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Planning Board backs technical solar and secondary-dwelling edits, takes no action on several citizen zoning and short-term rental articles
Summary
At a Jan. 30 special meeting, the Nantucket Planning Board voted positive recommendations for two zoning technical amendments (solar definitions/accessory uses and a secondary-dwelling fix) and mostly declined to endorse citizen-sponsored zoning or short-term rental articles, instead directing further review or deferring to Town Meeting.
The Planning Board on Thursday, Jan. 30, recommended approval of technical changes to the town zoning bylaw that define and place roof- and ground-mounted solar systems as accessory uses and approved a separate correction to the secondary‑dwelling definition, but the board declined to give positive recommendations on several citizen-sponsored zoning articles and a proposal to regulate short-term rentals, opting instead to take no action or continue hearings to give proponents more time to refine proposals.
The solar article, presented by Lauren (planning staff), "in a nutshell" adds new definitions for "solar photovoltaic system," "grid connected solar energy system," "roof mounted solar energy system" and "ground mounted solar energy system" and clarifies that "ground mounted solar, does not count towards ground cover by putting it in the definition of structure," while requiring compliance with normal setbacks. The board voted to give the solar bylaw amendment a positive recommendation; staff said the changes came from a consultant review to codify current practice and reduce ambiguity for applicants.
Why it matters: The solar edits aim to make permitting more transparent and to clarify how ground‑mounted arrays are treated for ground‑cover and setback calculations, which affects homeowners and property developers proposing installations across districts. The secondary‑dwelling amendment corrects a suspected copy‑paste error in the bylaw and removes language that incorrectly tied the secondary‑dwelling definition to ground‑cover rules.
Board action and context - Solar bylaw amendment (definitions, accessory use status for roof/ground systems): board gave a positive recommendation; motion and subsequent roll‑call vote recorded the board members present voting aye. Planning staff said the change would allow roof‑mounted systems to be explicitly allowed as accessory uses in all…
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