More than a dozen proposed zoning amendments, including updates to wetland protections and workforce housing, could come before voters at May Town Meeting.
During a workshop on Monday, the Planning Board reviewed the proposed amendments, in preparation for a public hearing, scheduled for Feb. 25.
One of the articles that would make the most substantive proposed changes would amend the town’s workforce housing ordinance.
“This is probably our biggest issue, and we need to figure out how to deal with this,” Community Development Director Peter Throop told the Planning Board.
He said the current ordinance was “unusable” because it was too vague in certain areas.
Under the current ordinance, workforce housing is allowed in all districts where residential uses are allowed. The proposed amendment clarifies multi-family units are allowed in any district that permits multi-family housing, and in the rural district, though in the rural district, there may only be one multi-family building per lot.
The amendment would also eliminate the criteria for a conditional use permit for workforce housing, which requires there be “no diminution of surrounding property values.”
“I know people like it, but there’s no way to prove it,” Throop said.
The amendment would also require workforce housing be considered “affordable” for a period of at least 25 years, which can be extended by the Planning Board in 10-year increments if the board determines there is a continued demand for workforce housing. Previously, the ordinance required it be affordable for an unspecified “period of time.”
During Monday’s meeting, the board did not discuss in detail an amendment relating to the criteria for special exceptions. The board decided to wait for the proposed language to be finalized before reviewing it.
The proposed amendment would shorten the list of criteria for special exceptions. Under the new proposed language, the use could be granted a special exception if the character of the site is appropriate, it’s not detrimental or offensive to the neighborhood, it’s not detrimental to the aesthetic of the neighborhood, there will be no undue nuisances or serious hazards to pedestrians or traffic, and there is adequate infrastructure to serve it.
The amendment eliminates multiple, more specific requirements that the Zoning Board must take into account, such as fencing and screening, landscaping, signs and lighting. However, it keeps intact language that allows the Zoning Board to impose any conditions it deems necessary.
In an amendment to the wetland protection overlay zone, the Planning Board has proposed to improve protection of the overlay zone by limiting stormwater management systems to those that meet the town’s conditional use permit requirements.
A full list of the draft proposed zoning amendments are available on the Peterborough town website. The amendments will be reviewed during a public hearing on Feb. 25 at the Peterborough Town Hall at 6:30 p.m.