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Chatham board weighs lowering FAR, tweaking coverage rules and pervious-surface incentives
Summary
Planning board members debated code changes after a planner’s report: some favored dialing back FAR to address bulk; others urged targeted relief for corner lots and incentives for pervious surfaces and detached garages to reduce variance filings.
Following a planner presentation on variance trends, board members debated several policy directions to reduce the volume of variance requests while preserving neighborhood character.
"To me, the answer is to dial back FAR a bit so that perhaps that's what they bump up against first," the Chair said, arguing a FAR reduction could shift development pressures away from horizontal expansion. Other members worried that increasing building coverage could lead to larger home footprints visible from the street and urged targeted adjustments instead, such as separate treatment for small or corner lots and relief or incentives for detached garages.
Members also discussed stormwater rules and a possible credit for permeable surfaces to reduce lot-coverage impacts; one member noted the difficulties of policing small, incremental changes (patios, paving) that increase coverage over time. The planner agreed to model an across-the-board 2% FAR reduction and to analyze effects by lot size, and to bring back findings before any formal ordinance recommendation to borough council.
