SOUTHWICK – The Planning Board is seeking residents to serve on a new driveway sub-committee.
Two members of the general public will be appointed to the committee, which will also include one member each from the Fire Department, Police Department, Department of Public Works, Conservation Commission and two members of the Planning Board.
Planning Board Chairman Douglas Moglin said the purpose of the committee is to research and discuss driveways in Southwick, with special attention to common driveways, and possibly create a bylaw for Town Meeting.
The town’s lack of a driveway bylaw came to the board’s attention after numerous residents asked the board to help with street repair. Moglin said in many cases, the board found that the street was not a town owned road and often was not a street at all, but a common driveway.
“Your heart goes out to those people, but the town can’t take them on,” said Moglin of the driveway concerns.
Residents will have the opportunity to vote on a proposed moratorium on common driveways at the spring Town Meeting. The moratorium would not include projects already approved, but would prevent new common driveway projects until a bylaw is approved.
Moglin said it also came to light that common driveways are subject to the state’s legal opinion, which has changed over the years. The current opinion is that driveways are similar to an accessory use, such as a shed.
“If you get a bylaw in place you’re not at the whim of a changing legal opinion,” Moglin said.
Often, residents are not aware that their home is on a common driveway instead of a street.
“A lot of these things were done with a handshake years ago, and now you may have the third or fourth homeowner and they don’t know about that agreement,” Moglin said. “A bylaw will help.”
Moglin said the sub-committee is being formed now before people begin building.
“Before we have open season, we want to get in front of this,” he said.
Moglin hopes the bylaw will go as smoothly as the solar bylaw that was passed last year.
“That bylaw is doing what it was supposed to do,” he said. “It was quick and was met with little opposition and I think this will be the same way.”
Residents interested in serving should contact Ruth Preston at 413-536-6056 ext. 136.
