THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS

POSITION ON CITIZENS PETITION TO

CHANGE AUTHORITY OVER SITE PLAN REVIEW (SPR)
FROM THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS TO THE PLANNING BOARD
On November 17, 2014, a Citizens Petition was filed with
the Town Clerk proposing to amend the Town by-laws to change
authority over Site Plan Review from the Zoning Board of Appeals
to the Planning Board. The Zoning Board of Appeals discussed the
Petition at its December 2014 meeting and unanimously voted to
oppose the Petition.
Reasons the Zoning Board of Appeals does not support the
Citizens Petition.
1.
The Zoning Board of Appeals has the experience. For
over 30 years the Zoning Board of Appeals has been the approving
board for Site Plan Review. The Board of Appeals understands the
intricacies of the Zoning By-Law and has the experience and
expertise to apply it to projects. We believe this has served
the Town well over the years.
2.
We believe that the current system in which the
applicant meets first with the Planning Board which provides an
advisory letter to the Board of Appeals is a good one. Projects
which come before the Board for Site Plan Review are generally
large ones such as the shopping center expansion a number of
years ago. For these large projects it is useful to have a
second set of eyes review the project.
3.
The Planning Board is already tasked with a number of
responsibilities. The Planning Board has a major role in long
term planning for the Town. The Planning Board is the primary
proponent of zoning initiatives including changes to the by-laws.
The Planning Board also has jurisdiction over any subdivisions in
the town. We do not believe that it is good practice for a board
to be both drafter of zoning by-laws and then approving authority
for those by-laws.
4.
By Contrast the Zoning Board of Appeals presently has
jurisdiction over petitions for Variances, Extensions of NonConforming Uses and Structures, and for granting a number of
Special Permits. We believe that Site Plan Review which involves
approving single projects more closely aligns with these
responsibilities.

5.
The Planning Board presently meets twice a month and
has had discussions about increasing to three times a month
because of its existing work load. The Zoning Board of Appeals
meets only once a month. We believe it would be inefficient and
not serve the interests of applicants to further unbalance the
work load.
6.
While Site Plan Review lies more with Planning Boards
statewide, in some very well run towns such as Wellesley
approving Authority lies with the Zoning Board of Appeals. We
believe it should remain that way in Hamilton.
7.
The proposed by-law provides that a party aggrieved by
a decision of the Planning Board on Site Plan Review has the
right of de novo appeal to the Zoning Board of Appeals. We think
this is likely to increase the number of appeals and hence legal
fees over the current by-law since an appeal will be much more
readily available.