HomeMy WebLinkAbout1983-01-311
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PLANNING BOARD MINUTES
MEETING OF JANUARY 31, 1983
The meeting of the Lexington Planning Board, held
called to order at 7:17 p.m. by the Chairman, Mrs
Sandy, Sorensen, Uhrig and Planning Director Bowyer
COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING, POLICIES
in Room G-15, Town Offices, was
Smith, with members Nichols,
present.
17. Accessory Apartments, Draft of Article: Chairman Steven Clark, Cornelius
Cronin, Jean Gaudet, George McCormick and Margaret Rawls of the Accessory Apart-
ments Committee were present for a discussion, prior to the Board and the Committee
meeting with the Board of Selectmen later in the evening.
Chairman Smith explained that, in response to a request from the Board of Select-
men, an updated version of the Issues Analysis paper had been sent to them. This
version was a distillation of the questionnaire which each member of the Board had
completed. It was not a Planning Board position, but was a working paper for dis-
cussion purposes. She apologized to Mr. Sandy that his view on the "by right vs.
discretionary" issue was not identified in the working paper.
Mrs. Rawls and Mr. Bowyer explained that they had collaborated on a preliminary
draft of an article which essentially transposed the proposal of the Committee into
the format of the Zoning By -Law. In several places, there are alternative
approaches or language which are identified as Mr. Bowyer's suggestion. Both Mr.
Bowyer and Mrs. Rawls reported on discussions with Steve Anderson, of Palmer and
Dodge. Mr. Anderson's observation was that there should be consistency in the pro-
cedures for either the "matter of right"/Building Commissioner route or the special
permit/Board of Appeals route. He noted that there were some elements of each in
the alternative proposals and that the courts would be more likely to rule in favor
if a procedure was consistent. In other words, the Building Commissioner route
should not have some of the discretionary procedures or notification procedures
characteristic of a special permit.
Discussion continued, with clarification of some of the procedures proposed in the
latest draft.
In an informal poll of the Board, Mr. Sandy, Mr. Sorensen and Mrs. Uhrig favor the
"by right"/Building Commissioner approach and Mrs. Nichols and Mrs. Smith favor the
Board of Appeals route.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:09 p.m.
dith J. Uhr' Clerk
SET