NORTHFIELD — Townspeople on Tuesday get to comment on a first draft of zoning changes that would expand the possibilities for the vacant former Northfield Mount Hermon School campus, limit signs and construction of new roads to keep the town’s rural nature, and allow for better enforcement of the bylaw.
The committee will present the draft, which has been in the works since the year’s beginning, at a public forum to be held from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Northfield Elementary School cafeteria.
Kathleen Wright, a member of the Zoning Bylaw Committee, said that much of the former bylaw was drastically outdated.
“They were first set up in the 1970s, and over the years items have been added, but changes to state and federal guidelines might not have been updated,” she said. “All revisions that are up for review will make the bylaws consistent with state laws.”
The draft proposes two new zoning districts, Main Street and the NMH campus, replacing the existing agricultural/residential and agricultural/residential/forestry zones.
“Over the years, the planning board has brought several proposals for creating a village district and it never got past town meeting,” Wright said of the proposed Main Street district. The new zone would allow the planning board to moderate the businesses coming into Northfield, allowing only small businesses.
The other new district, which encompasses the 300-acre NMH campus, comes with a set of regulations that would limit what the buildings could be used for.
“Everybody assumed they would just put in another school,” Wright said. “It just seems like it does have potential for greater usage.”
Now, under the proposed bylaw, the campus could continue to be used for educational purposes or a variety of others, including to house town offices, an elderly housing or retirement community, hotels, restaurants or community centers. The bylaw would not allow for large factories, Wright noted.
Keeping with the theme of wanting to protect the town’s rural nature, Wright said the new bylaw would also limit the construction of new roads and buildings, encouraging the maintenance of old ones, and the installment of new signs.
“Even though we had a sign law, it was difficult to enforce,” she clarified. “We’re trying to make it something that we can enforce.”
Another significant change affects the procedures of the Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals, proposing new instances where the Planning Board would both give permits and review them.
Fines were also reset to account for inflation, something that has not been done since much of the bylaw was created 40 years ago, Wright said.
Wright feels that the revised zoning bylaw “is clear and internally consistent, as well as much easier to understand and enforce.”
Depending on the community feedback provided during the public forum, Wright said the Zoning Bylaw Revision Committee will likely present two more drafts. She hopes to have a final draft by early fall, and intends to present the draft at next year’s town meeting.
“We’re hoping to have a good turnout and we’re open to what people have to say,” she said. “We also want to be able to present the reasons for some of the changes … so residents know what we’re doing and why we’re doing it.”