ROCKPORT — Six citizens are appealing the granting of a building permit issued to 20 Central LLC for the construction of a new hotel in Rockport Village. Most of the points the appellants’ objections rest on previous basis of a planning board approval appeal — light, noise, traffic. Additionally, this appeal includes an argument concerning the timing of a town-wide vote, which is also been argued before a judge, and said the building permit application for the 26-room hotel and its plans differ from the Rockport Planning Board’s May 21 site plan approval.

The appeal was filed April 9, and was accompanied by a hand-delivered letter to the Rockport Zoning Board of Appeals. 

Attorney Kristin Collins, of the firm Preti Flaherty, represents Rockport residents David Barry, David Cantor, Michael Hampton, John Priestley, Mark Schwarzmann and Winston Whitney, all who are making the appeal.

They are appealing the March 10, 2021 building permit issued by the code enforcement office, “on the grounds that the building permit application and plans materially differ from the Planning Board’s site plan approval and otherwise do not meet applicable standards of the Land Use Ordinance,” the letter said.

The appeal will mark the second such municipal action taken by Rockport citizens against town approval of the hotel, which is currently under construction in Rockport Village. 

Rockport’s Zoning Board of Appeals is a quasi-judicial board whose members are appointed by the Select Board. The ZBA has a tentative meeting date scheduled for May 12, according to the town’s website calendar.

See attached PDF for complete appeal.

On Jan. 21,  the Rockport’s Zoning Board of Appeals rejected an appeal brought against the town’s Planning Board in their May 21, 2020 decision to grant site plan approval for a proposed four-story hotel.

Before that, however, the ZBA was also familiar with the project, having, in January 2020, voted unanimously in favor of a plan for off-site parking plan by the developers of the hotel.

Arguing against the building permit and the hotel design, the appellants have cited adverse effects from increased traffic and parking, light pollution, noise pollution, and degradation of property values, according to the appeal letter submitted by Attorney Collins.

Basis for Appeal

The objections, which are to be considered by the Zoning Board of Appeals, are enumerated in four sections: 

Failure to meet Section 917, Note 9: This particular ordinance amendment, approved by voters in August 2020, is the result of citizen petitions that resulted in two warrant articles at the Aug. 18, 2020 annual town meeting. Those articles were approved by the voters.

This basis for appeal is also mirrored in an ongoing and complex legal case in Knox County Superior Court, of which several of the appellants are also pursuing. (Read: Rockport Village hotel construction restraining order denied, but case not finished)

With the ZBA appeal as filed April 9,  the appellants maintain that a version of the ordinance limiting number of rooms to 20 in Village hotels or inns was in effect when the building permit was granted.

“The issued building permit is for a 26-room hotel, which is plainly in violation of this standard,” wrote Collins, in the appeal letter.

The code enforcement officer should have denied the permit, “on the grounds that it seeks a use not permitted under the land use ordinance,” she wrote. “The ZBA must order that the building permit be denied and that the applicant be required to reduce the number of guest rooms to 20 in accordance with ‘Note 9.’”

This would require a revised site plan application, she further stated.

Failure to meet architectural review standards: The hotel is not, the appellants said, visually harmonious with the landscape and other existing structures.

“This is especially problematic given Rockport Village’s designation as a historic place deserving of extra protections,” the appeal said, citing what it described as balconies whose designs are incongruous with the village architecture, light pollution on harbor, and amount of glass on the facade.

Failure to meet nuisance standards: According to the appeal, the hotel will cause nuisance conditions, and, “there is no evidence in the building permit submissions as to how noise from the rooftop bar (which we now know will be fully open to the sky and harbor) will be dampened or controlled.”

Material change from site plan: According to the appellants, the submitted hotel drawings depict: “an assembly use in the top-floor restaurant, showing 132 seats in a conference-style setting. Its is apparent that the applicant intention is to use this floor for weddings, events and business conferences, none of which were mentioned at all during the Planning Board review.”

This triggers a denial of the building permit, the appeal said, for several reasons, including that it is a material deviation from site plan approval and that assembly use would create significant parking demand.

There are also changes to the facade than what was illustrated and submitted to the Planning Board, the appeal said.

There are changes to the parking configuration, and represents a revision to the 2008 and 2009 site plan approvals for the Shepherd Block building.

Despite the ongoing municipal and court disputes, the hotel remains under construction, and its owners – Stuart, Marianne and Tyler Smith — have stated the work will continue.

On March 23, Tyler Smith, a principle of 20 Central Street LLC, said March 24: “After more than 2 years of planning, designing and permitting we have received our building permit and have begun the first step for hotel construction of forming and pouring of the foundation. Up until this point all of the onsite work has been to remove the top soil and ledge and to prepare the site for foundation work.

“Most of the current foundation work is happening at the lower level but will proceed to the upper Central Street level over the next couple of weeks. Once complete with the upper level the sidewalk will be rebuilt and the jersey barriers removed. Directly following the foundation work will be the erection of stair towers and the steel structure which is all currently on-site awaiting installation.

“Most of the primary structure will be complete by mid-summer with sheathing and the brick veneer to follow shortly after. By next winter the Central Street façade should be complete.”

Reach Editorial Director Lynda Clancy at lyndaclancy@penbaypilot.com; 207-706-6657