Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Home Occupation 5 Birch topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board OKs waivers and sets public hearing for holistic home-occupation at 5 Birch Street
Summary
The Planning Board found the application complete and granted waivers for landscaping and lighting for a proposed one-on-one holistic healing studio at 5 Birch Street, and scheduled a public hearing for Aug. 12 to resolve parking and hours details.
The Saco Planning Board on July 1 granted waivers for a landscaping plan and a lighting plan and found the home-occupation application for a holistic healing studio at 5 Birch Street complete. The board scheduled a public hearing for Aug. 12 and requested additional information on parking dimensions and operating hours.
Applicant Nicole, who owns the house at 5 Birch Street, said she plans primarily one-on-one sessions and may occasionally hold meditation groups of three or four people, and that she intends to use a side entrance to minimize front-door traffic. She told the board she installed motion-sensor lighting at the side entrance to improve visitor safety.
Staff noted that the use category does not map precisely to the municipal parking table and that the underlying single-family dwelling requires two parking spaces; board members asked the applicant to clarify driveway dimensions so the board can determine whether additional parking will be required for any group sessions. Member Jeff Brochu flagged inconsistent driveway dimension figures in the packet and asked the applicant to provide accurate measurements and to state mutually agreeable weekend hours if group sessions are to be allowed.
After discussion, the board voted 4–0 to grant the waivers for landscaping and lighting, voted 4–0 to find the application complete, and set a public hearing for Aug. 12. Members asked staff and the applicant to supply corrected driveway dimensions and a proposed hours-of-operation condition before that hearing.
