corner of Mountain View and Northampton streets and the adjoining parcel set back from Northampton Street on Mountain View Street.
The subject had been a discussion point at various meetings, including the City Council Ordinance Committee’s Nov. 30 meeting.
Cernak, an Easthampton native now living in California in order to access medical care for ongoing heart-related ailments, told the committee at that meeting that he had no specific plans for development of the properties. This includes 7 Groveland St., which currently has a house standing on it and in the past had become known for its large display of holiday inflatables. Nearing the end of options to treat his condition, he said he hoped to sell the properties and suggested it would be more palatable to potential buyers if they were all zoned Highway Business.
Abutters, however, voiced opposition to the proposal, including Danielle Martineau who told the Ordinance Committee that a zoning change would open up the residential area on and surrounding Groveland Street to undesirable developments such as fast food restaurants and if such a development were to occur, it could bring with it safety and nuisance issues.
Cernak also pitched to the Ordinance Committee that the properties could be included in the 40R Smart Growth Overlay District if a proposed expansion of that district is approved by the City Council. The 40R district makes allowances to developers in the interest of creating more affordable housing. The city is considering the expansion of the 40R district to include a large portion of the Highway Business district on Northampton, among other adjustments. A joint public hearing with the Ordinance Committee and Planning Board on that topic took place on Dec. 14.
Cernak had also suggested he would be amenable to zoning a portion of 7 Groveland St. to Highway Business while maintaining residential zoning for the rest of the property, however, he told Bagg he intended to pull back plans to rezone any part of that parcel.