HADLEY — A proposal to create a bylaw legalizing tiny houses will go before Town Meeting May 5 with no recommendation from the Planning Board following a vote Tuesday evening.
The proposed legislation would allow for the type of 190-square-foot “backyard cottage” Sarah Hastings has already built on the East Street property of Ron and Donna Adams.
During the meeting, Hastings fielded questions from board members about greywater and unit size. Two Hadley residents also spoke to the legislation — one for and one against.
Board member Joseph Zgrodnik cast the only vote against the bylaw, saying Hastings had not followed the necessary steps to get it approved.
“You’re asking not for permission,” Zgrodnik said. “You’re asking for forgiveness, it seems.”
Though he compared the tiny house dimensions to a dollhouse, board member John Mieczkowski spoke for the legislation, saying it would provide more affordable housing options in a town surrounded by colleges that are driving up prices.
Resident Anthony Fyden expressed strong opposition to the proposed warrant article and criticized Hastings for “knowingly” breaking the law. He said people may pick up the idea as a fad, decide to have families and then abandon the small dwellings.
“I’m asking the board to take a stand,” he said, urging planners to send the legislation to Town Meeting with a recommendation against its passing.
“I don’t think we should put poor people in a tiny home and pretend we’re solving problems,” Fyden said in response to Mieczkowski’s statements about affordability.
Another resident, Jane Braaten, echoed Mieczkowski’s sentiment.
“It would just increase the range of possibilities,” said Braaten, referring to affordability.
Hastings said after the vote she was happy with the outcome.
“I think it went well,” said Hastings, 22, an alumna of Mount Holyoke. “This is is the outcome I was hoping for.”
She said that because the legislation is entering Town Meeting with a label neither for nor against, the neutrality may encourage more research on the part of voters.
As to any criticism about the size, Hastings said a small home can be more functional than one might imagine.
“It’s not unrealistic if you think about apartments in New York City,” she said. “They’re all about that size.”
Hastings said she will need Board of Health approval on her greywater system, which she calls a greywater garden. This allows gently used water from shower and sink pipes to seep into soil surrounding the home. It requires care to achieve, she said, something her education in environmental geoscience and architectural studies prepared her for.
“I’m very careful about that system,” she said. “This has been pretty much my morning, noon and night for many years.”
Amanda Drane can be contacted at adrane@gazettenet.com