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Planning board retains one-year compliance timeline for approvals and adopts tiered wetlands conditional-use fees
Summary
After debate, the Swansea Planning Board voted to keep a one-year requirement for compliance/public hearings tied to site-plan approvals rather than adopt a proposed three-year rule; the board also approved a three-tier wetlands conditional-use application fee structure (residential $25, commercial with site plan $75, commercial without site plan $150) and directed staff to formalize the application form.
The Swansea Planning Board debated proposed edits to site-plan review regulations on April 9 and rejected a draft change that would have extended certain post-approval compliance hearings from one year to three years. The proposal was discussed in the context of RSA 674:39 (statutory language regarding substantial development), but several members said a three-year compliance deadline would delay enforcement and make tracking conditions harder.
Adam Paquette, town planner, reported that the change was suggested to align approval-expiration language with provisions for substantial development. Several planning board members argued the public compliance hearing for conditions should remain within one year so the board's memory of the approval is fresh and enforcement is practical. One member said a three-year delay risks leaving conditions unresolved and complicates enforcement; others argued the board could always grant extensions where appropriate. After discussion a motion to retain the one-year compliance-hearing requirement carried.
Separately, the board voted to adopt a placeholder fee schedule for wetlands conditional-use permit applications so the new application form could "go live." The adopted tiers discussed on the record were: residential conditional-use applications, $25; commercial conditional-use with a site plan, $75; and commercial conditional-use without a site plan, $150. Brandon (board member) moved the motion; it was seconded and the board approved the fee structure and accepted the application format now on file. The board also asked staff to prepare a formal fee proposal for future consideration and noted that fees may be adjusted during a broader fee modernization effort.
The board clarified that the classification of a conditional-use application (residential vs. commercial, with or without a site plan) will determine which tier applies and that staff will present a refined schedule if the town later decides to modernize fees across permit types.
Next steps: Town planner Adam Paquette will finalize the application form and bring any recommended fee-structure refinements to a future meeting.
