Unfortunately, folks, this will be a looong Blog post necessitated by the Sterling Planning Board’s Self-Dealing Developer Weasel, Carl Corrinne, and his Co-Weasel, Sterling Town Planner Stephen Wallace. As noted previously, CARL CORRINNE REALLY IS LOW ENOUGH TO BLOW THE BUFFALO ON A BUFFALO NICKEL—
The first thing to note is that Sterling’s existing Protective (Zoning) By-Laws are PERFECTLY FINE, UNLESS, THAT IS, YOU ARE A POWER-GRABBING SELF-DEALING DEVELOPER WEASEL SUCH AS PLANNING BOARD CHAIR CARL CORRINNE. This is the stated PURPOSE of our existing Zoning By-Laws—
§ 301-1.1Statement of purpose.
These regulations are enacted to promote the general welfare of the Town of Sterling, to protect the health and safety of its inhabitants, to encourage the most appropriate use of land throughout the Town, to preserve the cultural, historical and agricultural heritage of the community, to increase the amenities of the Town, and to reduce the hazard from fire by regulating the location and use of buildings and the area of open space around them, all as authorized by the provisions of the Zoning Act, MGL c. 40A, as amended, and by Article 89 of the Amendments to the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Here are the existing Site Plan Review requirements. As you can see, THEY ARE DETAILED AND STRICT– ON PURPOSE:
Applicability. The following types of activities and uses require site plan review by the Planning Board:
Construction, exterior alteration or exterior expansion of, or change of use within a municipal, institutional, commercial, industrial or multifamily structure involving more than 1,200 square feet;
[Amended 6-14-2021 ATM by Art. 29, approved 12-10-2021]
Construction or expansion of a parking lot for a municipal, institutional, commercial, industrial, or multi-family structure or purpose;
[Amended 6-14-2021 ATM by Art. 29, approved 12-10-2021]
Grading or clearing more than 10% of a lot, except for the following: landscaping on a lot with an existing structure or a proposed single- or two-family dwelling; clearing necessary for percolation and other site tests; work incidental to agricultural activity, work in conjunction with an approved subdivision plan, or work pursuant to an earth removal permit.
Exemptions.
A building wholly or partially destroyed may be rebuilt without recourse to this section if rebuilt without change to the building footprint or the square footage of usable space.
The construction or enlargement of any nonresidential building, structure or use in any district where such construction will not exceed a total gross floor area of 1,200 square feet or will not generate the need for more than five parking spaces.
[Added 6-14-2021 ATM by Art. 29, approved 12-10-2021]
Procedures.
Use, structure, or activity available as of right or special permit. An application for a building permit to perform work as set forth in § 301-6.4.1 available as of right shall be accompanied by an approved site plan. Prior to the commencement of any activity set forth in § 301-6.4.1 or available as of right, the project proponent shall obtain site plan approval from the Planning Board. Applicants for site plan approval shall submit 15 copies of the site plan and an electronic copy of all application materials to the Planning Board for review, and for distribution to the Board of Health, Director of Public Works, Police Chief, Fire Chief, the Building Inspector and the Conservation Commission for their advisory review and comments. Approval for a site plan may be issued only after a public meeting held within 60 days of the filing of an application with the Planning Board. It is the applicant’s responsibility to obtain a certified list of names and addresses of all parties of interest, as defined in MGL c. 40A, § 11, by the Assessing Office. The Planning Board shall notify all parties of interest by mail and notice of a public meeting shall be given by publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the Town in each of two consecutive weeks; the first publication to be not less than 14 days and the second publication not less than seven days before the day of the meeting. Said notice and publication shall contain the name of the applicant, a description of the area or premises, street address, or other adequate identification of the location, the date and place of the public meeting, the subject matter of the hearing, and the nature of the action requested. The decision of the Planning Board shall be upon a majority of those present and shall be in writing. No building permit shall be issued by the Building Commissioner without the written approval of the site plan by the Planning Board, or unless 60 days lapse from the date of the submittal of the site plan without action by the Planning Board.
[Amended 6-14-2021 ATM by Art. 29, approved 12-10-2021]
(Reserved)[1]
Editor’s Note: Former Subsection 2, Use or structure available by special permit or variance, was repealed 6-14-2021 ATM by Art. 29, approved 12-10-2021.
Where the Planning Board serves as the special permit granting authority it shall consolidate its site plan review and special permit procedures.
An application for site plan approval shall be accompanied by a fee, as set forth in the Planning Board’s Rules and Regulations.
