Newbury Planning Board Recommends Expanding ZBA From Three Members to Five

NEWBURY — March 18, 2026 — Newbury Planning Board recommends expanding the Zoning Board of Appeals from three members to five, heading the change to Annual Town Meeting. The board, meeting March 18 with three of its five members present, voted unanimously to close the public hearing and recommend the amendment after ZBA Chair Eric Svahn argued a larger board would reduce scheduling delays caused by single-member absences, ease the de facto unanimity requirement on a three-member body, and bring more diverse perspectives to increasingly complex Plum Island applications. In a separate action, the board voted 3-0 to grant a one-year extension — to March 30, 2027 — for the long-stalled Colantoni Crossings five-lot subdivision at 108 Main Street, rejecting applicant John Colantoni's request for three years; member Larry Murphy cited a five-year approval history and a persistently disturbed site, saying "I want to see that road done — and not in three years." The board also endorsed a lot-line reconfiguration plan at 7-13 Main Street for Rome Realty LLC and closed the public hearing for the Sunset Club site plan at 2-8 Old Point Road, with a final vote scheduled for April 1 pending town counsel review.