Specific types of uses are only allowed in specific districts by special permit; in some cases the Planning Board may serve as the special permit granting authority (SPGA) and in other cases the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) may serve as the SPGA. Please refer to the Town of Sturbridge Zoning Bylaw to determine if a special permit is required for a proposed use and who the appropriate SPGA is for your proposed use.[1]
The following rules are hereby adopted by the Sturbridge Planning Board as provided in Chapter 40A of the Massachusetts General Laws, for the purpose of establishing uniform procedures for the granting of special permits.
These rules and regulations may be adopted and from time to time amended by majority vote of Board members present and voting, provided such adoption or amendment is taken at a duly posted meeting.
These rules and regulations are effective when voted. A copy shall be filed with the office of the Town Clerk, with appropriate endorsements, date of adoption and amendments.
An application or petition for a special permit may be brought by a property owner, agent or prospective purchaser who submits certification (such as an executed purchase and sales agreement) of property interest and authority to file.
A.
Official application form. Application for special permits shall be made on an official form, which shall be furnished by the Planning Department upon request. Forms may be found in Chapter 9 of these rules and regulations. Forms may also be obtained on the Town Website: https://www.Town.sturbridge.ma.us/files.
B.
Contents of application. The completed application form, original plan and 15 copies shall be submitted to the Planning Department during regular business hours, with an additional copy filed forthwith with the Town Clerk by the applicant. The effective date of the submittal shall be the date the plans are submitted to the Town Clerk. At least one copy of the plan shall be produced in size 11 inches by 17 inches. Additionally, all application submittals shall be provided as a PDF on CD ROM.
The following information shall be furnished by the applicant, or a request for waiver shall be provided in writing at the time of application. If an applicant requests a waiver for a specific item and that is not granted by the Board, the item must be submitted and the public hearing shall be continued to allow sufficient time for submittal and review of the item. Failure to submit a required item shall be cause for disapproval of an application. The following are the submittal requirements:
(1)
A site plan drawn at a scale of one inch equals 40 feet, unless another scale is previously requested by the applicant and found suitable by the Board. All plans shall be prepared, signed and sealed by a Massachusetts licensed engineer, architect or landscape architect, whichever is appropriate;
(2)
The plan shall be stamped by the registered land surveyor who performed the instrument boundary survey and who shall certify the accuracy of the locations of the building(s), setbacks and all other required dimensions, elevations and measurements, and shall be signed under the penalties of perjury;
(3)
The scale, date and North arrow shall be shown on the plan;
(4)
Lot numbers, dimensions of lot in feet, size of lot in square feet and width of abutting streets and ways shall be shown on the plan;
(5)
The location of existing or proposed building(s) on the lot shall be shown with the total square footage and dimensions of all buildings and building elevations and floor plans, and perspective renderings;
(6)
The plan shall show the location of existing wetlands, water bodies, wells, one-hundred-year floodplain elevation and other natural features; streams, wetlands, vistas, slope areas, geological features, unique vegetation, historic features and others that may be important to the site;
(7)
A landscape plan to include the total square feet of all landscape and recreation areas, and depiction of materials to be used, and the quantity, size, methods and species of plantings must be provided;
(8)
All plans shall indicate the percent of building lot coverage and percentage of paved (impervious) area used for parking, loading and access within the property;
(9)
The existing and proposed topographical lines at two-foot contour intervals on the tract and within 50 feet thereof are required;
(10)
The location and a description of proposed open space or recreation areas shall be provided;
(11)
Existing and proposed street network, parking areas and spaces, drainage and utility systems shall be prepared by a professional engineer licensed in Massachusetts;
(12)
The applicant shall submit information regarding all measures proposed to prevent pollution of surface water or groundwater, soil erosion, increased runoff and flooding;
(13)
When the property is located in a Water Supply Protection District, please provide projections of down-gradient concentrations of nitrogen, phosphorus and other relevant chemicals to be disposed of on-site, at property boundaries and at other locations deemed pertinent by the Board. This information must be prepared by a hydrogeologist or registered professional engineer possessing experience and education in water supply protection and hydrology;
(14)
Any additional information which the Board may require. The Board may engage a Massachusetts professional engineer experienced in groundwater evaluation, hydrogeology or hazardous and toxic materials to review the application for completeness and correctness and shall require the applicant to pay for the cost of the review;
(15)
A locus plan at one inch equals 100 feet, 200 feet or 400 feet scale showing the location, names and present widths of the secondary streets bounding, approaching or within reasonable proximity of the site, and including the tracts of land, ownership and topography taken from Assessor's plans or field survey if available, or properties therein;
(16)
The application shall also furnish a narrative summary of the vital statistics of the project. Such statistics shall include total gross and net square footage, number of parking spaces and estimated amounts of water consumption and sewer discharge;
(17)
The applicant shall furnish a current certified abutter's list from the Assessor's office and a certificate of taxes paid from the Finance Director.
