Appeals Board Decides Safety Prevails Over Variance Criteria

by William F. Galvin

            NORTH HARWICH – Safety is not a threshold for the issuance of a variance under the state statutes, and the more than a yearlong effort to correct traffic safety and tractor-trailer access deficiencies to the Stonewood Products facilities on Depot Street nearly fell victim to the law.

            After receiving site plan approval from the planning board last month, business owner Anthony Baroni and his attorney, Myer Singer of Dennis, were before the appeals board last Wednesday for what was viewed as a few housekeeping variances to complete a two-town effort to improve roadway safety issues in the neighborhood.

            A year ago Dennis selectmen asked the Harwich board if they could assist in eliminating large trailer truck traffic in the residential neighborhood to the south. Trucks were being forced to use those smaller residential roads to accommodate better access to the Stonewood Products facilities on Depot Street.  

            Still, upon arrival at the entrance of the facilities, trucks have been forced to back in and out of the Stonewood grounds, blocking traffic and causing problems for adjacent businesses. At least one abutting business was struck by a truck, Town Administrator James Merriam told the board on Wednesday.

            There was also a problem with trucks stacking and waiting along Depot Street and causing additional traffic problems. Town officials said the trucks were damaging infrastructure along the roadway. Signs were posted to prevent vehicles from parking along the edge of the road.

            For the past year the planning department and Cape Cod Commission have had a hand in addressing the situation. Baroni purchased abutting acreage from the town through auction and developed a plan to expand the business, providing additional storage, and also creating new access and egress for trucks along Great Western Road. The plan provided a direct route to Route 134 and Route 6 and would end the use of residential roads in Dennis.

            The variances sought before the appeals board last Wednesday included increasing driveway widths along Great Western Road to 74 feet and 47 feet where 30 feet is the maximum allowed. Another variance sought the construction of a retaining wall that encroached upon setbacks to the abutting property. A third variance not to install wheel stops was withdrawn.

            The topography of the lot satisfied the criteria for issuance of the variance for the retaining wall. But board members had questions about meeting the soil, shape and topography criteria necessary for the issuance of driveway variances.

            Singer said the 30-foot maximum under the bylaw does not provide enough turning radius for tractor-trailer trucks to enter the property. He recommended the bylaw be amended to provide larger entrances in the industrial light district.

            “The whole purpose of doing this is to eliminate truck turning problems,” Singer said. “The limitations imposed by the bylaw inhibit or prevent the use in a safe manner.”

              Town Planner Susan Leven also pointed out that greater width would allow trucks to pull off the road and out of the way of traffic if they arrive before the business opens for the day.

            But Appeals Board Chairman Richard Flink wanted to know which hardship criterion applied to the issuance of the variance. Singer cited the turning problems on Depot Street and cited the location of the structures at the present business location. He said trucks can’t make turns in or out of the lot.

            Board member Jack Brown cited the absence of adjustments in the bylaw to accommodate changes in the transportation of products. He said in recent years trucks have increased in size from 40 to 55 feet and “the laws of physics have not changed.” Brown’s reference was to the turning radius of trucks as they get larger.

             Singer said by allowing through traffic for truck movement from the new facility to the present location, the variance will make for a safer situation.

Peter Soule, the project engineer, argued the widths of the driveways are designed to accommodate the larger trucks without catching the edge of the roadway and breaking down the shoulder of the road. Soule also pointed out the driveway across the road at the Robert B. Our Company is 79 feet wide.

“I will vote against it, not because I don’t see the necessity,” Flink said. “I don’t see the statutory criteria for it.”

“I agree there is a safety issue, but no hardship,” member Geoffrey Wiegman said. “It’s the right thing to do from a public safety view point, but the wrong thing to do from the point of a variance.”

Wiegman said the bylaw calls for 60 feet for the two driveways and the proponent is seeking 120 feet. Flink recommended an update of the bylaw.

“We live in this world and not some other,” Brown said. “We should grant the variance because the bylaw isn’t conforming to the current reality.”

 “Everybody’s been looking for a change,” Merriam said. “The current situation is dangerous and should be resolved as quickly as possible.”

“We have a situation where the town bylaw is antiquated, but it’s what we’re governed under,” Flink responded.

“In my heart of hearts I don’t believe under 40A (state statute) the provisions are there to address this, but I will vote in favor because we need to address the safety issue,” Wiegman relented.

9/4/08