Wolfeboro Zoning Board grants rehearing for Hemlock Drive variance, schedules Feb. 3

At a continued meeting on Jan. 16, 2025, the Wolfeboro Zoning Board of Adjustment voted unanimously to grant a rehearing for case 15v24, an application from Hayden Wilbur that requests a variance from a municipal water hookup requirement for a property described in the application as “lot 17 327 of 45 Hemlock Drive.” The board set the rehearing for Feb. 3, 2025, at 6 p.m. in Town Hall.

The rehearing request was filed on Dec. 26, 2024, following the board’s prior denial of the same matter on Dec. 2, 2024. During the Jan. 16 session the board consulted with its attorney and limited the meeting’s business to whether to grant or deny the rehearing under the grounds cited by the applicant. Board members cited statutory language as read into the record (transcript references: “17583 a” regarding the municipal water requirement and “6772773” describing rehearing authority). The board did not reopen the underlying variance merits at the Jan. 16 meeting; its recorded action was solely on whether to rehear the case.

Suzanne Ryan, chair, moved to grant the rehearing; a second was recorded. The board then voted by roll call: Jody Persons — yes; Audrey Klein — yes; Kate McMahon — yes; Suzanne Ryan — yes; Chuck Sumner — yes; Sybette Stroman (participating remotely) — yes. The motion passed and the rehearing date and time were established.

The meeting was described on the record as a continuation of the Jan. 6, 2025 session and limited to the rehearing question. The applicant’s earlier filing dates and the board’s prior denial were noted on the record; no additional evidence or testimony was taken at the Jan. 16 session. The board adjourned after the roll call vote.

The rehearing will be the next occasion for the board to consider the variance request in full; the Jan. 16 action returned the matter to the board’s calendar and did not itself alter the underlying denial.