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Planning board recommends clearer enforcement process; posts enforcement article to warrant
Summary
The Planning Board voted to recommend an article that creates a clearer administrative enforcement process for zoning violations and allows the town to use local land-use citations and district-court remedies as part of a stepped enforcement framework.
The Plaistow Planning Board voted Jan. 15 to recommend a new zoning-administration article that establishes a formal administrative enforcement process, including written notices of violation, an informal cure period, local land-use citations, and the ability to seek district-court remedies for persistent violations.
Under the proposed Article 21 replacement, the Board of Selectmen (and a designated administering official) would be authorized to issue warnings and written notices; to use local land-use citations under RSA 676:17; and to pursue cease-and-desist orders or injunctive remedies where necessary. The draft formalizes a staged approach: verbal warning, written notice that specifies corrective actions and a reasonable cure time, and then citation/fines and legal remedies if the violation is not cured.
During the meeting the board discussed the goal of making enforcement more consistent and less costly for the town by enabling administrative citations and district-court actions rather than immediately pursuing superior-court cases. The board also clarified that the administering official may ask for assistance from the police, fire, building inspector and health officer when a complaint raises public-safety or health concerns.
The board voted to post the enforcement article (Z259) to the March 2025 warrant with the Planning Board’s recommendation. One board member abstained from the final vote, saying they had discussed the measure with the Selectmen earlier and preferred to step aside.
What the replacement does: It consolidates existing scattered enforcement references into a single article, specifies a written-notice form and minimal content (identifying the regulation violated, facts constituting the violation, corrective action required and a cure timeframe), authorizes local land-use citations, and clarifies appeal rights to the Zoning Board of Adjustment.
Next steps: If voters adopt the article at town meeting, the Board of Selectmen and town staff will operationalize the notice-and-cure forms and the citation process and will provide training to department staff on the stepped approach.
