THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
TOWN OF FITZWILLIAM
TOWN WARRANT 2012
To the inhabitants of the Town of Fitzwilliam, in the County of Cheshire, in said State of New Hampshire, qualified to vote in town affairs, you are hereby notified to meet at the Town Hall in said Fitzwilliam on Tuesday, the 13th of March next between eleven (11:00) o’clock in the forenoon and seven (7:00) o’clock in the afternoon to act on issues required to be voted on by ballot (Articles 1 though 13 ) and to meet at seven (7:00) in the afternoon to act on the business matters of the Town (Articles 14 through 30). The polls will be open on ballot issues not later than 11:00 a.m. and close not earlier than 7:00 p.m., or such later time as shall be authorized by a vote of the Town.
ARTICLE 1. To bring in your votes for the election of one Selectman for three years; one Moderator for two years; one Fireward for three years; two Budget Committee Members for three years; one Trustee of the Trust Funds for three years; one Trustees of the Library for three years; one Supervisor of the Checklist for six years; one Cemetery Commissioner for three years; two Planning Board members for three years; and three Commissioners of Plante Memorial Park for one year.
ARTICLE 2. To see if the Town will vote to amend the Town of Fitzwilliam Code Chapter 97, Building and Construction, Chapter 97-1, Permit Required to Construct Building or Structure, by deleting the words “intended for human habitation” so that said section reads as follows:
“No building or structure shall be constructed, erected or placed on a plot of land within the Town without first obtaining a permit from the Board of Selectmen according to Chapter 127-39 of the Land Use Ordinance.” (Note: Chapter 127-39 was passed at a Special Town Meeting on December 22, 1987. It effectively supercedes Chapter 97, passed March 5, 1974.)
Yes 206 No 102
(Recommended by the Board of Selectmen and the Planning Board)
ARTICLE 3. To see if the town will vote to amend Town of Fitzwilliam Code Chapter 97 Building Construction and Permits 97.2 Penalties for offenses by substituting the following paragraph:
Ҥ 97-2 Penalties for Offenses
Any person convicted of the violation of this chapter shall be fined in accordance with the following penalty structure which shall apply to commercial, industrial and residential properties:
- Outbuildings smaller than 100 square feet - $100
- Outbuildings excluding garages over 100 square feet - $300
- Non domicile buildings, e.g. garages - $500
- Single family homes - $1000
- Interior renovations with construction cost less than $10,000 - $300
- Interior renovations with construction cost over $10,000 - $500 to $1000 depending on project and if there are other violations involved
- An additional 25% of fine amount if other rules and regulations have been violated (such as Shoreland Water Quality Protection Act, Town Wetland Regulations, Town Floodplain regulations etc).”
Yes 187 No 152
(Recommended by the Board of Selectmen and the Planning Board)
ARTICLE 4. To see if the town will vote to amend Chapter 127, Article III Principal and Accessory Uses, by substituting the following paragraph for §127- 8 General Uses, Paragraph A.
“Agriculture: Cultivating and harvesting general crops, including the storage of necessary farm equipment and raising of livestock, as recommended by the Best Management Practices of the University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension and the New Hampshire Division of Agriculture, Markets and Food. Farming activities may involve full- time, part-time or backyard farmers. Farms are protected by NH Right-to-Farm law RSA 432:32-35.”
Yes 269 No 62
(Recommended by the Planning Board)
ARTICLE 5. To see if the town will vote to amend, Chapter 127, Article III Principal and Accessory Uses, by adding the following new paragraph §127-8 B. Forestry: The planting, harvesting and processing of trees and timber for personal use,” and further to renumber the remaining paragraphs in §127-8 to read as follows:
A. Agriculture
B. Forestry
C. Conservation
D. Excavation
E. Recreation
F. Livestock Keeping
Yes 270 No 59
(Recommended by the Planning Board)
ARTICLE 6. To see if the town will vote to amend Town of Fitzwilliam Code, Chapter 127 Article IV, Overlay Districts, §127-16 Cluster Development Overlay District to incorporate the allowed use of Forestry, as defined in §127-8 B., on common land within a cluster development, by adding “forestry” as an allowed use in §127-16 A., and §127-16 C.1 & C.2.
Yes 257 No 65
(Recommended by the Planning Board)
ARTICLE 7. To see if the town will vote to amend Chapter 127, Article III, §127-7, “Table of Principal Uses” by repealing the Special ARC District. This district has no definition nor is it referred to in the Land Use Ordinances. Agriculture, Recreation and Conservation uses are established elsewhere.
Yes 250 No 62
(Recommended by the Planning Board)
ARTICLE 8. To see if the town will vote to amend Chapter 127, Article III, §127-7, “Table of Principal Uses” to allow Recreational uses in the Light Industrial District by right.
Yes 266 No 56
(Recommended by the Planning Board)
ARTICLE 9. To see if the town will vote to amend Town of Fitzwilliam Code, Chapter 127, Article III, § 127-7, “Table of Principal Uses” to allow Restaurants in the General Business District by right.
