The Zoning Board denied a variance request allowing for a seven-unit development at 27 Columbian Ave., which would have been on a parcel less than half the size allowed.
The development, proposed by Adam Ames, would have put in a seven-unit open space residential development on a 7-acre lot in the residential zone. The site is almost entirely wooded, with a large area of wetlands in the center of the lot. The property already has an existing duplex on it.
Under the town’s zoning ordinance, a development that size would require at least 20 acres of land and 250 feet of frontage. The proposed site had neither, with just over 7.3 acres and 234 feet of frontage on Columbian Avenue.
“I would say the biggest issue was the amount of relief being sought,” said ZBA administrative assistant and Town Administrator Tara Sousa. “The ordinance calls for 20 acres to do that type of development; this is seven. He was seeking a substantial amount of relief that was not intended when the ordinance was developed.”
In the application, Chuck Ritchie, the project engineer for the proposed development, argued that a conventional subdivision would require the construction of a length of road and be more expensive to build and maintain. He said an open-space development would preserve the wooded hillside and wetland, and be a residential use in a residential neighborhood.
“The general purpose of the ordinance is to provide as much open space to be protected as possible for conservation, passive recreation and aesthetic purposes. Requiring the parent lot for an open-space residential development to have a minimum of 20 acres limits potential lots that could provide additional open space,” Ritchie said.
In a separate case decided Monday, the board granted a variance to allow additional signs on the fuel canopy at the Country Mile, and to allow them to be illuminated.
Typically, only two signs are allowed on a commercial property, one free-standing and one mounted. Artificial illumination is permitted, but only after review and approval by the Planning Board.
In his application, Peter March stated the Country Mile, which includes a convenience store, liquor store and gas station, has replaced its gas canopy and installed a new diesel canopy, and asked the board to allow illuminated signs on the canopy faces.
“The viability of the station is dependent on the gas component of the business,” March stated in his application. “For gas stations, the name of the site and the price of gas are two critical elements to the success of a station.”
March also argued that the town’s code didn’t take into account a site that offered multiple operations within the same site.
“Granting this variance will be unique to this site in this specific vicinity; no other business in this area has this many distinct operations, each in need of signage,” March wrote.
Ashley Saari can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.