COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS

TOWN OF NORTHBRIDGE

WARRANT FOR SPECIAL TOWN MEETING

TRANSACTION OF TOWN BUSINESS

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2012 – 7:00 P.M.

                                                                                                              

WORCESTER, ss:

To any Constable of the Town of Northbridge in said County,

GREETINGS:

In the name of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, you are hereby directed to notify the Inhabitants of the Town of Northbridge, qualified to vote in Town elections and Town affairs, to meet in the Northbridge Middle School Auditorium on Linwood Avenue, in Whitinsville, in said Northbridge, Massachusetts, on Tuesday, February 21, 2012 at 7:00 o'clock P.M., then and there to act on the following articles:

 

ARTICLE 1:               (Planning Board)

To see if the Town will vote to amend Northbridge Zoning Bylaws Section 173-4 [Establishment of Zoning Map] and the Zoning Map by expanding the Heritage Zoning District (H) to include the land designated as Assessors’ Map 15, Parcels 17 & 18; said parcels being located off Hill Street and currently zoned Residential – One (R-1) & Residential –Three (R-3); or take any other action relative thereto.

 

ARTICLE 2:               (Planning Board)

To see if the Town will vote to amend Northbridge Zoning Bylaws Section 173-6 [Purpose of Heritage District] as shown below:

 

§ 173-6. Purpose of Heritage District. [Added 5-13-80 ATM, Art. 39]

The purpose of this district is to preserve and reinforce the visual and historical character of the Memorial Square Area of the Town of Northbridge by regulating the type and intensity of uses which may be proposed within it. Specifically, it is the intention of the provisions for this district to provide for uses which have characteristics similar to those of the uses existing at the time of enactment of this section.

 

Proposed Zoning Amendment [ADD the following provisions]:

 

The purpose of this district is to preserve and reinforce the visual and historical character of the Memorial Square Area of the Town of Northbridge by regulating the type and intensity of uses which may be proposed within it. Specifically, it is the intention of the provisions for this district to provide for uses which have characteristics similar to those of the uses existing at the time of enactment of this section.  The Planning Board shall be the Special Permit Granting Authority within the Heritage District.  By Special Permit, an existing use may also be changed or altered to two or more new uses permitted in the district under the Table of Use Regulations (Section 173-12), subject to the requirement that such new use(s) shall further preserve the historic character of the main structures, outbuildings and landscape within the subject property.  The Special Permit may also authorize and define allowed accessory uses to the new use(s).  Alterations which result in an increase to the overall square-footage of any structure contained within the subject property shall be limited to 25% of the existing footprint of that structure.  A Special Permit application proposing new structures, additions, or exterior alterations shall be referred to the Northbridge Historical Commission for its consideration, review and report, such report to be submitted to the Planning Board within 35 days of the Commission’s receipt of a copy of the application.

 

Provisions to be added are indicated by underline (above);

 

or take any other action relative thereto.

 

 

ARTICLE 3:               (Planning Board)

To see if the Town will vote to amend Northbridge Zoning Bylaws Section 173-12 [Table of Use Regulations] by allowing “office for administrative, executive, professional, sales and other similar uses” within the Heritage Zoning District (H) via the issuance of a special permit, as illustrated below: 

 

§ 173-12. Table of Use Regulations. (Editor’s Note: The Table of Area Regulations is included at the end of this chapter) [Amended 5-13-1980 ATM, Art. 39]

 

In the Table of Use Regulations, the uses permitted by right in the district shall be designated by the letter P.  Those uses that may be permitted by special permit in the district, in accordance with § 173-47, shall be designated by the letter S. Uses designated "-" shall not be permitted in the district.

