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Developer seeks large parking variance for RHF High‑Tech plant; board to forward recommendation to ZBA
Summary
An RHF High‑Tech representative asked the Planning Board for a recommendation on a variance that would reduce required on‑site parking from roughly 420 to about 273 spaces; board members agreed to review the math and forward a recommendation to the Zoning Board of Appeals.
An RHF High‑Tech representative returned to the Planning Board on April 24 seeking a variance to reduce on‑site parking for a manufacturing/warehouse facility and asked the board to recommend the reduction to the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA).
Applicant’s case: RHF representatives said the site currently provides 205 constructed spaces and that the full build‑out plan includes additional areas with room for more parking but the operator estimated peak staffing would remain modest even after additions. The applicant said the expansion adds about 14 employees and the facility will rely heavily on automation; RHF’s representative described an original parking banking strategy and asked for a variance amounting to roughly a 35 percent reduction from the code‑required total.
Board discussion and next steps: Board members probed the operational mix, the amount of warehousing versus office space on the plan, and the applicant’s peak staffing assumptions. The board agreed to examine the submitted parking calculations and to make a recommendation to the ZBA at the next planning‑board meeting. The applicant confirmed an application is in with the ZBA and the board said the next step would be a planning‑board recommendation to support or oppose the requested variance.
What was not decided: The Planning Board did not grant the variance; it is not a decision‑making body for variances. The transcript records that the board will prepare its recommendation to the ZBA and requested additional materials that clarify the parking calculation and the applicant’s employee counts by shift.
Applicant context: The representative said the company is investing in automated equipment and that the nature of the manufacturing and large drive‑through bays limits the amount of regularly used parking on site. The board discussed potential future uses of the vacant land and noted that additional parking could be paved later if uses change, but that a variance — if granted by the ZBA — would run with the property unless the board conditions otherwise.
