BERLIN — Feeling that an architectural review amendment presented Wednesday lacked teeth, the Berlin Planning Commission agreed to put architectural design guidelines at the top of the priority list for its next meeting.
During this week’s meeting, the commission was presented with an amendment that would change site plan reviews to include an architectural review where the commissioners could have some input on the aesthetics of a building.
“I talked with the town attorney, I talked with administration,” said Dave Engelhart, director of Planning and Zoning, “and I wanted to add an element to those site plan reviews … the simplest thing I could come up with to accomplish some kind of control, some kind of protection.”
Engelhart reminded the commission that they already comment on the design and aesthetics of most site plans at an informal level. If push came to shove and the commission tried to enforce their architectural opinion on a project, it would be a losing battle though the proposed amendment would at least give them some authority.
However, some commissioners questioned whether an architectural review provision would standup without the town having adopted actual architectural design guidelines.
“It’s, in my opinion, and I’m not a lawyer, it’s pretty arbitrary,” said Commissioner Newt Chandler, “and it’s based on whoever is sitting up here at the time’s interpretation.”
“This is putting the cart before the horse,” said Commissioner Pete Cosby. “This is laughable. There is no reason under God’s good Earth that I can see we don’t pass the design guidelines.”
The guidelines are important but the amendment could at least give the commission some authority to deliver an opinion on design until the new rules are in place, argued Commissioner Ron Cascio. Commissioner Barb Stack called them a “stepping stone” while Commission Chair Chris Denny guessed that no business would try to force a design on Berlin if the Planning Commission was completely opposed to the design.
“I don’t think they’d want any bad press,” said Denny.
Cascio admitted that the amendment Engelhart was suggesting was rather subjective, however, but still felt that it was useful to have in place to protect the town.
“I think you’re right. I think that at some level this is the cart before the horse because this gives us a license to say whatever we want to say and I don’t think that’s fair,” said Cascio.
Cosby was adamant that the commission could have solid design guidelines in place with very little additional time or effort that would serve as a much sturdier shield for the commission when attempting to keep unqualified architecture out of town. Cosby has already done much of the early drafting and Berlin will be able to borrow framework from procedures Worcester County already has in place.
“We could do that in two weeks. We could be doing it tonight. We should have done it last month,” he said.
Cascio wasn’t opposed to that but asked that any vote on the guidelines also include an official request for funding from the Mayor and Council that would pay for a professional firm to help further develop custom rules and expectations for the town of Berlin so they wouldn’t be just an echo of what the county has in place.
Attaching a request for funding could create a “political football,” replied Cosby, something which Cacsio disagreed with.
The meeting ended with the entire commission urged to look over all of the design work that’s been done so far with the intention of tackling the issues at their next meeting. At that time, the commission could vote to implement guidelines or edit the draft further but either way Cosby said that it is time for the commission to hustle.