Town Planner Ken Buckland suggested lowering fees to encourage compliance with town zoning laws at Monday night’s Planning Board meeting.

“Because of smaller size projects having to go through a fairly extensive and costly review, what happens is there’s a tendency to maybe not go through that process and build without a permit,” Buckland said. “What we want to do is encourage people to go through the legal process and get all their entitlements in place.”

Buckland laid out the set costs for those looking for approval on a project: an application fee, publication of notices in the newspaper, sending abutters’ notices, and obtaining a survey of the property. 

Of those costs, the town can only impact the cost of applying. Buckland suggested creating a graduated fee structure so that applying for a smaller project, like adding a deck or small shed to a pre-existing non-conforming lot or structure, could be less expensive. Those small projects are also some of the most commonly brought to the Planning Board for approval.

“We’re not saving them a lot of money

Buckland suggested that if the Building Department determines the project to be less than $5,000 in value, the fee to apply for a zoning compliance permit could be $25 rather than $300. 

Town Engineer Charles Rowley suggested tying the fee to the size of the project in square feet rather than the cost of the project.