GOSHEN — The town is making its first strides in the long process of revising zoning bylaws that have been relatively untouched since the 1970s.
The “groundwork” of this process, said Select Board Chair Peri Hall, is a survey to gather the feelings from the community of less than 1,000 residents.
The survey is available on the town’s website through Sept. 30. Hard copies of the survey are also available at Town Offices, the Goshen Free Library and at local businesses.
In addition to zoning questions like frontage bylaws, which takes 5 to 7 minutes to complete, seeks opinions on how community members feel about the direction the town is heading, including tax rates and the public services it offers. There is also a question about what kind of businesses community members would be open to seeing, with some examples including a gas station, grocery store or fast-food establishment.
“It seemed prudent to do a comprehensive review,” said Hall in a phone interview Tuesday. “It’s really to identify the community’s priorities, to reflect the community’s vision and we’re just trying to gather as much information as we can.”
The survey is made possible with the help of a District Local Technical Assistance grant from the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (PVPC). The grant provides technical assistance from PVPC experts rather than cash.
This is the second grant of its kind from the planning commission. Last year, PVPC officials composed a report after doing a comprehensive study of current zoning bylaws.
The past couple decades have seen some minor tweaks to zoning bylaws.
Marijuana legalization triggered a change in 2019, and in 2014, the town updated specifications for ground-mounted solar panels. But the last major change came in 1974 when land dimension requirements were updated, and definitions within the laws were made more clear.
The road ahead will be a slow one, Hall said.
The survey will be used as data in a process that will require several public input sessions that will take place in the coming months. From those sessions any new bylaws will need to be approved by a vote at Town Meeting, as well as approval from the state’s Attorney General’ Office.
Sam Gelinas can be reached at sgelinas@gazettenet.com.
