Agenda - Planning Commission - 05/06/2010

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~~ Zoning Bulletin March 10, 2010 ~ Volume 4 ~ No. 5 The court agreed with the CEO that, for each of the two apartments in the Seretakis' house: "the lessees were living as a `household' in a `dwelling unit' because they not only shared the same kitchen and bath- room facilities, they were also collectively responsible for fulfilling the lease." The leases established that each tenant was "responsible to the [Seretakis] for the rent for the whole apartment and most utilities, not just for his or her pro rata share."Thus, "[l]ike all households then, if one member [failed to] do his or her share, the others suffer[ed]." For this reason, this was not a "boarding house" because "in the case of a Boarding House the rent is for individual rooms, not for the entire prem- ises, with each tenant being responsible fot the rent of their own room ~, o y. 1n reaching this conclusion, the court rejected the Neighbors' argu- ment that a group of unrelated students could not constitute a house- hold unit. The Ordinance's definition of "household" was not, noted the court, "restricted by relationship; but rather by living azrangement." Students were "not per se excluded form the categoiy of persons who [could] form household units." Also, the court yyas "reluctant to adopt a definition of `household unit' that would require code enforcement offi- cers to investigate the nature of the personal relationships that may exist among the residents of a dwelling unit."' ~~ See also: Peregrine Developers, LLC a Town of Orono, 2004 ME 95, 854 A.2d 216 (Me. 2004). Case Note: The court noted that its decision "in no way restricts the [town]'s prerogative to regulate occupancy based on current or future density requirements, fue and safety codes, or other munici- pal regulations, affecting the number of residents who may occupy a residential building." Zoning News from Around the Nation CALIFORNIA The California Air Pollution Control Officers Association ("CAP- COA") recently published a guide to "help local governtnents as they move towazd Greenhouse Gas considerations in general plans and cli- mate action plans." Among other things, the guide, entitled "Model Policies for Greenhouse Gases in General Plans," provides "[m]odel lan- guage is provided in nine major categories: GHG Reduction Planning (overall); Land Use and Urban Design; Transportation; Energy Efficien- t j cy; Alternative Energy; Municipal Operations; Waste Reduction and Di- _-./ version; Conservation and Open Space; and Education." Source: Law of the Land blog; h ://[awo ftheland wordpress coin/ ©2010 Thomson Reuters 11 37