Newtown Planning & Zoning Commission held a regular meeting on Thursday, June 4. The commission recently implemented a public comment section at the beginning of each meeting for members of the public to comment or ask questions about local zoning regulations, processes, and laws, but not to comment on specific, ongoing applications.

Samuel Grummons approached the commission and complimented the commission for agreeing to the Vessel Technologies settlement, which was presented in a public hearing on Thursday, May 21. Grummons said, in part, “I want to start with the Vessel settlement. That was the right call. Fighting losing lawsuits to the end is an expensive hobby that unfortunately some people in town think everyone else should just pay for. You saved Newtown probably about six figures, and I just want to say good work.”

He continued his statement, saying that there should be a “lesson learned” from this experience, and asked about a subcommittee that Commissioner Peter Schwarz and Alternate Commissioner Don Mitchell were a part of. The responsibilities of this subcommittee included finding areas that could support development and encourage more modest, affordable homes. Grummons said that he has not seen items in the agenda that would support this so far this year.

Chair David Rosen said that he thought Grummons’ comments, while “constructive,” were also “naïve.” Rosen pointed out that 8-30g applications forgo local zoning regulations, and encouraged residents who take issue with the statute “to complain at a state level.” Rosen told Grummons to “speak more, even if I disagree strongly.”

Schwarz then asked to comment on Grummons’ points. Schwarz explained that there were “intervening state statutes” which put the subcommittee on pause.

“So that was paused,” Schwarz began, “and it’s never been picked up, and that’s a fault of ours for that delay. Probably best answer I can give you right now is that that is on the schedule, that it is not a lower priority than it ever has been, as a matter of fact it’s a higher priority, and again, the delay is on our fault.”

Schwarz thanked Grummons for bringing it back up, and said that he is excited to include the broader community in these discussions going forward.

Subdivision At 6 Schoolhouse Hill Road

Application 26.11 is for a subdivision at 6 Schoolhouse Hill Road to split the lot into two separate building lots and keep one for the single-family home that is already on site. Attorney Chris Russo represented the applicant during the meeting.

Russo described the parcel for the commission. He explained that the parcel is almost 2.1 acres, sits on the corner of Schoolhouse Hill Road and Wendover Road, and has about 350 feet of frontage on Schoolhouse.

“That’s enough right there to satisfy your lot standards for lot width. But then, on top of that, it has 255 feet on Wendover Road, which puts parcel two well over the lot width requirement on that street as well,” Russo said.

The lot is zoned R-1, which requires at least one acre of area. He then discussed the topography of the site, the existing home, and the septic system. He noted that the difference in elevation between the two proposed parcels is 30 feet. Russo added that he thinks this is a benefit for the town for “street taking” and “street safety purposes.”

Russo pointed out that there is plenty of space to put a 30 by 40 footprint home on this property if it were subdivided and it would have plenty of buffer around it.

As for the topography of the site, Russo explained, “Regarding the waiver request, the zoning regulations … require that the minimum lot area calculation exclude areas of steep slopes with grades of 25% or greater. This type of exclusions for steep slopes is seen in some variation amongst many towns in the area.”

Russo also noted that a fee, in lieu of open space, would be appropriate here, and did some base calculations for it.

Rosen then asked if there were any questions from the commissioners.

Commissioner Roy Meadows asked if the Borough had signed off on this. Russo said Joe Chapman, Borough zoning enforcement officer, has issued a letter of determination that the property is not “suitable for a first cut.” Russo has to get acceptance from Newtown’s Planning & Zoning Commission to then go before the Borough Zoning Commission.

Meadows then asked if it was okay to have the septic system in the setback. Director of Planning & Land Use Rob Sibley said that the health department has made a comment about where septic systems could go on this property, and that it could go in the setbacks according to Newtown’s regulations.

Alternate Commissioner Charles Gardner asked about “the dedication of public right of way” and whether or not it was on behalf of the applicant. Russo said his “understanding” is that it is required. Sibley explained that the town engineer will decide if the road needs to be widened.

Gardner said, “Wendover Road’s been there for 300 years. It seems to be doing alright. Widening it is going to increase traffic speeds, it’s going to increase impervious area to serve an extremely low volume of traffic. That may be part of the regulations, but I question that decision, but also wonder what people on the street would think about widening that street.”

Russo said it would be “at the discretion of the town.”

Gardner then asked about ADUs, or additional dwelling units, that are allowed under Borough zoning regulations. Gardner asked if it would be possible to do so under current regulations.

Russo admitted that he did not explore that and would have to look it over.

Alternate Commissioner Don Mitchell pointed out that town regulations require an “archaeological study,” but Borough zoning regulations do not. Russo explained that his client was hoping to gain more clarity on that, and would be happy to do so if the commission asked for it.

Mitchell then said that lot two is very close and that the property line is not straight. Russo admitted that the line is not straight. Russo told the surveyor to make at least one of the lots “conforming,” and suggested to make the lot with the existing house conforming.

Mitchell also recalled Borough regulations that do not allow for structures to be in a setback, like a septic tank, and did not want to “vote and create an unbuildable lot.” Mitchell also asked if the Conservation Commission had seen this application for the fee in lieu of open space. Russo said the application had been presented to the commission, but he had not heard back. Mitchell also told Russo that there are requirements for distances between driveways and intersections and pointed out that this property falls within Borough Historic District limits, which means Russo has to go before that commission, too.

Gardner said that this seems “silly” because this application “seems like it’s a confluence of several regulatory peculiarities.” He referenced Grummons’ points at the beginning of the meeting and believed it should be an “administrative step” instead of a “full blown subdivision.”

Russo explained that laws surrounding “first cuts” are “specific,” and that the proposed lot lines do not create two conforming lots — a requirement for first cuts — and that is why the applicant is seeking a subdivision.

Mitchell then shared a fun fact about this property. Years ago, someone wanted to keep a “pet bull” on the property, and Borough Zoning “wrestled with that for months.”

Sibley then offered a bit more information about this application. This was presented to Sibley and Chapman a little while back and Chapman decided that a subdivision was necessary. Sibley explained that there is no planning commission for the Borough, so Newtown Planning & Zoning is the planning commission for this application. Sibley then explained what the commission can ask of the applicant in this situation.

Rosen then opened it up to the public, but no one came forward. He then asked for a motion to extend the public hearing to the next meeting on Thursday, June 18, 7 pm.

More coverage of this meeting will be available in next week's print edition.

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Reporter Sam Cross can be reached at sam@thebee.com.