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10/19/2020 12:00 AMIn a first since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Essex held a town meeting in early October, taking action on two ordinances. The first, which passed unanimously, will create a combined Planning & Zoning Commission, effective after the annual town meeting in November.
The second, which also passed unanimously, amended an ordinance providing tax relief for elderly or disabled homeowners and Gold Star parents and spouses to extend its expiration.
Several questions were raised at the meeting regarding how the new Planning & Zoning Commission would operate, including those related to intra-board referrals and bylaws, staffing, and membership.
“There were a few questions about combining the Planning & Zoning Commission, which were about the mechanics of how it would take place, but there were no objections,” said Essex Selectman Bruce Glowac.
Glowac said passage of the ordinance “is a historic move for the town.”
“I firmly believe it is the right move and it is the right time to combine the commissions,” he added.
“It couldn’t have happened if we didn’t have less development potential in the town. There is just no land. And people are not building subdivisions anymore. That is a big charge of the Planning Commission,” said First Selectman Norman Needleman
(Needleman (D) is also the incumbent candidate for the 33rd District State Senate seat.)
In addition to a reduction of certain planning activities in town, officials are aiming for a streamlined process for residents.
Larry Shipman, who became an alternate on the Zoning Commission in 2006 and is now chair, said “everything we do requires a referral and wait time,” and that combining commissions “will speed things up for applicants.”
The ordinance stipulates that the new PZC will consist of seven regular members who serve three-year terms. Three alternates will serve two-year terms. The current Planning Commission, like the Zoning Commission, now has five regular members and three alternates.
The longest-serving member of the Planning Commission, Ralph Monaco, said that he defers to the Board of Selectmen (BOS) “to make the best decision for the town of Essex” relative to combining the commissions.
Monaco said that he has “told the BOS that I am happy to assist my town in any way they see fit” but that “more public participation on commissions is good for the town because it brings diversity of perspectives.
“I believe that commission members need to be truly independent and follow their best judgment, without interference from other commissions or elected officials,” he added.
Planning Commission Chair Alan Kerr said, “My hope is that by merging the two committees, the approval process for various items that come before the commission will be handled more efficiently, at less time and expense to the petitioner.”
Kerr added that he hopes “the perspective and vision of the Planning Commission and its Plan of Conservation and Development [POCD] will acquire greater weight” with a combined Planning & Zoning Commission.
Asked about the current work of the Planning Commission that he would like to see continued by the combined commission, Kerr said helping to increase affordable housing, which could incite a more diverse and younger population to work and live in Essex, is a priority.
The other area, which Kerr said is an “ongoing interest,” is overlay zones.
“The overlay zones provide an alternate set of regulations and are intended to foster the development of projects that further the goals of the POCD and that may not be possible under the existing regulations,” said Kerr.
Glowac said that the Planning Commission’s work on overlay zones “will continue when they become a combined commission, but it’s still in the planning phase right now.”
The BOS plans to discuss membership for the new commission at its regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 4 at 5 p.m.