Groton Open Space Association

GOSA Argues Against Deletion of “Purposes” from Subdivision Regs

GROTON — The Groton Open Space Association is urging the Planning Commission to resist deletion of the Purposes section of the Subdivision Regulations, as has been suggested by the Office of Planning and Development Services.

The following is a slightly edited version of a statement read by GOSA to the Planning Commission at its meeting April 28, 2009, in the Town Hall Annex:

GOSA would like to comment briefly on an OPDS draft of changes to the subdivision regulations.

The draft, dated Feb. 24, 2009, would eliminate the statement of purposes currently located in Section 1.2 of the regulations. The purposes set out in clear and forceful language a foundation for the work of the commission.

Among the purposes that the OPDS proposes to eliminate are those laid out in Items 10 and 11.

Item 10 reads in part: “To prevent the pollution of air, streams, and ponds; …to safeguard the water table; and to encourage the wise use and management of natural resources throughout the Town in order to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the community and the value of land.”

Item 11 reads: “To preserve the natural beauty and topography of the Town to insure appropriate development with regard to these natural features.”

These proposed OPDS deletions are particularly worrisome for conservationists, but many other worthy purposes also are scheduled for elimination. These include but aren’t limited to the protection of public health and safety, town character, and social and economic stability.

Striking out the statement of purposes would tend to cut the commission loose from its moorings and to set it adrift. For example, Section 1.9 makes reference to the “intent and purpose of these regulations.” What intent and what purpose would be left?

The goals set out in Section 1.2 aren’t numbers, and they won’t fit into Kendig Keast’s planning spreadsheets. [Kendig Keast Collaborative, of Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, currently is acting as a consultant to Groton in a comprehensive rewrite of land-use regulations.] To apply the statement of purposes requires human judgment. The purposes are important to the continued authority of the Planning Commission and to the protection of the town.

We urge the Planning Commission to instruct the OPDS to preserve the purposes section of the Subdivision Regulations, instead of discarding it.