SOUTHWICK — For over six months, the Planning Board has been working with the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission to reorganize the town’s bylaws, which have been described as awkward due to a piecemeal approach the town has used for over 50 years.
With that process nearly at its conclusion, the board will move into the next phase of revising the bylaws, and Town Planner Alvin Allen said it is vitally important for residents to participate in an important survey that will guide the board as it moves forward.
“We really need the town’s residents’ input from this survey,” Allen said about the survey that is now available online or can be picked up at the Select Board or Planning Department in Town Hall.
Zoning bylaws are vital for every municipality, helping maintain a community’s unique character while regulating land use in residential, business, agriculture, and industry areas to balance the needs and wants of its residents.
To achieve that balance, the Planning Board is exploring ways to revise the bylaws when it comes to certain uses of land, including the Business Restricted zone.
The Business Restricted zone was at the center of a lawsuit filed by a Connecticut company that sought a special permit to build the Dollar General on College Highway.
In July 2024, the Carlito Development Group filed two lawsuits after the board turned down its request for a special permit to build the retail store: one questioned the impartiality of two board members, and another questioned the criteria used by the board when making a final determination on granting a special permit in the Business Restricted and Business zoning districts.
The lawsuit pointed out the vagueness and subjectivity of the bylaw regulating the Business Restricted zone that might be used by the board to justify a decision including that the business needed to be “suitably located” in town, “be reasonably compatible with the character and scale of other uses permitted,” that the “use will not constitute a nuisance by reason of … visually flagrant structures and accessories,” that the “use is in harmony with the general purposes and intent” of the zoning regulations, “the public good will be served” and “the proposal reasonably protects the adjoining premises against detrimental or offensive effects of the site, including, but not limited to, unsightly or obnoxious appearances.”
The first issue the board must address is the by-right use in the Business Restricted zoning district.
The current bylaw allows only a bank as a “by right” use in the Business Restricted zone, so any other retail business, like an auto parts or convenience store, currently has to request a special permit from the board.
When tasking the board to think about revising the Business Restricted zone bylaw, board Chair Jessica Thornton said the members needed to do some forward thinking about how to expand the Business Restricted zone in the future and what kind of uses could be included as by-right usage.
The survey will help determine the board’s decisions using residents’ responses to it by providing ranking planning priorities between housing, economic development, infrastructure and transportation, preservation of open space and farmland, College Highway corridor revitalization and environmental protections.
The survey will also ask about housing options, including whether there’s enough for first-time homebuyers, older adults, moderate to low-income and families with children.
The survey also asks what businesses should be allowed in the various zoning districts, like restaurants, grocery stores, convenience stores, indoor or outdoor recreation, light manufacturing, schools and museums.
As for housing, the survey will ask residents if they support or oppose single-family homes, duplexes or townhouses, senior housing, small apartment buildings, low or moderate income housing, or housing near major corridors like College Highway or Feeding Hills Road.
All survey responses will be kept confidential, Allen said, adding it should take about 10 minutes to complete.
For other questions, email Allen at aallen@southwickma.gov.
