To hear and decide applications for special permits. Unless otherwise specified herein, the Board of Appeals shall serve as the special permit granting authority, to act in all matters in accordance with the provisions of § 301-6.3, or as otherwise specified.

To hear and decide appeals or petitions for variances from the terms of this bylaw, with respect to particular land or structures, as set forth in MGL c. 40A, § 10.

To hear and decide appeals taken by any person aggrieved by reason of his inability to obtain a permit or enforcement action from any administrative officer under the provision of MGL c. 40A, §§ 8 and 15.

To hear and decide comprehensive permits for construction of low or moderate income housing by a public agency or limited dividend or nonprofit corporation, as set forth in MGL c. 40B, §§ 20 through 23.

Social, economic, or community needs which are served by the proposal;

Traffic flow and safety, including parking and loading;

Adequacy of utilities and other public services;

Neighborhood character and social structures;

Impacts on the natural environment; and

Potential fiscal impact, including impact on Town services, tax base and employment.

Construction, exterior alteration or exterior expansion of, or change of use within a municipal, institutional, commercial, industrial or multifamily structure involving more than 1,200 square feet;

Construction or expansion of a parking lot for a municipal, institutional, commercial, industrial, or multi-family structure or purpose;

Grading or clearing more than 10% of a lot, except for the following: landscaping on a lot with an existing structure or a proposed single- or two-family dwelling; clearing necessary for percolation and other site tests; work incidental to agricultural activity, work in conjunction with an approved subdivision plan, or work pursuant to an earth removal permit.

A building wholly or partially destroyed may be rebuilt without recourse to this section if rebuilt without change to the building footprint or the square footage of usable space.

The construction or enlargement of any nonresidential building, structure or use in any district where such construction will not exceed a total gross floor area of 1,200 square feet or will not generate the need for more than five parking spaces.

Use, structure, or activity available as of right or special permit. An application for a building permit to perform work as set forth in § 301-6.4.1 available as of right shall be accompanied by an approved site plan. Prior to the commencement of any activity set forth in § 301-6.4.1 or available as of right, the project proponent shall obtain site plan approval from the Planning Board. Applicants for site plan approval shall submit 15 copies of the site plan and an electronic copy of all application materials to the Planning Board for review, and for distribution to the Board of Health, Director of Public Works, Police Chief, Fire Chief, the Building Inspector and the Conservation Commission for their advisory review and comments. Approval for a site plan may be issued only after a public meeting held within 60 days of the filing of an application with the Planning Board. It is the applicant's responsibility to obtain a certified list of names and addresses of all parties of interest, as defined in MGL c. 40A, § 11, by the Assessing Office. The Planning Board shall notify all parties of interest by mail and notice of a public meeting shall be given by publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the Town in each of two consecutive weeks; the first publication to be not less than 14 days and the second publication not less than seven days before the day of the meeting. Said notice and publication shall contain the name of the applicant, a description of the area or premises, street address, or other adequate identification of the location, the date and place of the public meeting, the subject matter of the hearing, and the nature of the action requested. The decision of the Planning Board shall be upon a majority of those present and shall be in writing. No building permit shall be issued by the Building Commissioner without the written approval of the site plan by the Planning Board, or unless 60 days lapse from the date of the submittal of the site plan without action by the Planning Board.

(Reserved)[1]

Where the Planning Board serves as the special permit granting authority it shall consolidate its site plan review and special permit procedures.

An application for site plan approval shall be accompanied by a fee, as set forth in the Planning Board's Rules and Regulations.

All boundary line information pertaining to the land sufficient to permit location of same on ground with existing and proposed topography at two-foot contour intervals;

Existing and proposed building and structures, including fences, loading areas, accessory buildings, signs, waste disposal areas, and storage areas. Existing building elevations or renderings shall be submitted;

Water provision, including fire protection measures;

All wetlands and waterbodies on the property and within 100 feet of the property;

Sanitary sewerage and storm drainage, including means of ultimate disposal and calculations to support maintenance of the requirements in the Planning Board's Subdivision Rules and Regulations;

Parking, walkways, driveways, and other access and egress provisions;

Existing trees ten-inch caliper or better and existing tree/shrub masses; proposed planting landscaping and screening;

Existing and proposed exterior lighting;

Compliance with all applicable provisions of this Zoning Bylaw.

All stormwater management systems for new development and redevelopment projects that result in a land disturbance of one or more acres and discharge stormwater into the municipal system must comply with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Stormwater Management Policy Handbook and Technical Handbook, whether or not the project falls within the jurisdiction of the Wetland Protection Act (MGL c. 131, § 40). This enforcement will include projects that are less than one acre if the project is part of a larger common plan development.

Minimize the volume of cut and fill, the number of removed trees six-inch caliper or larger, the length of removed stone walls, the area of wetland vegetation displaced, the extent of stormwater flow increase from the site, soil erosion, and threat of air and water pollution;

Maximize pedestrian and vehicular safety both on the site and egressing from it;

Minimize obstruction of scenic views from publicly accessible locations;

Minimize visual intrusion by controlling visibility of parking, storage, or other outdoor service areas viewed from public ways or premises residentially used or zoned;

Minimize glare from headlights through plantings or other screening;

Minimize lighting intrusion through use of devices confining illumination to the site;

Minimize unreasonable departure from the color, character, scale and architectural style of buildings in the vicinity, as viewed from public ways;

Minimize contamination of groundwater from on-site wastewater disposal systems or operations on the premises involving the use, storage, handling, or containment of hazardous substances;

Compliance with the provisions of this Zoning Bylaw, including parking and landscaping.