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Date: 1/17/2023
WESTHAMPTON – John Shaw and the Zoning Bylaw Review Committee (ZBRC) have been meeting for over seven years now, working to update the town’s zoning laws, a task that hasn’t been done in a long time.
“You’re looking at a document that goes back 28 years,” Shaw said last week, referring to the existing zoning bylaws. “We’re correcting 28 years of doing nothing.”
In a meeting with the Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) discussion revealed that significant sections of the zoning bylaws see little or no substantial change, being under the purview of the commonwealth. The rules for housing for the handicapped and elderly are an example, along with most all requirements for new towers for utility companies. As a result, town officials will need to weigh changes to only some of the town’s bylaws, which will then go to Annual Town Meeting to be voted on by residents.
The ZBRC heard the same concerns raised by Planning Board and ZBA members as were raised by stakeholders in the past. The expanded role of the zoning enforcement officer and a proposed Table 1 that will codify who needs a permit and from which organizations, drew discussion. Also questioned were new guidelines for accessory apartments, both existing and proposed, legal and not, that showed a lot of green ink in the latest print-out. Green print indicated proposed law changes.
ZBA member Laurie Sanders questioned the concentration of power in the hands of the zoning enforcement officer. Under the zoning rewrite, the zoning officer performs triage, determines whether someone needs a special permit, must submit more information, or do nothing at all. The intent is for the zoning officer to run interference for town boards and expedite the delivery of services for residents.
According to Shaw, nobody should meet with a board before they meet with the zoning officer. The zoning officer will know the correct answer, whereas a board member may not.
“That’s a lot of responsibility for the zoning officer,” Sanders said. “So it’s important that person have … no conflict of interest.”
Shaw said, “You’re right, we’re going to put a lot of pressure on two people. But we’re not alone in this. If you look at other towns, all these responsibilities go to the building inspector.”
The zoning inspector can no longer be a volunteer position, Shaw said.
If adopted by voters at Annual Town Meeting, accessory dwelling bylaws will see significant changes. Jennifer Milikowsky, a Planning Board member, asked where all the restrictions came from. Why a size limit of 900 square feet?
“Mostly it’s done because you don’t want it to be larger than the actual house itself,” Shaw said. “It’s an opportunity for older people … and gives income to some people who would have to leave Westhampton if they didn’t use part of their house as an accessory apartment.”
Questions arose about micro-sized or tiny houses. Can those be considered an accessory apartment? No, they cannot, Shaw explained, because a tiny house will still need to be on its own lot of at least 50,000 square feet. Two tiny houses wouldn’t be allowed, except by special permit.
Milikowsky also sought to clarify whether an accessory apartment will change a residence into a two-family under the new bylaws. Will existing apartments, that do not meet code, be allowed to remain in use? Shaw replied that two-family dwellings will be under the purview of a different section of the bylaw, which won’t see much change under the new rules.
“We have illegal apartments all over town,” Shaw said. “Can we do anything about the ones that are already there? No. We’re not trying to prohibit it, just that the ones that are already there are better regulated.”
Illegal apartments need to be more regulated for safety reasons, Shaw said, and are supposed to be taxed.
The zoning bylaws for home businesses will be modernized. Milikowski clarified for the gathering that home businesses aren’t being limited, only that each must have a special permit if they grow past a certain size.
“It’s not that you can’t have a larger business at your home, it’s just that you have to have a permit … with three full-time employees,” Milikowski said.
Westhampton is a right-to-farm community, which impacts some of the functions of a farm, including the milling of lumber. The new bylaw governing sawmills was discussed, including that farmers in a right-to-farm community won’t be governed by the new bylaws. It doesn’t matter for farmers whether the mill is stationary or portable, or how much use it gets.
The new regulations will only apply to sawmills owned by non-farmers, which come in two types, permanent and moveable. Moveable sawmills will be able to operate up to 30 days at one location. After 30 days they migrate into the category of permanent or fixed sawmills and will see greater regulation.
Shaw, chair of the ZBRC, acknowledged officials must be careful when ruling on sawmills. The right-to-farm designation and limits on use will need to be carefully adhered to when the Planning Board and ZBA make decisions. When asked, Shaw also commented that, as in the past, if the zoning officer makes a mistake an applicant may appeal the decision.
Sanders saw the bylaw rewrite as an opportunity to look at the town, what people like about it, and work to preserve and nurture those elements.
“The bylaw provisions from 1975 onward, all the surveys, what do you value about Westhampton, it’s rural landscape, scenic views,” Sanders said. “How can we take that vision of what people appreciate now” and make it concrete?
After seven years of work on the zoning bylaws, Shaw and the ZBRC are answering the questions of town officials. At Town Meeting those officials will know how to answer questions from voters.
“I’ll be honest with you,” Shaw said. “This is our final time through this … We’ll reduce the package to go to a public hearing [and] we’re literally going through it, page by page.”