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The long awaited final vote on passage of two new zoning / housing laws was a welcome outcome to a long process, but was overshadowed by sometimes-contentious public comment at the Town Board meeting last Thursday night. See related article, “What’s going on here?” First up on the March 20th Town board agenda were two Public Hearings on the proposed zoning and housing initiatives that have been discussed at length at previous town board meetings. Zoning Update Committee Chair Eaton asked for some minor rewording of the proposed laws that did not create any “substantive change”. The proposed laws are meant to increase affordable housing by allowing single lot exemptions (for a two year period, with the option to renew this exemption) and accessory dwelling units in the town. With minimal public comment and no controversy occurring at either public hearing, the board voted and passed both proposals intoTown law.
In a related resolution, the board agreed to an annual cap of ten (10) single lot exemptions for the two year span of the SLE law.The board vote on the cap was four to one, with the majority supporting the cap and Supervisor Collins voting against the cap because he said it runs counter to housing needs in the town. Board member Werwaiss reiterated a previously stated rationale for the cap: that the SLE law is capped because there is interest by the majority of the board in collecting data on how many landowners will choose to apply for an SLE over the next two years, and expects that data will lead to better planning for the town.
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