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Board sets public hearing for April 15 on Gumwood Drive flood‑plain variances after preliminary legal debate
Summary
The board set a public hearing for April 15 to consider area-variance requests affecting lots in flood‑plain and watershed overlay districts on Gumwood Drive. Counsel and staff debated whether the zoning board could hear the application before planning-board flood‑plain and road-elevation issues are resolved.
The board scheduled a public hearing for April 15 on area‑variance requests for 6 Gumwood Drive and a nearby lot that lie within multiple overlay districts, including the flood‑plain, stream‑corridor and reservoir watershed overlays.
The hearing will matter because the requests implicate flood‑plain regulations and whether relief should be granted when existing access roads lie below the regulatory flood elevation, a condition that triggers additional procedural steps and may limit the board’s authority.
At the meeting, participants discussed whether the zoning board could legally grant relief or whether the application should be addressed only after planning‑board flood‑plain review. One participant named Tringham (appearing as counsel in the exchange) told the board he believed the applicant had a right to appear and that the board could act but cautioned about precedent: "I believe you can act I believe that act would be counter to what the design of the board is and would create a situation where it would nullify that section of the code and and that would, be a precedent that would, open the floodgates," he said. Board members and staff suggested the application should proceed to a public hearing so the public can comment and technical staff (including the town engineer and planning staff) can provide input.
Applicant representatives said their plan includes raising lot elevations above the flood elevation for individual house sites but that they cannot raise the existing town roads to the same elevation; they therefore seek relief from the code section that would otherwise bar site-plan review where road access is below flood elevation. The board discussed the distinction between dimensional (lot-level) relief and legislative changes to code and asked the applicant to submit a written memo addressing the five statutory criteria the board will use to evaluate a variance.
The board motioned, seconded and voted to set the matter for public hearing on April 15 at 7:30 p.m. Several board members suggested inviting the town engineer and planning counsel to the hearing to provide technical guidance.
