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Henniker planning board sends amended ‘cottage cluster’ zoning to ballot after debate over fire safety and unit size
Summary
After public comment and discussion about fire access, unit sizes and water/sewer connections, the Henniker Planning Board voted to place an amended cottage-cluster zoning article on the ballot, raising minimum separation to 15 feet and capping net floor area at 1,500 sq ft.
The Henniker Planning Board voted to send an amended cottage-cluster zoning article to the ballot after a public hearing that centered on fire-safety access, unit size limits and whether the town can require connections to municipal water and sewer.
Mark (speaker 8), who presented the draft, told the board the ordinance as written set a 10-foot minimum separation between units and allowed a net floor area up to 1.5 times the main level, which staff said limits cottages to 1,500 square feet. The draft also proposed options for larger units and a provision about converting up to 50% of basements into living area; the board agreed to remove the 50%-basement option and to limit net floor area to a 1,500-square-foot maximum.
Fire Chief Morse (speaker 9) urged caution about very tight spacing, saying narrow separations reduce access and fighting ability on wind-driven fires and that sprinklers and building-code measures are typically handled at site-plan or building-permit review. "You know, it's our only fighting chance, on a wind driven night to put out these buildings," Chief Morse said. Board members and staff said the fire marshal advised not to duplicate building-code requirements in zoning and that site-specific reviews would address suppression and access.
Public commenters raised affordability and infrastructure concerns. Tia Hooper, a local resident, said the board should consider mandating water and sewer connections for units within the service area because the town faces a major sewer upgrade in 2040. "If they are in a distance that is close to water and sewer, they should be mandated to connect," Hooper said. Mark Sawyer and other residents urged clearer caps on how many larger units a developer could include to avoid undermining affordability goals.
After discussion the board agreed to change separation from 10 to 15 feet for the draft, require units be within the town water and sewer service area if the district is used, count basement living area toward the 1,500-square-foot maximum, and remove the 50%-basement conversion allowance. A motion moved the amended article forward to the ballot; the motion passed with recorded opposition from at least two board members who said more vetting was needed.
Why it matters: The change lets voters decide whether to adopt a zoning option that aims to add smaller ownership opportunities in town while leaving detailed safety and infrastructure provisions to site-plan review and building-code enforcement. If approved by voters, the amendment would add a new option for denser, condominiumized cottage clusters in parts of town served by municipal water and sewer.
The planning board closed the hearing and placed the amended article on the ballot; the article will appear before voters as scheduled by town election procedures.
