Pittsfield Planning Board
Town Hall, 85 Main Street
Pittsfield, NH 03263
Minutes of Public Meeting

DATE: THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2010

ITEM 1. Call to Order at 7:13 P.M. by Ted Mitchell, Vice-Chairman.

ITEM 2. Roll Call

Members Present:

Ted Mitchell (TM), Vice Chairman, Rich Hunsberger (RH), Dan Schroth (DS), Pat Heffernan (PH), Clayton Wood (CW), Alternate, and Doug Potter, Recording Secretary.

Members Absent:

Bill Miskoe (BM), Chairman, Eric Nilsson (EN), Selectman Ex Officio, Daniel Greene (DG), and Hank Fitzgerald (HF), Alternate.

Clayton Wood, Alternate seated on the Board.

ITEM 3. Approval of Minutes of August 19, 2010

(RH) Motion to approve Minutes of August 19, 2010.
(DS) Second. Carried 5-0.

ITEM 4. WORK SESSION

Board participated in a Work Session on revision of Zoning Ordinances.

Matt Monahan, Central New Hampshire Regional Planning Commission, gave a presentation and took input from the Board on the proposed zoning document. Matt provided the Board with a proposed Planning Board Application Process Form and a Planning Board Review of Conditions Process Form for review for future applications.

(TM) suggested scraping parking downtown. (DS) “It is undemocratic and simply wrong to take away the rights of the many to solve the problems created by a relative few.” We need to do a better job at allowing businesses to regulate their own parking.

Discussion: Home Occupation (minor and major)
Minor Home Occupation does not need to come to the Planning Board if it meets the criteria. Suggestions for criteria are listed on Page 35 of the draft document.

Minor Home Occupation:

– Delete #1 and #2
– #3: Allow up to 50% of square footage for home business
– #4. Delete
– #5. Displays should be allowed as long as they do not create safety
concerns. No set-backs.
– #6. Delete.
– #7. Cannot impact the safety of neighbors
– #8. Allow advertising. Signage must be placed where it is not a
hazard to the traveling public, road crews (snow removal
equipment), etc. Signage must be on the property, not in the
right-of-way.
– #9. Storage of commercial vehicles. Limits were discussed. Decided
to delete.
– #10. Delete
– #11. Delete
– #12. Delete (already a noise ordinance in town)

Major Home Occupation:

(RH) Do away with Major Home Occupation. Keep it simple and just call it Home Occupation. Include requirement not to create a major traffic hazard.
Board discussed Article 24 Elderly Housing Ordnance (Page 68). (RH) Change elderly to “senior;” age 62 is the threshold (with exceptions). Suburban and Rural allowed.

ITEM 5. Building Inspector Report

None.

ITEM 6. Selectman’s Report – Eric Nilsson, Selectman Ex Officio

None.

ITEM 7. Members Concerns

None.

ITEM 8. Public Input

None.

ITEM 9: ADJOURNMENT

(TM) Motion to adjourn. (CW) Second. Carried 5-0.

Meeting adjourned at 9:05 P.M.

Approved: September 23, 2010

______________________________ _____________________
Ted Mitchell, Vice-Chairman Date

I hereby certify that these Minutes were recorded by me on September 2, 2010, transcribed and public posted on September 8, 2010.

__________________________________________
Doug Potter, Recording Secretary

II Tapes