C.
Concurrent hearing with site plan approval. Where site plan approval is required for the proposed use which forms the basis of the special permit application (for which the Planning Board is the SPGA), the applicant shall also file the appropriate information and meet the requirements of site plan approval (Chapter 3). These public hearings shall be held concurrently, but separate decisions will be reached for each. Information from one hearing or application may be used by the Planning Board to make its determination on any other concurrently filed application.
All applications shall be accompanied by the appropriate administrative fee and consultant review fee where required. (Refer to Chapter 7 for information on consultant review fees).
A.
Administrative fee. The filing fee shall be $275 for a special permit application. The applicant shall also bear the cost of the legal notice and abutter's notification. The notice shall be prepared by the Planning Department; however, the responsibility to notify abutters and publish the advertisement on the appropriate dates shall lie with the applicant.
B.
Other costs and expenses. The applicant shall pay all associated costs of mailing to abutters and any parties in interest and for publication of any required legal notices. The Planning Department shall prepare the notices.
A.
Reviews by other Town agencies. After receipt of an application for special permit, Planning Department staff shall transmit a copy of the application and plan to other departments for review and comment. These departments may include, but may not be limited to: Building Inspector, Conservation, DPW, Health, Police, Fire and Tree Warden.
Comments received from various departments will be provided to the applicant if time permits prior to the public hearing. If reports are not received in sufficient time to provide copies of the reports to the applicant/representative, copies shall be provided at the public hearing.
Applicants are encouraged to address staff comments prior to the public hearing if at all possible or practical. Revised or supplemental documentation shall be submitted to the Planning Department after consultation with the Town Planner.
All final staff reports shall be provided to the Planning Board for review and consideration for the public hearing. However, in no case shall the failure of a department to submit a report prior to the public hearing delay the hearing process.
A.
Procedural steps for a public hearing for a special permit:
(1)
Applicant files a special permit in accordance with the filing requirements specified in this regulation and the Town of Sturbridge Zoning Bylaw.
(2)
A special permit and/or site plan approval may not be issued until a public hearing is held. The public hearing must be held within 65 days from the date the application is filed.
(3)
The notice of the public hearing shall include:
(4)
The notice of the public hearing shall be:
(a)
Published in a newspaper of general circulation in the Town once in each of two successive weeks. The first publication shall not be less than 14 days before the day of the hearing. The date of the public hearing should not be counted in the 14 days.
(b)
Posted in a conspicuous place in the Town Hall for a period of not less than 14 days before the day of the hearing.
(c)
The notice shall be mailed postage pre-paid to the applicant, abutters within 300 feet of the property line, including abutters in another town and across a public or private street or way, and the Planning Board of all abutting towns. The notice shall also be mailed to other individuals, boards or agencies for review if required by the Town of Sturbridge Zoning Bylaw.
(5)
Within 90 days or any extended time following the date of the public hearing, the special permit granting authority shall take final action.
(6)
If the special permit granting authority fails to take final action within the ninety-day or extended time limit, the special permit shall be deemed granted.