Submittals. The Planning Board may require narrative assessments of the on-site and off-site impacts of the proposed project, including traffic, drainage, noise, and other environmental factors. The Planning Board may require that such narrative assessments be prepared by qualified experts. In addition, a site plan shall show:
All boundary line information pertaining to the land sufficient to permit location of same on ground with existing and proposed topography at two-foot contour intervals;
Existing and proposed building and structures, including fences, loading areas, accessory buildings, signs, waste disposal areas, and storage areas. Existing building elevations or renderings shall be submitted;
Water provision, including fire protection measures;
All wetlands and waterbodies on the property and within 100 feet of the property;
Sanitary sewerage and storm drainage, including means of ultimate disposal and calculations to support maintenance of the requirements in the Planning Board’s Subdivision Rules and Regulations;
Parking, walkways, driveways, and other access and egress provisions;
Existing trees ten-inch caliper or better and existing tree/shrub masses; proposed planting landscaping and screening;
Existing and proposed exterior lighting;
Compliance with all applicable provisions of this Zoning Bylaw.
All stormwater management systems for new development and redevelopment projects that result in a land disturbance of one or more acres and discharge stormwater into the municipal system must comply with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Stormwater Management Policy Handbook and Technical Handbook, whether or not the project falls within the jurisdiction of the Wetland Protection Act (MGL c. 131, § 40). This enforcement will include projects that are less than one acre if the project is part of a larger common plan development.
Preparation of plan. Site plans shall be submitted on twenty-four-inch by thirty-six-inch sheets. Plans shall be prepared by a registered professional engineer, registered land surveyor, architect or landscape architect, as appropriate. Dimensions and scales shall be adequate to determine that all requirements are met and to make a complete analysis and evaluation of the proposal. All plans shall have a minimum scale of one inch equals 200 feet.
[2]Approval. Site plan approval shall be granted upon determination by the Planning Board that the following conditions have been satisfied. The Planning Board may impose reasonable conditions at the expense of the applicant, including performance guarantees, to ensure that the following conditions have been satisfied. Any new building construction or other site alteration shall provide adequate access to each structure for fire and service equipment and adequate provision for utilities and stormwater drainage consistent with the functional requirements of the Planning Board’s Subdivision Rules and Regulations. New building construction or other site alteration shall be designed in the site plan, after considering the qualities of the specific location, the proposed land use, the design of building form, grading, egress points, and other aspects of the development, so as to:
Minimize the volume of cut and fill, the number of removed trees six-inch caliper or larger, the length of removed stone walls, the area of wetland vegetation displaced, the extent of stormwater flow increase from the site, soil erosion, and threat of air and water pollution;
Maximize pedestrian and vehicular safety both on the site and egressing from it;
Minimize obstruction of scenic views from publicly accessible locations;
Minimize visual intrusion by controlling visibility of parking, storage, or other outdoor service areas viewed from public ways or premises residentially used or zoned;
Minimize glare from headlights through plantings or other screening;
Minimize lighting intrusion through use of devices confining illumination to the site;
Minimize unreasonable departure from the color, character, scale and architectural style of buildings in the vicinity, as viewed from public ways;
Minimize contamination of groundwater from on-site wastewater disposal systems or operations on the premises involving the use, storage, handling, or containment of hazardous substances;
Compliance with the provisions of this Zoning Bylaw, including parking and landscaping.
Editor’s Note: Former § 301-6.4.6, Waiver of technical compliance, was repealed 6-14-2021 ATM by Art. 29, approved 12-10-2021. This article also redesignated former §§ 301-6.4.7 through 301-6.4.10 as §§ 301-6.4.6 through 301-6.4.9, respectively.
Lapse. Site plan approval shall lapse after one year from the grant thereof if a substantial use thereof has not sooner commenced except for good cause. Such approval may, for good cause, be extended in writing by the Planning Board upon the written request of the applicant.
Regulations. The Planning Board may adopt and from time to time amend reasonable regulations for the administration of these site plan guidelines.
As-built plan. Within 30 days after completion of the project an as-built plan will be submitted to the Planning Board in both paper and digital form as specified by the Planning Board.
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT TO NOTE: Under Section 301-6.4.8. “The Planning Board may adopt and from time to time amend reasonable regulations for the administration of these site plan guidelines (emphasis added).”
THAT MEANS that the PLANNING BOARD has the authority to adopt regulations as to forms and procedures to allow it to administer “these site plan guidelines.” IN OTHER WORDS, ADOPT ‘HOUSE-KEEPING’ REGULATIONS.
