Present: William Friel, Vice-Chairman; Sanford Carter; Hank Riehl; Kate Rochford;

Alternates: Maggie Osborn

Blake & Donna Baker request for Special Exception as specified in the Zoning Ordinance Article VII, Section 700:2 to allow conversion from Seasonal to year-round/primary use for new construction of a dwelling and Variance from Article IV, Section 410:8(b) of the Ordinance to construct a new dwelling 50’ from wetland (Big Island Pond) as opposed to the required 100’ on property located at 16 Chase Island Road, Map 22, Lot 34, RR3 Zone.

Abutters list was read with the following present: Mr. and Mrs. Baker; David Holligan

Mr. Carter explained the Board conducted a site walk. The discussion was relative to the original request to rebuild a dwelling in the same location as is now, requiring a variance to the sideline setbacks. The Board had concerns at the last hearing and thought there was room to move the proposed dwelling over to make it conform to the setback requirement. Mr. Carter believed that based on the topography and the contour of the lot there was the room to pivot the house to meet the requirement. There might be a rock that needs to be moved and there would probably be excavation necessary to put in the frost wall. The contour of the land rises rapidly. Mr. Carter felt that after seeing the site there was no insurmountable hardship that would pertain to the applicant not being able to pivot the house to conform to the sideline setback. Mr. Riehl agreed and so did Ms. Rochford and Mrs. Osborn.

Mrs. Baker said they did just that and presented the Board with a new set of drawings in which the proposed dwelling was 15 feet from the sideline and 50’ from the lake. The dwelling increased to a 30’ x 26’ house as opposed to the original of 30’ x 24’. They are no longer asking for a sideline variance. Mrs. Baker indicated the Conservation Commission held a site walk last week and have submitted a letter of recommendation for the proposal. Mr. Carter asked about the deck. Mr. Baker said there is a proposed deck with a roof and screens but that it is 50’ away from waters edge. The roofline has the same pitch as the original proposal. Mr. Riehl asked about the boathouse and the Bakers said they were not making any changes to it. Mr. Friel asked if any of the members had a problem with the proposed size of the dwelling. Mr. Riehl said this was a half-acre parcel, which is very large for this area. Mr. Carter stated that the house next door is very large. The Board raised questions about the height and determined the Town has always used BOCA standards. This house is three stories on the water side, but two stories from the street side. The board agreed that the Building Inspector would review the drawings for height requirements prior to issuing a permit.

Mr. Friel asked if the septic system location was going to change. The Bakers said they do not know yet, but were told it does not have to go back to the state and will just be an as built change. The leach field location will not change and the septic system will meet all of the setback requirements.

The Board asked for abutter input. Mr. Holligan had no problem with the proposal and thought it was consistent with what was is the area. Mr. Friel read the letter from the Conservation Commission.

The Board reviewed the conditions for the conversion of seasonal to year round use according to Section 700:2

Review by the Health Officer and complies with Section W300 of the Water and Sewerage Disposal System. The septic must be installed before the CO can be issued.

The proposal must meet the conditions of the Shoreline Protection Act. There is a new septic plan that has been approved by the State and signed off by the Town of Atkinson Health Officer.

The Board reviewed the criterion for the Variance:

William & Diane Bingham request for a Special Exception as specified in the Zoning Ordinance Article IV, Section 450 for a Home Business ‘Artemis Bowen, Inc.’ for the purpose of Real Estate Brokerage Service at property located at 9 Amberwood Drive, Map 19, Lot 2-4, RR2 Zone.

Abutter’s list was read with the following present: Mr. and Mrs. Bingham

Mrs. Bingham explained that she originally had a home business approval usage in 1999. She is looking for approval to run a real estate business, which is 100% computer based. She is a licensed Broker in Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire and deals with sellers by listing their homes for sale on MLS Services. A potential buyer would then contact her and she would put them in touch with the Seller. There is no sign for advertising and there are no drop-in clients. Almost everything is done by e-mail or fax. There is no traffic impact because there are no customers. They have occasional deliveries from Staples and UPS. The plan submitted indicated that approximately 13% of the square footage is used for the business. The Board discussed the hours and made sure the applicant was aware that the aggregate of employee’s hours could not be more than eighty. Mrs. Bigham agreed.

The Board reviewed the conditions:

Minutes transcribed from tape. Respectfully submitted

Rebecca Russo

Approved________________________