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Alton Planning Board, after attorney review, finds proposed Lakes Hospitality subdivision complies with town zoning
Summary
After a closed-session review of legal advice, the Alton Town Planning Board voted to find the lots in the Lakes Hospitality Group subdivision proposal compliant with sections 4.52(b) and 4.52(d) of the town zoning ordinance and continued the application to March 18 to receive drone footage for sidewalk review.
The Alton Town Planning Board voted Tuesday to find that the lots in the proposed Lakes Hospitality Group subdivision comply with Town zoning sections 4.52(b) and 4.52(d) after the board reviewed legal advice in a nonpublic session and then released that advice to the public.
The ruling matters because it resolves two specific zoning questions raised by an objector — how to measure required frontage and how to calculate required buildable area — clearing the way for the board to continue its substantive review of the subdivision application.
Chairman Bill O'Neil said the board had received a written opinion from the town attorney and asked members at the meeting whether to go into a nonpublic session under RSA 91-A:3 to review legal counsel's advice. The board voted to enter the nonpublic session, then reconvened in public and the chair read the attorney's summary, concluding the applicant's position was "more persuasive for both issues." The attorney's summary, as read by O'Neil, said the town's historical practice measures frontage "along the front line of right of way line regardless of the angle at which the side lot lines meet the front line" and that setbacks were not excluded from the calculation of buildable area under section 4.52(d).
After the attorney's advice was read aloud, O'Neil moved that "lots in question on proposed subdivision are compliant with the Town zoning sections 4.52 b and d despite any objections raised by Cassell." The motion passed. The board did not record a roll-call vote tally in the transcript beyond the chair's call for "All in favor? Aye." The meeting record states only that the motion "carries."
Applicant representative John Cronin told the board the applicants would provide drone footage for the board to review a proposed sidewalk and said, "we can get that to you probably within the week," and consented to continue the public hearing. The board set the next hearing date for March 18 for further review of the sidewalk evidence and any additional materials.
The chair also noted the town engineer's final report remains to be filed and expected to be part of the record before final action on the merits of the subdivision.
The action recorded at the meeting is a legal determination on two zoning interpretation questions and a continuation of the application for evidentiary materials; the board did not adopt final subdivision approval Tuesday.
Looking ahead, the board will consider the drone footage, the town engineer's final report and any further public comment when it reconvenes the matter on March 18.
