Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning Rewrite topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Town of Chester planning consultant outlines comprehensive zoning rewrite, next steps for public review
Summary
At a work session, the planner reviewed proposed zoning code redlines covering definitions, cluster/SR6 housing rules, ridgeline protections, land-disturbance permitting and the public-referral schedule; the board was asked to review redlines and prepare for 239 referrals and a September public hearing window.
The planner for the Town of Chester presented a package of zoning code revisions and a timetable for public review during a work session. The revisions include consolidated definitions, updated bulk tables, a revised land-disturbance permit scheme, cluster/SR6 bedroom-mix rules, and new language addressing ridgeline protections, solar arrays, and battery storage.
The planner said she has broken the code into chapter-by-chapter redlines, will circulate them via Dropbox for internal comment, and is asking for a short review window so the board can introduce the amendments and the updated comprehensive plan for public review. She recommended a referral under section 239 to adjacent municipalities, Orange County Department of Planning, and the state agencies that review agricultural impacts.
Why it matters: the redlines are intended to modernize the town's zoning, remove redundant definitions, and consolidate standards into clearer sections so applicants and inspectors have a single place to find requirements. The planner emphasized that changes to bulk tables and definitions can create nonconformities if area thresholds change, so she recommended leaving acreage in the bulk table rather than hardcoding it in some definitions.
Key details: the planner proposed replacing fragmented language on excavation and quarrying with a unified land-disturbance and filling-and-grading permit scheme; pulling SR6 cluster bedroom-count rules into the cluster section; and consolidating solar and battery-storage provisions into a single set of standards with decommissioning/bond requirements for large-scale projects.
Process and timeline: the planner said she will circulate redlines, give internal reviewers roughly two weeks to comment, then introduce the package for public review and the required 239 referrals. She suggested scheduling public hearings after the summer (September) to maximize participation, noting planning-board review timelines (62 days) and the 30-day statutory windows for referrals.
Next steps: board members were asked to return comments on the redlines when circulated and to expect a public-review schedule tied to the town's moratorium and referral calendar. The meeting concluded with a motion to adjourn; a vote was called but the transcript does not record the result.