Yes 283 No 45
(Recommended by the Planning Board)
ARTICLE 10. To see if the town will vote to amend Town of Fitzwilliam Code, Chapter 127 Article VIII, § 127-34, Nonconforming Lots, Use, Structures and Parking by repealing Paragraph 127-34 D., which is rendered illegal by the following: RSA 674:39-aa Restoration of Involuntarily Merged Lots, effective July 24, 2011, states that “…Lots or parcels that were involuntarily merged prior to September 18, 2010 by a city, town, county, village district, or any other municipality, shall at the request of the owner, be restored to their pre-merger status…” under certain conditions. Fitzwilliam’s ordinance appears to be in conflict with this new RSA.
Yes 270 No 52
(Recommended by the Planning Board)
ARTICLE 11. To see if the town will vote to amend Chapter 127, Article III, 127-9 “Residential Uses” by deleting the present Paragraph 127-9 B. (“Single-family dwelling with an apartment”), and substitute therefore a new Paragraph 127-B as follows:
“127-9 B. Accessory Dwelling Units
Purpose: to provide expanded housing opportunities and flexibility in household arrangements, accessory dwelling units shall be permitted by special exception in any district in conformance with the following regulations.
ACCESSORY DWELLING UNIT means a separate complete dwelling unit that is contained within or attached to a single family dwelling, or within an accessory building, only if the accessory building contains another accessory use such as a garage, barn or storage building, and for which the title is inseparable from the primary dwelling.
- All applicable regulations of the Town of Fitzwilliam shall be met before an accessory apartment is permitted.
- Accessory apartments are not intended for individual ownership. The title shall be inseparable from the primary dwelling.
- In granting a special exception, the Board of Adjustment must find that the secondary dwelling unit, within or attached to a single family residence or in a detached accessory building, is developed in a manner which does not alter the character or appearance of the principal dwelling unit as a single family residence.
- Only one accessory dwelling unit shall be allowed per principal single family dwelling unit on any lot of record.
- The accessory dwelling unit shall have a separate house number from the principal single family dwelling unit.
- Accessory dwelling units cannot be converted to a principal dwelling unit.
- The property owner is required to reside in either the principal or the accessory unit.
- In the absence of an existing state approved septic plan on file with the Town, which is adequate to meet the increased load of an accessory apartment, a new state approved septic plan will be required to be on file in accordance with NH RSA 485-A:38.
- The accessory unit, as secondary and incidental to the principal dwelling unit, may not exceed eight hundred (800) square feet in gross floor area. Mobile homes and manufactured houses may not be used as or converted to become accessory apartments.
- Both principal and accessory dwelling units shall share a common access to a state, town or private road. Adequate off-street parking shall be provided, and adequate provisions must exist or be made for ingress, egress, and turning of vehicles within the site.
- The Historic District Commission shall approve all plans for dwelling units located in detached accessory buildings when proposed in the Historic District.
- An accessory living unit in a detached accessory building shall be recorded by deed addendum at the Registry of Deeds, indicating the conditions and limitations of the approval granted.
- The single-family dwelling or the accessory living unit shall not be converted to a condominium or any other form of legal ownership distinct from the ownership of the existing single-family dwelling.”
Yes 220 No 122
(Recommended by the Planning Board)
ARTICLE 12. To see if the town will vote to amend Chapter 127, Article VII, Signs, §127-29, “General Regulations,” by deleting subparagraph E. and substituting therefore the following:
“§127-29 E. Illuminated signs shall be lit by steady, white light through the use of sharp cutoff fixtures and top-down lighting maintained at a sufficiently low intensity and brightness that it shall not affect the safe vision of operators of vehicles moving within the premises or on any adjacent public or private way. Lights for externally illuminated signs shall not be ground-mounted. Internally lighted signs are prohibited.”
Yes 219 No 117
(Recommended by the Planning Board)
ARTICLE 13. To see if the town will vote to amend Chapter 127, Article VII, §127-31, “Prohibited Signs,” Paragraph H, by adding the following sentence so that said Paragraph reads as follows:
“§127-31 H. Any sign illuminated in such a manner as to throw light directly onto any street, adjacent property, or upward towards the sky. Illumination which has the specific purpose of outlining any part of a building, such as a gable, roofline, sidewalk, or corner, and any internally lighted signs are prohibited by this section.”
Yes 208 No 130
(Recommended by the Planning Board)
ARTICLE 14. To hear and act upon the reports of Agents, Committees and Officers, heretofore chosen.
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 15. To see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate the Budget Committee recommended sum of $1,790,014 for general municipal operations, or take any action thereon. The Selectmen recommend $1,788,638. NOTE: This warrant article (operating budget) does not include appropriations voted in any other warrant articles.
