Planning Board refers zoning fixes to ZBC

Planning Board · Meeting of October 6, 2026

HULL — The Hull Planning Board voted to refer three zoning bylaw amendments to the town's Zoning Bylaw Committee and kept two others for its own review, sorting a list of 23 potential changes ahead of a joint meeting with the ZBC. Clerk Lisa French and members voted 6-0 to send proposals on linkage fees, vacant commercial properties and the definition of open space to the ZBC, while voting 5-0 to keep a disputed front-setback waiver, known as Chart 50 Amendment A, and the definition of a building for internal review. Town Counsel Brian Winner told the board that new state zoning legislation, retroactive to July 1, requires no mandatory local action but creates ambiguity, saying of one new provision, "nobody knows what that means." The board also agreed to hold a November 4 public meeting on Weir River Water's Strawberry Hill Water Tower project after French said "Weir River Water did not provide what the DRB asked for."

In the full story:

• Setting the 2026 Meeting Calendar
• New State Zoning Law: What Changes and What Doesn't
• Prioritizing 23 Zoning Proposals for the 2027 Warrant
• Keeping Chart 50 Amendment A In-House
• Definition of a Building, Linkage Fees and Other Referrals
• Strawberry Hill Water Tower: DRB Raises Transparency Concerns
• Minutes Review and a Software Transition
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 2,965 words

Source: the Planning Board meeting of October 6, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript. It was corrected where it differed.