P& Z approves two zoning changes

NORTH CANAAN — Two amendments were made to zoning regulations July 11. One clarifies how home occupations are regulated. The other paves the way for an application for a proposed expansion of an addiction treatment facility.Unanimous votes by the Planning and Zoning Commission followed two public hearings. There was no public comment on the proposed change to Article XI, Home Occupations & Cottage Industries. The change was merely to correct an inconsistency. The Table of Uses was changed a couple of years ago to require both be by special permit only. That change was not included in Article XI, which describes the specific definitions of both business uses.Special permitting allows P&Z the opportunity to look at the unique aspects of use and location, opening up opportunities while limiting adverse impacts on the town and neighborhood.Complete zoning regulations are posted at www.northcanaan.org.Plans to add a residential substance abuse treatment facility at Mountainside on South Canaan Road also require an addition to Article XI to allow for such a facility in a residential/agricultural zone. The addition could conceivably be approved without the change, with a special permit issued for an already allowed use. But the applicant, Mountainside Properties by Artemis Partners LLC is seeking financing with a lender who wants a broader definition of the property use. Under the zoning addition, requirements for such a facility would be municipal sewer and at least 25 contiguous acres. Mountainside attorney Anthony Nania explained the complicated structuring of the various subsidiaries that make up the business, separating land and business ownership, and facility management. The expansion plan involves buying property to the north, currently owned by Peter and Karen Richard. The two lots would remain legally separate, as part of a lending agreement. That creates a problem. The 25-acre minimum can only be met if the acreage of the two lots is added together.The Planning and Zoning commissioners agreed to Nania’s proposed change, to allow the acreage minimum to be met with two or more contiguous lots with the same owner.A review by the Northwestern Connecticut Council of Governments suggested other criteria be established, such as maximum number of clients, setbacks and parking. The Council of Governments is a group made up of the first selectmen from nine Litchfield County towns, including the six towns of the Region One School District.North Canaan Zoning Enforcement Officer Ruth Mulcahy said regulations address such issues, and specific concerns can be addressed as conditions of a special permit.More details of the project are expected at a public hearing on the special permit application set for Aug. 8 at 7 p.m. at Town Hall.

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