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 16. (By Petition) Shall the Town of Fitzwilliam prohibit vote counting concealed from the human eye by method of computerized voting machines, tabulators or other electronic devices and require that all methods used for sorting and counting the votes in all elections be publicly observable for full citizen oversight of the entire voting system? (The secrecy of vote casting shall be maintained)
Voted in the NEGATIVE
ARTICLE 17. To see if the town will vote to rescind action taken under Article 11 at the 1888 Annual Meeting of the Town accepting ”the donation of William Lebourveau’s deed of a never-failing spring of water on his hill”; which action was also formalized by a quitclaim deed from William Lebourveau to the Town of Fitzwilliam dated April 26, 1887, and to authorize the Board of Selectmen to reconvey said spring of water with all appurtenant rights to the present owner of the tract on which the spring is situated (Tax Map 15 Lot 06-12 of the tax maps of the Town of Fitzwilliam), Filipi Contracting, LLC, or take any action thereon.
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 18. To see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $310,000 to be added to the Roads Repair and Maintenance Expendable Trust Fund created by ARTICLE #8 of the 2011 Town Meeting, or take any action thereon. (Recommended by Budget Committee, Recommended by Board of Selectmen)
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 19. To see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $160,000 for the purpose of purchasing an ambulance, said appropriation to be funded by withdrawing $56,000 from the Ambulance Capital Reserve Fund created by ARTICLE #21 at the 1998 Town Meeting, withdrawing $70,000 from the Ambulance Revolving Fund, with the balance of $34,000 to be funded by taxation, said appropriation to be non-lapsing for up to three years, or take any action thereon. (Recommended by Budget Committee, Recommended by Board of Selectmen)
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 20. To see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $12,000 to be used to fund special town events to celebrate the 250th Anniversary of the settlement of Fitzwilliam, or take any action thereon. (Recommended by Budget Committee, Recommended by Board of Selectmen)
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 21. To see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $15,000 to repair the Town Hall Tower, said appropriation to be non-lapsing for up to one year, or take any action thereon.
(Recommended by Budget Committee, Recommended by Board of Selectmen)
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 22. To see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $3,752 to purchase two portable radios for the Police Department, said appropriation to be funded by authorizing the Board of Selection to accept a FY 2011 New Hampshire Homeland Security and Emergency Management Emergency Management Performance Grant in the amount of $1,876 with the remaining balance of $1,876 to be raised by taxation, or take any action thereon. (Recommended by Budget Committee, Recommended by Board of Selectmen)
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 23. To see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $2,500 to purchase materials, equipment and labor to construct an ice skating rink, or take any action thereon. (Recommended by Budget Committee, Recommended by Board of Selectmen)
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 24. To see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $2,000 for special cemetery projects (to include, but not limited to repairing, cleaning and resetting headstones, tomb and ironwork repair), said appropriation to be non-lapsing for up to one year, or take any action thereon. (Recommended by Budget Committee, Recommended by Board of Selectmen)
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 25. To see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $7,500 to create an Expendable Trust Fund under the provisions of RSA 31:19a, for the purpose of repairing and maintaining highway department vehicles and equipment, and further name the Board of Selectmen as agents to expend from said fund in the best interest of the town, or take any action thereon. (Recommended by Budget Committee, Recommended by Board of Selectmen)
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 26. To see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $2,500 to create an Expendable Trust Fund under the provisions of RSA 31:19a, for the purpose of purchasing a cemetery department vehicle, and further name to the Board of Selectmen as agents to expend from said fund in the best interest of the town, or take any action thereon. (Recommended by Budget Committee, Recommended by Board of Selectmen)
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 27. To see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $10,000 to be added to the Capital Reserve Fund created by ARTICLE # 11 of the 1969 Annual Meeting for the purchase of a fire department vehicle, or take any action thereon. (Recommended by Budget Committee, Recommended by Board of Selectmen)
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 28. To see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $10,000 to be added to the Capital Reserve Fund created by ARTICLE # XVIII of the 1986 Town Meeting for the purchase of Highway Department Vehicles and Equipment, or take any action thereon. (Recommended by Budget Committee, Recommended by Board of Selectmen)
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 29. To see if the town will vote to adopt RSA 79-F, Taxation of Farm Structures and Land under Farm Structures, to allow the selectmen to appraise qualifying farm structures for no more than their replacement costs less depreciation; and the land under the qualifying farm structures at no more than 10 percent of its market value? (The land under the qualifying farm structure shall be contiguous to a minimum of 10 acres of open space land. Owner must apply to the selectmen on or before April 15 of said year on a form approved and provided by the commissioner, to have his or her parcel of land so classified), or take any action thereon.
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
ARTICLE 30. (By Petition) To see if the town will vote to establish a parcel of land, identified on the Fitzwilliam Tax Map as Map 13, Lot 5-3, as part of the Widow Gage Town Forest as provided in RSA 31:110, or take any action thereon.
Voted in the AFFIRMATIVE
Motion to adjourn was made. Motion 2nd. Meeting adjourned at 8:45
Respectfully submitted,
Heidi L. Wood
Town Clerk, Fitzwilliam
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