Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning Bylaws topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Londonderry planning commission adopts set of bylaw edits and map changes
Summary
The Planning Commission approved multiple edits to the town zoning By-Laws and an updated map, including changes to nonconforming-use approvals, residential-use categories, a 2,000-foot conservation overlay threshold, and an increase in allowable camping occupancy to 60 days.
The Londonderry Planning Commission voted unanimously March 31 to accept a package of proposed edits to the town Zoning By-Laws and to approve an updated map. Brent Bammarito moved to accept the changes; Trevor Powers seconded, and the motion passed unanimously.
The commission discussed and approved specific text and mapping changes submitted by the Zoning Administrator, William Goodwin. Key amendments include a clarification in Section 1302 (Nonconforming uses) allowing the Zoning Administrator to approve minor changes to nonconforming uses; a wording change in Section 2102 (Village Residential Districts) from 'Artist Gallery or Studio' to 'Artist Gallery or Workshop'; raising the Resources Conservation overlay elevation threshold to 2,000 feet and deleting a subsection of the COD overlay; deletion of specified sections on Page 35; and a proposed increase to allowable camping unit occupancy in Section 3005 to 60 days.
The commission also revised the steep-slopes standard (Section 3021) to a 20% slope definition based on the Vermont Center for Geographic Information (VCGI) interactive slope-angle layer and agreed that the Zoning Administrator will provide slope-angle maps to applicants on request. A clarification on sign calculations was adopted allowing multiple-element signs to be measured by drawing separate rectangles around each element and totaling the area. The commission recorded counsel’s guidance that town-plan language describing conservation subdivisions is aspirational and that By-Laws have precedence; the edits were drafted to reflect that guidance.
Next steps noted in the meeting minutes: William Goodwin will draft the revised text to reflect the group's discussion and update boundary language related to Eisenhaur/Breznik conservation boundaries. The commission recorded the vote approving the bylaw edits and map as unanimous.
