[Massplanners] what is a minor change to a Special Permit - Court guidance.

[Bob Mitchell]

FYI, I am following up on the chain of emails regarding what does, or does
not constitute a substantial change in a special permit that
would trigger going through the entire process again (filing new
application, notice, public hearing etc.)

No surprise, this issue has had a number of court decisions, all of them in
agreement, in answering these questions.

Some excerpts below can help guide boards when confronted with a request to
amend a special permit (or variance etc.)


   - The SPGA’s power to amend its decision without further hearing is
   limited to the correction of inadvertent or clerical errors; and even then,
   the power does not permit any amendment that amounts to a reversal of its
   original decision, or that grants different relief, or that would affect
   persons who relied upon it. Board of Selectmen of Stockbridge v. Monument
   Inn, Inc., 8 Mass. App. Ct. 158 (1979).



   - In Tenneco Oil Co. v. City Council of Springfield, 406 Mass. 658
   (1990), the SJC pointed out that any amendment purporting to rescind or
   revise the intended result of the original decision without a new public
   notice and hearing is invalid. In Tenneco, the SJC once again reaffirmed
   the rule that: . . . *when a board wishes to change or amend a previous
   decision, a zoning board has "inherent power . . . to correct an
   inadvertent or clerical error in its decision so that the record reflects
   its true intention . . . but may not make a substantive amendment which
   changes the result of an original deliberate decision, or which grants
   relief different from that originally granted, without compliance with the
   relevant notice and hearing requirements.*



Bob Mitchell FAICP
Planning Consultant
Land Use, Planning, Zoning, & Training Programs
151 Tremont Street Suite 23A
Boston, MA 02111
617-512-9751 (c)
MitchellFAICP at gmail.com



On Mon, Dec 16, 2024 at 3:13 PM Star Atkeson via MassPlanners <
massplanners at masscptc.org> wrote:

> Hello Planners,
>
> We have a wedding venue in town who wants the Planning Board to amend
> their special permit to limit the number of events, as a (previously
> agreed) way to satisfy the Board of Health, that they do not need to be a
> public water supply. The change would be a sentence limiting the number of
> events to 60 per year, they currently only do about 20 anyways. There would
> be a second minor change to the specific *public water supply* condition
> in the permit.
>
> Would you consider this a minor change, since nothing would tangibly be
> changing at the venue except they wouldn't need to use bottled water? Or is
> it a significant change, since it is stipulated by another board who seems
> to be looking for a legal document.
>
> The applicant does not want to do the hearing process. In other recent
> Planning Board business we have held hearings for similar minor changes on
> more controversial situations, so on one hand we want to be consistent, on
> the other, if it is legal to go for it without the hearing, that is what
> the applicant would like.
>
> Thank you for your advice,
> Star
>
>
> Star Atkeson
>
> Secretary to The Boards
>
> Town of Charlemont
>
> (413) 339-4335 ex.8
>
>
> --
> MassPlanners mailing list
> MassPlanners at masscptc.org
> http://masscptc.org/mailman/listinfo/massplanners_masscptc.org
>
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