Community Development Department

Post date: Oct 21, 2015 8:56:39 PM

Building

Ryan and Rob recently attended a Building Officials Training in West Springfield. They will be attending additional training on the next edition of the State Building Code throughout the coming months.

Ryan has been working closely with the design team, construction team, and the fire chief on coordinating the response plan for clean up at Highland Woods. A portion of the building flooded during the recent record cold temps over the President’s Day weekend. At the current time the west wing of the building is scheduled for occupancy on March 18. The east wing is under repair from the flood damage and is projected to be ready on August 1.

Health

Jeff Kennedy has been attending Health and Medical Coordinating Coalition (HMCC) planning meetings to establish steering committee guidelines and procedures for Hamden, Hampshire, Franklin and Berkshire Counties. The final meeting will be in North Adams on March 8.

Jeff Kennedy has been performing septic system installation inspections. Jeff Kennedy has been inspecting food establishments and rental units.

The Board of Health has begun administering the plastic bag bylaw voted by the Town’s citizens at the 2015 Town meeting. As with the polystyrene bylaw, the focus will be on moving towards compliance, rather than looking for enforcement. The Health Inspector has met with the retail businesses in town, informing them to use up their existing stock of plastic bags (rather than throwing them out unused) and switching to bylaw compliant product. Most vendors have begun using paper bags that are ‘fit for their intended use’.

On March 7, 2016 the Williamstown Board of Health heard requests for variance from certain provisions of the Town of Williamstown Bylaw, Article 42, concerning the use of polystyrene in food containers. Additionally the Board heard from the Health Inspector that finding economical lids for hot beverage cups in the quantity and quality required, which also meet the bylaw standards, has proven problematic for many establishments. Following discussion, the Board of Health unanimously approved a general variance to allow the use of polystyrene (#6) hot cup lids for all food establishments. The variance will expire on March 7, 2017.

Land Use

The Planning Board will meet March 15 to consider a public hearing for the proposed zoning bylaw amendments. The Planning Board is also continuing to work with Mass Housing Partnership on a long term project to zone for alternative housing types in town. The Affordable Housing Committee is actively involved in this effort as well.

The Conservation Commission met on the 10^th to finalize their special use permits for agricultural activities on the Lowry and Burbank parcels. As a new criteria of the permits each farmer will be required to have an farm conservation plan active and maintained. Developing these plans is a free service from the Natural Resource Conservation Service, an arm of the USDA. The Con Com is also working on re-booting the process of finalizing and seeking approval of an Open Space and Recreation Plan for the town. The Commission hopes to convene a small working group of stakeholders in April to finalize the plan which is under development by Community Development and Rural Lands staff.