Untitled - Town of Windham

ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENTFor 2012, the Zoning Board of Adjustment handled a total of 39 cases, as always providing a busy andchallenging year. The cases heard represented 34 variances (28 granted, 4 combination granted/denied, 1denied, 1 denied without prejudice); 4 appeals of administrative decision (1 granted, 1 combinationgranted/denied, 2 denied); 1 Equitable Waiver (granted) and 4 re-hearing requests (4 denied).Elected members at the conclusion of the year were: Mark Samsel (2014) - Chairman, Heath Partington(2013) - Vice Chairman, Betty Dunn (2013) - Secretary, Regular Members – Jim Tierney (2015) and JayYennaco (2015). Alternates include Tony Pellegrini (2013), Mike Mazalewski (2014), and MichaelScholz (2015). In the March election Mr. Tierney and Mr. Yenanco were each elected to a 3-year term.All Alternates were appointed this past year to staggered terms.For challenging cases, we had four cases appealed to Superior Court. Three cases reaffirmed the Boardsdecision, and the fourth case which was filed on December 6 is pending. We have two cases that wereappealed to Supreme Court; both are pending.Members attended a series of three New Hampshire Local Government Center Municipal Law Lecturesheld locally in Derry that presented timely topics including, “Procedural Basics for Planning and ZoningBoards”, “Religion and Land Use Controls: What Are the Legal Limits?”, and “Innovative Land UseControls: Re-examining Your Zoning Ordinance.”The Zoning Board of Adjustment has quasi-judicial powers, serving in its role “as the lowest court in theland” relative to land use issues. The purpose of the ZBA is to properly apply Windham’s ZoningOrdinance in a fair manner when called upon by an applicant to provide relief, if necessary, from thestrict interpretation of the Ordinance while preserving the spirit and intent of the Ordinance. FollowingNew Hampshire State Law, the Board must decide what is lawful, not necessarily popular, indetermining the balance between the constitutional rights of property owners to the reasonable use oftheir land and the public rights of others. In addition to the responsibility of reviewing Variance requests,the Board is charged with granting Equitable Waivers, Special Exceptions, and Appeals ofAdministrative Decisions.Information regarding Zoning Board of Adjustment Applications, Handbook, and By-Laws is availableon the Town of Windham website under Committees, as well Public Hearing Notices, Agendas, Minutesand annual meeting schedule.The Board thanks Nancy Prendergast (ZBA/Code Enforcement Administrator) for handling ZBA generalbusiness, Cathy Pinette, ZBA Minute Taker, and Colleen King, ZBA/Conservation Committee Assistant,for their attendance at our meetings, preparing case information, and providing information to the Board.As always, thanks go to Tom Case for his continued dedication to handling cable coverage and taping ourmeetings, and to the Cable Committee for providing televised access to Windham residents.Respectfully submitted for the Board,Mark Samsel, Chair2012 Annual Reports 127 Town of Windham, NH