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ZBA tables 86 Chapin Terrace rehearing after abutters say they weren’t properly noticed
Summary
The board postponed a rehearing of the 86 Chapin Terrace short-term rental application until Aug. 17 so abutters can be properly noticed after neighbors said they did not receive timely notices. The applicants offered a no-pets condition, but staff recommended tabling to avoid a defective proceeding.
The Laconia Zoning Board of Adjustment on July 20 tabled the rehearing for 86 Chapin Terrace to allow proper notice to abutters, setting the next hearing for Aug. 17 at 6:30 p.m. in City Council Chambers.
Attorney Kate Mahan, representing the owners, told the board that her clients were prepared to accept a single condition addressing the board’s remaining concern: “My clients are willing to say they will not have pets on the property during short-term rentals,” she said, offering that restriction as a condition of approval after the case was remanded from the state Housing Appeals Board. Mahan said the board’s prior deliberations had been fully aired at the state level and that the remand left only conditions for the ZBA to consider.
Neighbors opposed moving forward without notice. Ward representative Mike Conant urged the board to uphold earlier denials, saying the owners had operated the property as a lodging business and were not owner-occupants, while neighbor Timothy Gilligan said several abutters did not receive timely notice and described repeated disruptions from renters: “They don't live there full time and they certainly haven't been there 150 days,” Gilligan said, urging the board to either deny or properly rehear the case.
Assistant Planning Director Tyler Carmichael acknowledged a staff notice error and recommended tabling the matter so all abutters receive mailed notice and can participate. Chair Marsha Hayward said she would recommend tabling; the board agreed and set the rehearing for Aug. 17 at 6:30 p.m., at which point the ZBA can take action with a properly noticed public hearing.
If the board ultimately denies an application on remand, Tyler noted, the state could approve it on appeal; if the ZBA imposes conditions, those conditions will be part of the local record. The board’s decision to table was procedural: it does not decide the merits, only that the next hearing will be noticed so abutters can fully participate.
