ZBA Approves Special Permit for New Elementary School

Report on the Meeting Zoning Board of Appeals, January 25, 2024

This meeting was conducted over Zoom and was recorded. It can be viewed here.

Present
Craig Meadows, (Acting chair), and Phillip White. Associate members Sarah Marshall, and Hilda Greenbaum>

Staff: Chris Brestrup (Planning Director), Pam Field-Sadler (Assistant)

Eleven architects and engineers working on the project also attended.

The Zoning Board of Appeals unanimously approved the three-story height (43 feet) of the planned elementary school and the covered outdoor classroom located in the Flood Prone Conservancy (FPC) District.

The Planning Board has jurisdiction over the site plan for the new elementary school to be built on the Fort River site at 70 South East Street and began its public hearing on January 17, to be continued on February 7. However, since part of the building and the covered area for outdoor learning are located in the Flood Prone Conservancy District, the project requires a special permit from the ZBA for a structure taller than 20 feet in the FPC. With only four ZBA members present, a unanimous vote was needed to pass the special permit.

At the start of the meeting, Sarah Marshall disclosed that she was recently elected to the School Committee, but had attended only one meeting on January 6, 2024 and had not been involved in any of the planning for the new school. She said she had spoken to the Attorney General and filed a disclaimer with the Amherst Town Clerk saying that she could act impartially on this case.

According to planning staff, this section of the Zoning Bylaw regulating construction in a Flood Prone Conservancy (FPC) District dates to the 1970s before State and Federal regulations regarding construction in flood plains were enacted. According to the Zoning Bylaw, residential use in this zone is prohibited. When asked why height of structures in the zone is limited to one-story, but there is no maximum footprint size, Planning Director Chris Brestrup speculated that the intention was to discourage building anything in the FPC district. She added that with the accurate flood maps recently approved by the Town Council and FEMA, the FPC District is a relic that could be removed from the Zoning Bylaw. The Conservation Commission had already ruled to permit the planned construction.

ZBA members asked the architects about measures planned to protect both the school and the nearby Fort River from stormwater and the high-water table. Tim Cooper, of DiNisco Design explained that the first floor of the new building will be raised two feet, with porous material under the slab to promote drainage. Similar measures are planned for the athletic fields at the site. The special permit was approved with conditions by a vote of 4-0.