Pepperell Planning Board Grants Extension to Robinson Hollow, Advances Light Bylaw Review

PEPPERELL — January 6, 2020 — Pepperell Planning Board hears light bylaw pitch, approves flat FY21 budget with zoning placeholder. At its January 6 meeting, the board received a presentation from Land Committee representative Tim Brothers on a proposed outdoor lighting bylaw that would cap color temperatures at 2,700 Kelvin for new installations, require shielding on municipal and commercial fixtures, and assign enforcement to the building inspector — a significant change from earlier drafts that had placed that burden on the Planning Board. Brothers cited peer-reviewed data showing light pollution growing at 2.2 percent annually nationwide, with some nearby Massachusetts communities seeing 10 to 20 percent growth. The board set a January 20 deadline for written comments, with formal discussion scheduled for January 27. The board also unanimously approved a largely flat FY21 budget, adding a new line item for a zoning bylaw rewrite that members acknowledged is unlikely to be funded this cycle but said must be placed formally on the record. A 60-day extension was granted to the Robinson Hollow subdivision applicant, whose statutory 135-day decision deadline falls January 9, after no revised stormwater plans or town engineer meetings had materialized.