Meetings Ahead
Most meetings in Eastham are in-person, typically with an online-attendance option. Go to eastham-ma.gov and click on the meeting you are interested in for details. All meetings are at Town Hall unless otherwise indicated.
Thursday, July 13
- Affordable Housing Trust, 9 a.m., Small Meeting Room
- Nauset School Committee, 6 p.m.
Monday, July 17
- Search Committee, 10 a.m., Small Meeting Room
Wednesday, July 19
- Open Space Committee, 3 p.m., Small Meeting Room
- Planning Board, 5 p.m., Earle Mountain Meeting Room
Conversation Starter
Zoning Task Force Adopts New Mandate
With the North Eastham Corridor redesign project on the horizon, the Residential Zoning Task Force is revising its charge to encompass commercial development — and dropping “residential” from its title.
A memo to the select board from task force chair Mary Nee outlines why. “Major topics (other than architectural guidelines) have been addressed” and “our efforts to address architectural guidelines were stymied” because consultant expertise was required, she wrote.
Meanwhile, there are urgent zoning needs in the town’s commercial redevelopment areas along Route 6 as wastewater needs fall into place. Nee wrote that the task force would like to work on density bonuses, which were not included in 2022’s zoning amendments because of septic capacity limitations.
Under this new charge, the task force would shift into a more explicit zoning advisory role. “It is understood and welcomed that the work going forward will be directed by town staff and external experts,” Nee wrote.
The updated charge “really just broadens the scope so that this group can work on pretty much any zoning or land use matter,” Town Planner Paul Lagg said at the July 10 select board meeting.
“I think it’s a fantastic, proactive notion that you’re putting forward,” select board chair Jamie Demetri told Nee. The motion to change the name and charge passed unanimously. —Amelia Roth-Dishy