THAT PROVISION WAS NEVER INTENDED TO ALLOW THE PLANNING BOARD, ASSISTED BY THE TOWN PLANNER, TO GO TO TOWN MEETING AND USE THE VOTERS TO LOCK IN THEIR DEVIOUS, SUBSTANTIVE, WATERING-DOWN CHANGES TO THE SITE PLAN REGULATIONS THAT, IN TURN, TREAT STERLING’S ZONING BY-LAWS AS MERE POLICY.
BUT THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT THEY NOW PROPOSE TO DO AT THE 2025 STERLING ANNUAL TOWN MEETING WITH PROPOSED CHANGES SPREAD OVER NINE (9) PAGES—
zoning_proposal_4_-_site_plan_review_-_final_for_web.pdf (sterling-ma.gov)
THESE PROPOSED CHANGES CONSTITUTE A SUBSTANTIVE POWER GRAB BY THE PLANNING BOARD AND THE TOWN PLANNER. I CAN’T READ ALL OF THOSE CHANGES FOR YOU—YOU HAVE TO READ THEM YOURSELVES—BUT I’LL POINT OUT SOME OF THE REALLY WEASELLY LOW-LIGHTS.
These arrogant clowns actually come up with their own statement of “Purpose” NOT IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE STATED PURPOSE OF THE EXISTING STERLING ZONING BY-LAWS RECITED ABOVE. Under THEIR stated ‘Purpose’ are these elements—
“4. Does not unreasonably impact adjoining and nearby properties or the neighborhood in which it is located; and,
5. Promotes sustainable design and development that supports long-term economic vitality and ecological integrity.”
“Unreasonably” is a weasel word that can be bent to accommodate just about anything. It’s just what you’d expect from Self-Dealing Developer Weasel Carl Corrine.
“Sustainable development” and “economic vitality” means more development by folks like Self-Dealing Developer Weasel Carl Corrinne.
And check out the changes to “Exemptions”– NOW certain “multifamily” dwellings— Corrinne builds them—are exempt AND “The Town Planner, in consultation with the Building Commissioner and the Board of Health Director [Sterling only has a BOH Agent, NOT A BOH ‘Director’], [may determine]” a couple other “Exemption” categories.
OF COURSE, THE PLANNING BOARD’S “SPECIAL PERMIT GRANTING” INTENDED POWER GRAB FROM THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS IS ALSO INCLUDED—
“The Planning Board shall act as the Special Permit Granting Authority (SPGA) for all projects requiring site plan approval as determined by the Building Commissioner acting in his capacity as Zoning Enforcement Officer.”
AND CHECK OUT ALL THE INTENTIONAL VAGUENESS UNDER “Adoption of Rules, Regulations, and Standards.” THERE ARE NO STANDARDS!
HERE, PERHAPS, IS THE BIGGEST GIVE-AWAY BY CORRINNE’S CO-WEASEL, THE TOWN PLANNER:
“PLANNER’S NOTE: The Planning Board’s Site Plan Regulations should be guidance for administration of the Bylaw. The Zoning Bylaw should establish “policy” and give the Planning Board some broad authority. Thus, this section makes clear that the Board may adopt Site Design Standards, have a provision for “minor” site plan review, set forth the requirements for notice, etc.”
NO, ASSHOLE, the Sterling Protective (Zoning) By-Laws CONSTITUTE LOCAL LAW, NOT MERE POLICY.
AND CHECK OUT PAGES 5 AND 6 of the proposed changes where ALL of the now-required “Submittals” are eliminated, and the Planning Board gets to decide whatever bullshit “submittals” it wants to review. YEAH, THAT’S JUST GREAT FOR SELF-DEALING DEVELOPER WEASELS ON THE PLANNING BOARD SUCH AS CARL CORRINNE.
CONCLUSION:
Instead of adopting internal site-plan ‘housekeeping’ regulations that the Planning Board is now authorized to adopt under Sterling’s existing Zoning By-Laws, the Planning Board, Chaired by Self-Dealing Developer Weasel Carl Corrinne, assisted by the Co-Weasel Town Planner, are using that provision improperly and maliciously to make SUBSTANTIVE changes to Sterling’s Zoning By-Laws, and facilitate the Planning Board’s attempted power grab, with the intent to USE Sterling’s 2025 Annual Town Meeting Voters to LOCK IN THOSE CHANGES.
DON’T LET THEM GET AWAY WITH IT!!!
J.G.
STERLING, MASSACHUSETTS, OVERWATCH 