Rochester’s Zoning Board of Appeals on July 27 shot down Building Commissioner Paul Boucher’s Cease and Desist order against the operation of a transportation company at 15 County Road.
In response to an appeal of that order filed by homeowner Scot Machos, the ZBA overturned what Boucher said he issued after responding to a neighbor’s complaint and concluding that, under town bylaws, the resident’s transportation business was not an allowed use in a residential zone.
Abutter Christine Murphy of 19 County Road said she and her husband lodged the complaint because of what they see daily. The driveway of 15 County points at their window, and Murphy said Machos and his family are constantly going in and out of their driveway and making noise while vacuuming and cleaning their vehicles.
Machos said he utilizes three non-commercial, hybrid Toyotas for his transportation business. The drivers are all family members, and all the transportation work is done off site. Town Counsel Elizabeth Lydon said the bylaw allows home businesses, and tradespeople may park their work trucks at their homes. What to look for, Lydon said, is when employees, people who don’t live there, visit the address as part of the business.
Zoning Board member Michelle Upton paved the way for the board’s decision by noting the resident does have a right to run this type of business from his home if the majority of the business is done off site. “I don’t see anything that goes against this bylaw,” Upton said.
Board member Donald Spirlet said he agrees with Upton and wished Boucher had given further explanation of the reasons for his decision. Yet, Spirlet added, he might have made the same decision if he were the town’s building commissioner. “His job is to look at things in black and white,” Spirlet said. “For us, it’s more about the intent and the subtleties.”
The final motion to overturn the building commissioner’s Cease and Desist order passed unanimously, 5-0.
In its next major business of the evening, the board responded cautiously to Town Planner Nancy Durfee’s proposal to establish a four-member, By-Law Review working group to help rewrite and refine the town’s sometimes-problematic zoning regulations.
On July 24, Durfee told the Rochester Select Board her vision is of a small group, rather than a formal committee, working to revise and correct problems within town zoning regulations. It would include a member of the Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Appeals, herself and the building commissioner.
At the July 27 ZBA meeting, Chairman David Arancio noted fellow member Richard Cutler has already served as a bylaw review committee chair. He said he, too, is interested in revising to improve these regulations. But he questioned the size and scope of Durfee’s plan, which is to create an informal working group, not a formalized committee. He said the plan needs further discussion.
Clearly frustrated by the board’s response, Durfee said she sees this as the best way for the two boards with different approaches toward zoning regulations, the Planning Board and the ZBA, to revise and refine the bylaws to prepare the town for its future development.
“I’ve been here two years, and I had already envisioned bylaw changes that are needed,” she said. “A small group is the best way to work. I have 20 years’ experience. I’m here to help this town, not change the world. A 40R development is coming to town. You need to know what kind of development you want.”
Durfee acknowledged that she has already enlisted the help of ZBA member Thomas Flynn for this effort and added that she would keep formal meeting minutes if that is what town officials prefer.
The meeting adjourned without a specific plan of action. “We will be continuing discussion,” Arancio said.
Before adjournment, the ZBA approved a new building permit denial sheet created by Boucher, the building commissioner and zoning officer. Arancio was appointed as ZBA chairman for another year’s term, and Thomas Flynn as vice-chairman.
The Rochester Zoning Board of Appeals’ next meeting will be held on Thursday, August 10, at 7:00 pm at Town Hall, 1 Constitution Way.
Rochester’s Zoning Board of Appeals
By Michael J. DeCicco