Members Present: Paul Currier, Acting Chairman; Randall Costa, Vice Chair; Dave Blinn ExOfficio; Doug Phelps, Art Urie, and Randy Monti, Planning Board Members

Zoning Administrator Report
Moyer asked the Board for confirmation that a building permit cannot be issued for a property on Maple Street until a Shoreline Permit Application was completed and granted by the State. The Board discussed and agreed that the Shoreline Permit must be taken care of prior to the issuance of a building permit.  

Select Board /Dave Blinn

• The Select Board has three priority road projects that are being worked on, including Switch Road, Last Street Bridge, and Old College Road.

• Blinn reported that the new Town Website is up as of today. There are, however, some tweaks to work out.  

• The Board asked whether the new website will have a feature and the capacity for in-house communication between boards similar to a Dropbox or Google doc programs.  Blinn said he was not sure, but he will check and confirm.

• 403 Main Street Property Clean-up Concern- Blinn indicated there was progress on this property being cleaned up by the property owner. The property owner is under strict court supervision to have the property cleaned up. A couple of the vehicles have been removed and the front yard has a big section cleared. There were two filled dumpsters removed with the property debris.

• Software Project Tracking Program – The Board is looking into software programs that will track “projects” for not only the highway department, but other departments such as the transfer station.  The Board is also resurrecting the old work order and purchasing orders used previously. All equipment will be inventoried.

• Transfer Station Manager Position – There was an applicant that applied for this position. The Board is looking into some changes such as rotating Saturdays.

• Ruggles Mine Sign – Blinn started researching whose property the sign is on.  Moyer indicated that she determined that the sign is on the Gross property next to Ragged Mountain Fish and Game Club. She spoke to Gross at the Transfer Station this morning. Gross will contact the owner about having the sign taken down.

Mary Anne  Broshek/ Proposed Process for an in-law apartment conversion to an accessory dwelling unit

Broshek’s in-law apartment was approved in the 1990’s by the Planning Board. Under the Zoning Ordinance, there is only one dwelling unit per land parcel unless the Zoning Board of Adjustment grants a variance. At that time, Broshek’s in-law apartment approval stipulated that once her mother no longer resided in that apartment, it could no longer be used as an apartment or a rental unit.  

Recently, the Town amended the Zoning Ordinance to allow Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU) as a way to deal with this issue. Currier and Moyer discussed what the best process should be in resolving Broshek’s issue, and similar issues as they come up in the future. Currier and Moyer determined that the process should start with a building permit application and then review the ADU requirements to see if this existing apartment meets the requirements in the Zoning Ordinance for an ADU. If it does, then a building permit would be issued, and a certificate of completion issued for the existing apartment. Moyer reviewed the ADU regulations along with Broshek’s property file and determined it complies with the ADU regulations. Moyer sent Broshek an application, but as of tonight has not gotten a response.

Public Hearing on the Amended Subdivision Regulations

Currier opened the public hearing at 7:30 PM. There was no one in attendance from the public. Currier closed the public hearing at 8 PM.

Paul Currier Report

• Electronic emails – Currier encouraged all Board members to provide copies of substantive electronic communications to be filed in the property files as part of the official records.   

• Zoning Administrator – Currier questioned who oversees the Zoning Administrator in respect to the issuance of building permits. Currier did not find anything in the statute of our Zoning Ordinance. Currier explained that the Town Administrator supervises employees, not the Board. The Select Board oversees the enforcement of the Zoning Ordinance. The Board discussed and agreed that it is logical that the Planning Board oversees the Zoning Administrator pertaining to the issuance of building permits. Currier’s opinion on this issue is that because there is nothing in the Zoning Ordinance or in the Statutes indicating this, it should go to Town Meeting. Another option would be to put it into the Rules of Procedures. Urie agreed that it should be put into the Rules of Procedure. If it is put into the Rules of Procedures, other items such as correspondence filing and the process for turning a former in-law apartment into an ADU could also be addressed there.

Urie made the motion to adopt additions for the Rules of Procedure. Phelps seconded the motion. All in favor. Motion passed. This will be an ongoing process with similar additions in the Rules of Procedures as they arise. Moyer will draft.

The Board discussed incorporating the sign ordinance in to the Zoning Ordinance. The Board discussed whether the Select Board can delegate it to the Planning Board similarly as the Planning Board delegated the driveway permits to the Road Agent. Blinn will talk with Roy to see if the Planning Board can administer, similar to the Planning Board delegating the driveway permits to the Road Agent.

Currier spoke to the Board about the previous meeting, that the perception might be that combining the minor and major subdivision applications might be an increased burden on the applicant, which is not what we want to accomplish. Currier suggested that possibly it would be better to put the applications back to the original form and have two separate applications. Currier further explained that the process would remain the same as always, but the instructions would be cleaned up.
Costa will work on this task in the next couple of weeks. The Board can then decide to adopt it after it is digitized and cleaned up. This would not require a second public hearing, as it is not a substantive change to the proposed regulations.

Urie made the motion to take the combined minor and major subdivision application procedure back into the original forms of a separate application for minor and major application procedures. Phelps seconded the motion. All in favor. Motion passed.

The Board reviewed and discussed the following on the Near Term Items Task List for 2018:

• Zoning Ordinance – Update and publish with Amendments approved at 2017 and 2018 Town Meeting – Completed

• Subdivision Regulations – Clean up and publish subdivision applications with revisions – In the process

• PB, ZBA, and SB – Hold a combined meeting to review the Special Exception revised process and criteria so all are in agreement on the process. Blinn will contact Dan Coolidge for his input. It was the consensus of the Board that a meeting is not needed currently.   

• Andover School Subdivision – Currier inquired as to whether this property has been subdivided, then recorded at the Merrimack County Registry of Deeds. Blinn will look into this.

• Town Exempt from Permits – Currier Is concerned with the Town being exempt from the permitting process and there being no record of the work being done or of adherence by the Town to the performance standards of the Zoning Ordinance and other land use regulations. Even though the Town is exempt, Currier felt that it would be a good paper trail for these projects and the Town should lead by example. Currie’s concern is with the Road Agent excavating materials without a restoration plan and the property subdivision of Town Hall and the School without a recorded subdivision plan. Currier would like to have a formal agreement for the Select Board to consult with the Planning Board and Zoning Administrator which will generally follow established performance standards and procedures for excavation, building permits, and subdivisions such as the Town Hall. Blinn will discuss this with the Select Board. If the Select Board agrees, he will draft a Memo of Understanding of Procedures for the Town to follow.   

• Ragged Mountain Fish and Game Club – The Board discussed that this item should be a priority due to the most of the residents are summer residents only. Costa suggested meeting with the Town Attorney to review the present situation and the merits of possible negotiation with the Club of an Unlisted Special exception that would have the essential aspects of a planned unit subdivision.

This could be scheduled either at a regular Board meeting or another convenient time for the Town Attorney. Costa will work on a proposed outline. Additionally, Costa requested that the Board budget for legal expenses in 2019 budget for items that come up such as this one.