Pepperell Planning Board Debates ADU Size Rules, Splits on By-Right Approvals

PEPPERELL — March 14, 2024 — Pepperell Planning Board debates ADU square footage and by-right approval rules, deferring votes to March 25. The board, meeting remotely with Chair Al Patten and two other members present, focused its March 14 session on revisions to the town's accessory dwelling unit bylaw, broadly converging on an 800-square-foot baseline but deadlocking on whether qualifying units should be approved by right or require a special permit. Building Commissioner Bentley Hurgett backed a by-right pathway with a compliance checklist, saying it would "keep people from going underground," while board member Joan said she preferred a special permit requirement, warning that by-right approval could lead residents to skip electrical, plumbing, and fire safety inspections. Patten, a builder by trade, argued that the bylaw's square-footage count should exclude staircases, ADA bathrooms, and unconditioned spaces from the total, a move he said would reduce routine ZBA referrals. A town survey cited by Patten found 54 percent of respondents supported a by-right process requiring only a building permit. Pepperell has issued approximately 46 ADU permits over the past 20 years — roughly 2.25 per year.