(7)
After the decision has been made, the special permit granting authority and/or its designee (employees) shall file a copy of the decision with the Town Clerk within 14 days from the date of decision by the special permit granting authority.
(8)
A copy of the decision shall be maintained in the files of the office of the Planning Board and a copy shall be mailed to the applicant and any other person that so requested a copy at the public hearing. (MGL c. 40A, § 9)
A.
Withdrawal of application. An application may be withdrawn without prejudice by an applicant by notice in writing to the Clerk of the Board, which notice the applicant shall also deliver to the Town Clerk at any time prior to the first publication of the notice of the public hearing.
After such notice, withdrawal of an application shall be permitted only by Board vote, which shall consist of a majority present and voting.
B.
Appeals. Any person aggrieved by a decision of the Board as special permit granting authority may appeal such decision as provided in MGL c. 40A, § 17 within 20 days after such decision has been filed in the office of the Town Clerk.
C.
Reapplication. No application which has been unfavorably and finally acted upon by the Board shall be reconsidered for a special permit within two years after the date of the said final unfavorable action, unless the Board finds, by vote of four members, specific and material changes in the condition upon which the previous unfavorable action was based and such changes are described in the record of the Board's proceedings, and after notice is hereby given to parties in interest of the time and place of the proceedings to reconsider in the same manner as provided for in § 2.05 of these rules and regulations.
D.
Lapse of special permit. No special permit shall be authorized by the Board without the express condition that it will lapse if substantial use under the permit is not commenced within three years from the date of final action by the Board, except for good cause or the final determination of an appeal, as determined by the Board.
E.
Extension of special permit. Approval in all cases is granted for a one-year period from the date of the filing of such approval with the Town Clerk. If a development has not begun during that time period, the applicant may request an extension of the permit. Any request for an extension shall be made prior to the expiration of the existing permit.
No special permit shall take effect until a copy of the decision, bearing the certification of the Town Clerk that 20 days have elapsed after the filing of the decision and no appeal has been filed, is recorded in the Registry of Deeds and is indexed under the name of the record owner of the land, and a Book and Page reference for said filing presented to the Planning Department and the Building Inspector.
As a condition of the special permit, the Planning Board may require that the applicant post a bond, or other form of surety, as a safeguard for performance, and/or a penal sum in a form and amount acceptable to the Board, prior to the expiration of the twenty-day appeal period, unless the Board shall specify otherwise. If the applicant is not the owner and must purchase the property in question in order to assume such obligations, or if another form of ownership or control is in force, such person or entity shall comply with the provisions of this section within 20 days following the date of such purchase or control. If said performance guarantee shall lapse before completion and certification of final inspection by the Board, a new guarantee shall be filed expeditiously by the application/controller of the land and/or project.
Full compliance with these rules and regulations may be waived by the Planning Board, provided such waivers are deemed to serve the public interest and are not conflicting with Chapter 40A, MGL. Requested waivers shall be submitted in writing when the application is submitted.
Any application which does not conform to the requirements herein, or without the proper fee, shall be returned to the applicant with a statement of its deficiencies, and the plan shall not be accepted for review by the Board until the deficiencies are corrected. The Board's designee will be responsible for ensuring the completeness of all applications and shall give written notice by registered mail to the applicant of any deficiencies with the application within 14 days of submission to the Board, at its meeting, specifying the deficiencies. The applicant shall have 14 days from the date of the mailing of such notice to correct the deficiencies. Failure to correct the deficiencies after having been so notified within such time shall be used as the basis for denial of the application without prejudice. Submissions pertaining to consultant review fees are not required prior to application acceptance.
The provisions of these rules and regulations are severable. If any provision of these rules and regulations is held invalid, the other provisions shall not be affected thereby. If the application of these rules and regulations or any of its provisions to any person or circumstances is held invalid, the application of these rules and regulations and their provisions to other persons and circumstances shall not be affected thereby.