Date: Fri 31-May-1996

Publication: Bee

Author: ANDYG

Quick Words:

P&Z-adult-books-curb-cuts

Full Text:

P&Z Faces A Full Menu Of Issues

B Y A NDREW G OROSKO

It's a busy time for the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z).

The agency that regulates land use for the town has a host of zoning issues

facing it as it enters the summer season, according to P&Z Chairman Stephen

Adams.

These include: a proposal to prohibit adult book and video shops; a proposal

to repeal the regulation which allows rear house lots in one-acre residential

zones; consideration of "upzoning" or increasing the minimum sizes for

residential lots based on site conditions, such as limited underground water

supplies; a proposal for cluster zoning in which dwelling units would be

clustered on a parcel so that more open space land would be available for

public use; a proposal to prohibit new stores larger than 40,000 square feet;

and the adoption of regulations on "curb cuts" along Route 25 between the

Monroe town line and the Main Street flagpole.

Although the town has no adult book and video shops now, it wouldn't want to

be in position to allow them, according to Mr Adams. Regulatory language which

would be used to prohibit such specialty stores is in the formative stages, he

said. Mr Adams said the P&Z's interest in banning such establishments stems

from a resident's concerns that such a business has opened on Route 25 in

nearby Monroe.

P&Z members will be holding a public hearing in the coming weeks on a proposal

to ban rear lots in one-acre residential zones, Mr Adams said. Last summer,

the P&Z amended its regulations to allow rear lots in subdivisions in one-acre

zones at the request of Attorney Stephen Wippermann on behalf of a client. The

P&Z was allowing rear lots in two-acre and three-acre residential zones, so it

would make sense to allow such development in one-acre zones, the lawyer told

the zoners last summer.

Recent subdivision requests, however, have shown that rear lots in one-acre

zones pose developmental problems, Mr Adams said. "It now appears it's really

causing a problem" in light of construction densities, he said. The

controversial Whispering Pines subdivision proposal in Sandy Hook includes

one-acre, rear-lot zoning, he said. In such rear-lot zones, lengthy driveways

lead from the street to houses which are built behind the houses which face

the street.

P&Z members are consulting with well water experts to learn the developmental

limits of certain residential properties served by domestic water wells. If

it's found that underground water supplies are limited or unpredictable, P&Z

members say they may increase minimum residential lot sizes through an

"upzoning" approach.

Under such a plan, the minimum allowable size of building lots in various

residential zones would be increased to make it more likely that residents

could obtain reliable water supplies from individual wells. The upzoning

approach also would have the effect of reducing an area's potential population

density.

P&Z members are considering creating cluster zones in which dwelling units

would be clustered on a given parcel to allow more open space on that land for

public use. Although cluster zoning would provide for additional open space

land, it wouldn't necessarily reduce the number of dwelling units built on a

given parcel compared to conventional subdivision development.

The commission also is considering amending its zoning regulations to ban

so-called "big box" stores which are larger than 40,000 square feet in area,

according to Mr Adams. The rationale behind such a size limit involves

limiting the traffic flow to and from stores, he said.

Although it's bigger than 40,000 square feet, the Super Stop and Shop

supermarket at Sand Hill Plaza would be exempt from such a regulation because

it was built before any size-limiting regulations went into effect. The

Borough Zoning Commission in February approved construction of an

approximately 55,000-square-foot Big Y supermarket on Queen Street at Newtown

Shopping Center. The borough's zoning regulations are separate from the P&Z's

regulations.

At their June 6 session, P&Z members plan to act on proposed zoning

regulations on the use of "curb cuts" on Route 25 to facilitate traffic flow

between the Monroe town line and the Main Street flagpole. Curb cuts allow

traffic to pass over curbs to enter and leave businesses. The proposed

regulations would create mechanisms to regulate future curb cutting. The

matter had been slated for action May 16, but action was postponed by

commission members. The June 6 meeting is slated for 8 pm in the Alexandria

Room at Edmond Town Hall, 45 Main Street.