Monadnock Ledger-Transcript - State housing board won t rehear Francestown subdivision case ledgertranscript.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from ledgertranscript.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Monadnock Ledger-Transcript
Published: 6/3/2021 12:08:16 PM
The Francestown Select Board is pursuing a rehearing after the state Housing Appeals Board reversed the town Planning Board’s rejection of a four-lot subdivision on the corner of Stevens Road and the 2nd NH Turnpike.
The HAB ruled in favor of landowners Ron and Melissa Shattuck in a May 7 order, the first conclusion they handed down since forming in 2020. In their ruling, the HAB said that the Francestown Planning Board had made an “unreasonable” decision in rejecting the subdivision and had not cited any objective zoning ordinance violations in their decision.
The Select Board voted 2-1 to proceed with the rehearing request on Monday, May 24, Select Board Chair Henry Kunhardt said. A rehearing is a requisite step if the case were ever to go to the state Supreme Court, he said.
In first ruling of its kind, State Housing Appeals Board rejects Francestown Planning Board decision
A ruling by Francestown planning board was overturned by the new Housing Appeals Board. Abbe Hamilton / Monadnock Ledger-Transcript
Published: 5/25/2021 3:55:49 PM
For the first time, the state’s Housing Appeals Board has rejected a local planning board decision, overturning the January rejection of a four-lot subdivision in Francestown.
The three-person board was created by the legislature in 2020 to speed up appeals of decisions by town or city planning boards, which previously could be appealed only to Superior Court.
This ruling to reject a local decision is the first of its kind to make it through the Housing Appeal Board. It has held or scheduled hearings for appeals in six towns so far, including Pembroke and Chichester.
The state’s Housing Appeals Board reversed the Francestown Planning Board’s January decision to deny Ron and Melissa Shattuck’s proposal for a four-lot subdivision at the corner of Stevens Road and the 2nd New Hampshire Turnpike. It was the HAB’s.