Minutes
NEWMARKET ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MEETING
AUGUST 22, 2016
MINUTES
Present: Chris Hawkins (Chairman), Wayne Rosa (Vice Chairman), Diane Hardy (Zoning Administrator), Bob Daigle, Jonathan Kiper, Steven Minutelli (Alternate)
Absent: Richard Shelton, James Drago, Bill Barr (all excused)
Called to order: 7:02 p.m.
Adjourned: 7:14 p.m.
Agenda Item #1 – Pledge of Allegiance
Agenda Item #2 – Review & approval of minutes: 03/28/16
Action
Motion: Bob Daigle made a motion to accept the minutes as transmitted
Second: Wayne Rosa
Vote: All in favor
Agenda Item #3 – Regular Business
Jane Rosa/Paul & Sally Rosa - Public hearing for an application for a Variance from Section 3.01, of the Newmarket Zoning Ordinance, to permit the subdivision of a residential lot containing approximately 4 acres, with road frontage of 37.85 feet, where a frontage of 200 feet is required. The new lot will share a driveway with the property at 340 Wadleigh Falls Road. The applicant also requests the Zoning Board confirm that the remaining land will remain a non-conforming lot. The property is located at 342 Wadleigh Falls Road, Tax Map R5, Lot 81, R1 Zone.
Wayne Rosa recused himself.
Attorney Jim Schulte represented the applicants. He asked to continue the hearing.
The existing 45 acre lot is nonconforming. It does not have 200’ of frontage. They are proposing to remove about 37’ of frontage and that will increase the nonconformity. They will need to request a second variance, which was not included with this application. He will submit an amended application by the end of the week.
Chairman Hawkins stated they will need one more Zoning Board member to be present at the next meeting.
Action
Motion: Steven Minutelli made a motion to continue the application to September 12, 2016 at 7:00 p.m.
Second: Bob Daigle
Vote: All in favor
Agenda Item #4 – Other Business
Wayne Rosa came back to sit as a Board member.
Chairman Hawkins stated there had been an appeal of one of the Board’s decisions by Waterway Realty. The Board’s decision was affirmed by the Superior Court. The Court’s decision contained some observations they will discuss briefly now.
Bob Daigle stated the Court commented the Board made a motion to deny, because it did not hold to the spirit of the ordinance. The judge indicated it was a moot point after the fact. Bob Daigle stated he was trying to figure out the logic of what that was about.
Chairman Hawkins stated the Court found the Zoning Board made a mistake, but it did not have any impact on the outcome of the application. There were three different variances involved in the application. The Board granted one of them to make the existing conditions on the property conforming. The four residential units that are there now would be allowed to continue. Once the Board cleaned up that issue, the Board went on, while debating the other variances, as if there was still a nonconforming condition on the property. In granting the first variance, the Board had cleaned up that issue. They should not have treated it as nonconforming any longer. They were using a “double negative”. It didn’t change the outcome, but it was an error in reasoning the Court pointed out. He discussed this with the Town Attorney and transmitted what the attorney had said about it to the rest of the Board. It was a little bit of a slip on the Board’s part, but it did not have any impact on the final decision. The Court was sympathetic to the way they reviewed the spirit of the ordinance piece, too. They found the reasoning was correct. There was just a technical error on the way they went about analyzing it. He stated, at the end of the day, they reached the right decision for the right reasons.
The property went up for sale, while the appeal was still pending.
The time for the applicant to appeal to the Supreme Court has expired.
Agenda Item #5 – Adjourn
Action
Motion: Wayne Rosa made a motion to adjourn at 7:14 p.m.
Second: Bob Daigle
Vote: All in favor