BUCKLAND — Zoning for municipal solar installations, new rules for trailer home usage and definition changes in the zoning bylaw will be discussed at a public hearing Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. in the Town Hall.
Besides reviewing proposed zoning bylaw revisions, the Planning Board would like to hear from residents on what kinds of marijuana facilities should be allowed in town, and how to plan for them in zoning bylaws.
One proposed change is to allow ground-mounted solar electricity generating installations to occupy more than 1,000 square feet on municipal properties within the town’s Village Residential District, subject to a special permit and site plan review. The purpose is to allow these uses as a low-impact, economically beneficial energy source at such municipal sites as the highway garage or the Shelburne Falls Wastewater Treatment Facility.
The current bylaws say that trailers may be used to live in for up to 60 consecutive days at any location in town. But a loophole around this restriction makes it possible to leave for a day, and then return to the site for another 60-day stay. Instead, the proposed change says a trailer designated for camping, recreational or business purposes cannot be used for living purposes for more than 60 days a year “at any location or locations within the geographic limits” of the town.
However, extended use for seasonal farm workers may be approved through a special permit process. Also, a trailer or mobile home may be placed by the owner or resident of a home destroyed by fire or natural disaster for up to 12 months, while the home is being rebuilt.