The Planning Board will host three virtual public hearings Tuesday evening, two of them on proposed zoning bylaw amendments and the other a continuation of an earlier session on a request for the removal of trees.
Access to all of the hearings is through this link: https://zoom.us/j/94574493219?pwd=T0lIbnhPbmVUWVZhVTRWT2RRa0F3UT09. The password is 714579.
Both zoning amendments are expected to be included on the May 15 annual town meeting warrant. And for one of them, the context will be dramatically changed.
The Planning Board is proposing allowing construction of accessory dwelling units on residential lots under certain conditions. And thanks to recently-approved legislation, town meeting approval will require only a simple majority.
This change was specifically designed to make it easier to expand housing, so other zoning changes still require at least a two-thirds majority for approval. That will apply to the other amendment on Monday’s agenda – an overlay district that will provide for assisted living facilities.
Accessory apartments have been allowed under local zoning for many years, but only when within or attached to the main house. The amendment would give the go-ahead for a detached dwelling on the lot, subject to size and setback criteria.
If this sounds familiar, it should. The proposal was first presented at a special town meeting in November 2019. After it fell short by a few votes of the two-thirds required, the Planning Board added a provision for site-plan review with abutter notification.
A public hearing on that version took place a little more than a year ago, but ultimately the warrant article was indefinitely postponed as part of the effort to streamline the 2020 town meeting, conducted in the shadow of the pandemic.
The hearing on the overlay district emanates from a proposal to build an assisted living complex on South Road at Evergreen Avenue.
The tree hearing, which opened on Jan. 12, addresses a proposal by Eversource to remove 31 trees on or near Page Road to preclude possible damage to electric lines. The hearing is hosted jointly by the Planning Board and the tree warden because Page Road is designated as a “scenic road.”
Mike Rosenberg can be reached at [email protected], or 781-983-1763
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