Wolfeboro ZBA denies rehearing request for Poplar Island special-exception decision 3-2
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Summary
The Zoning Board of Adjustment voted 3-2 to deny a request for rehearing of its prior decision on a special exception that concerned additions at 11 Poplar Island, concluding the rehearing petition did not present sufficient new or unlawful grounds to reopen the case.
The Wolfeboro Zoning Board of Adjustment on Aug. — voted 3-2 to deny a request for rehearing of a prior special-exception decision concerning a property on Poplar Island (11 Poplar Island, case 15SC25). The board held the rehearing process is limited to assessing whether the original decision was unlawful or unreasonable or whether new evidence justifies reopening the matter; the motion to deny carried by a 3-to-2 margin.
Board members debated whether the rehearing petition presented new material that would have changed the board’s earlier view. Board member Kate McMahon said she believed the earlier decision’s discussion included characterizations — such as an assertion that two-story houses did not exist on the island — that were not accurate in the record and that new photographs supplied with the rehearing request showed additional context. McMahon said that, on that basis, a rehearing was warranted to ensure the board considered all pertinent evidence.
Other members disagreed. Vice Chairman Audrey Klein and another member explained that special exceptions are granted in locations where the board deems the use appropriate and that the facts before the board at the original hearing (including site visit observations and submitted materials) did not appear substantially different. Klein said the rehearing materials did not present substantially different information that would change the board’s prior legal analysis.
Board staff also noted an administrative point: the rehearing file did not include a separate, explicit agent-authorization letter authorizing the rehearing (the earlier agent authorization covered the initial application). Staff said the board could make ownership or authorization confirmation a condition before any rehearing were accepted.
After deliberation, the board voted to deny the rehearing request. The chair summarized next steps and reminded parties that appeal options include the New Hampshire Land Use Board of Appeals or superior-court review as allowed by state statute.
