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Goshen Zoning Board Grants Limited Variances for Rehearing on Two Lots
Summary
On Feb. 17 the Goshen Zoning Board of Appeals granted five limited area variances in a rehearing for an application by Harnes Estates LLC affecting two preexisting lots (recorded as 6 and 8 Gumbel Drive; the transcript also once refers to Cutler Drive). The board preserved floodplain and planning-board review and instructed counsel to draft findings.
Goshen — The Zoning Board of Appeals on Feb. 17 granted five limited area variances following a rehearing of an application by Harnes Estates LLC concerning two preexisting lots identified in the record as 6 and 8 Gumbel Drive (the address is once referred to as Cutler Drive in the hearing record).
Board counsel opened deliberations by reading the five variance requests and the statutory five‑factor balancing test the board must apply under town law. The requests included: a reduced stream setback (about 70 feet instead of the 100 feet otherwise required); recognition of preexisting lot sizes of approximately 15,500 square feet under the aquifer-overlay rules; limited relief to allow constrained lands (including some floodplain areas) to be excluded from minimum lot‑size calculations (town code §97‑15 B5); limited relief from the 30% open‑space set‑aside requirement (§97‑15 B6); and a clarification limiting any relief from the floodplain overlay (§97‑25).
Counsel told the board: "No overlay district is being waived in its entirety," and repeatedly emphasized that planning‑board site‑plan review and building‑department and FEMA rules would still apply to any future development on the parcels. After discussing the engineer's memorandum and earlier hearing record, the board moved and voted to grant the variances in limited form. One motion read into the record moved to "permit a reduced stream setback from approximately 70 feet where a 100 feet is otherwise required," and was approved by voice vote.
The board also voted to recognize the preexisting lot sizes for aquifer‑overlay purposes while maintaining other aquifer protections, granted limited relief on how constrained lands are treated in lot‑area calculations, and approved limited relief from the 30% open‑space requirement. At the same time, the board clarified that no variance would be granted that waives floodplain development rules; planning‑board and code‑enforcement review remain required.
Votes were taken by voice; the record reflects the motions were seconded and approved (the transcript records votes as "Aye" rather than a roll‑call of individual members). Counsel was authorized to draft a written decision and findings reflecting the board's determinations and the limitations the board placed on the relief.
Why it matters: The board's limited variances remove certain regulatory obstacles for development of preexisting lots while preserving downstream environmental and procedural safeguards via planning‑board review and floodplain regulations. The decisions do not waive overlay protections wholesale; instead, they narrow relief to specific, quantified allowances the board said were necessary to permit reasonable use of the lots.
Next steps: Counsel will prepare the written draft decision for the record. Any future site design, grading or environmental compliance issues will return to the planning board and building‑department reviews before construction can proceed.