 

Table of Use Regulations (§173-12)                             Zoning Districts

Use (Retail & Services)

Office for administrative,

executive, professional,

sales and other similar uses

 
 
                                                R-1    R-2    R-3    R-4    R-5    R-6    B-1    B-2    B-31    I-1    I-2    H

  --        --       --        --      --       --       --        --                 --       S       P     --

 

 

Proposed Zoning Amendment [ALLOW “Office for administrative, executive, professional, sales and other similar uses” as an allowable use within the Heritage Zoning Districts by Special Permit (S)]:

 

Table of Use Regulations (§173-12)                             Zoning Districts

Use (Retail & Services)

Office for administrative,

executive, professional,

sales and other similar uses

 
 
                                                R-1    R-2    R-3    R-4    R-5    R-6    B-1    B-2    B-31    I-1    I-2    H

                                                  --        --       --                   --        --     --        --       --      --       S       P      S

                                                                                                                

 

Provision to be amended is indicated by underline (above);

 

or take any other action relative thereto.

 

ARTICLE 4:               (Board of Selectmen)

To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate and/or transfer from any available funds a sum of money to the Stabilization Fund (Line 44); or take any other action relative thereto.

 

ARTICLE 5:               (Retirement Board)

To see if the Town will vote to accept the provisions of Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 32, § 20 (6); or take any other action relative thereto.

 

ARTICLE 6                (Petition)

To see if the Town will vote to change the zoning district designation of a parcel of land on the easterly side of Providence Road and on the northerly side of Upton Street in the Village of Rockdale, from Residential Two (R-2) and Residential Three (R-3) to Residential Four (R-4), said parcel being more particularly described as follows:

Beginning    at the intersection of the center line of Providence Road and the extension of the northerly line of Upton Street;

Thence        Easterly, by the northerly line of Upton Street, a distance of 500 feet;

Thence        Northerly, by a line perpendicular to Upton Street, a distance of 120 feet to the existing R-2 / R-3 zone line; 

Thence        Easterly, by said R-2 / R-3 zone line, located 120 feet northerly of and parallel to the northerly line of Upton Street, a distance of 1,010 feet, more or less, to the I-1 zone line;

Thence        Northerly, by the I-1 zone line, a distance of 250 feet, more or less;

Thence        Westerly, by a line perpendicular to the I-1 zone line, a distance of 1,455 feet, more or less, to the center line of Providence Road;

Thence        Southerly, by the center line of Providence Road, a distance of 500 feet to the point of beginning.;

or take any other action relating thereto.

 

ARTICLE 7                (Petition)

To see if the Town will vote to change the zoning district designation of a 1.035 acre parcel of land located at the intersection of Main and Water Streets in the Village of Whitinsville shown on a plan recorded in Worcester District Registry of Deeds, Plan Book 571, as Plan 109, from Residential Five (R-5) to Industrial One (I-1); or take any other action related thereto.

 

ARTICLE 8                (Petition)

To see if the Town will vote to amend its Zoning By-Laws by deleting footnote (8) from the Table of Area Regulations and substituting therefore:

 

(8)  No building or structure shall be erected within 100 feet of a residential district, except where the zoning district boundary is a street, in which case the set back from the boundary shall be 75 feet and when the boundary is not a street, the buffer shall be landscaped to form a visual buffer zone of a width of natural growth for at least 50 feet (if under the control of the owner), provided that in a Business One (B-1) District that is less than 300 feet in depth, or in a Planned Business Development, no building shall be erected within 50 feet of a residential district.;

 

or take any other action related thereto.          

 

 

 

 

 

 

And you are directed to serve this warrant by posting attested copies thereof at the Whitinsville Post Office in Whitinsville and Brian's Restaurant in Linwood, in Precinct 1; Office of Polyfoam Corp., Gary's Variety and the Northbridge Post Office in Northbridge, all in Precinct 2; Town Clerk's Office and 1Quikstop in Whitinsville in Precinct 3; and the VFW Hall [875 Hill Street] and Town Hall Annex in Whitinsville in Precinct 4; twenty-eight (28) days at least before the time and place of meeting aforesaid.

WHEREOF FAIL NOT, and make due return of the warrant, with your doings thereon, to the Town Clerk at the time and place of said meeting.  GIVEN under our hand this 25th day of January in the year Two Thousand Twelve.    

 

 

 

SELECTMEN OF NORTHBRIDGE

 

                                                           

                                                        Thomas J. Melia, Chairman

 

 

                                                                                                                                                           

James R. Marzec                                                          Charles Ampagoomian, Jr.

 

                                                                                                                                                           

Daniel J. Nolan                                                                        James J. Athanas