The village board is currently working on two proposed law changes that would allow downtown merchants to sell merchandise on the sidewalk and that would give greater latitude to municipal boards to allow so-called “flag lots” in the village.
Both issues were the subject of individual public hearings during the board’s Sept. 6 regular monthly meeting, although few people spoke about either one.
Merchandise on sidewalks
The board currently is considering a proposal to allow shops to sell merchandise on downtown sidewalks on days other than the annual sidewalk sale, and held a public hearing on the issue during its Sept. 6 meeting.
The village code currently prohibits merchandise from being sold on the sidewalk and last month a group of downtown merchants asked the board to reconsider the law.
“We’ve always had merchandise for sale on the sidewalks during special events, but there really wasn’t any policy in place,” Mayor Kurt Wheeler said. “So far, everything has been appropriate and tasteful and we’d like to keep it that way.”
The code revision would delete the outright prohibition on merchandise being sold on village sidewalks and add it to the list of allowed displayed on downtown sidewalks, subject to tastefulness, safety and pedestrian concerns, said Village Attorney Jim Stokes.
Wheeler said the code revision would be “common sense” language to make the change.
During the September board meeting, local merchants urged the board to make the change because having merchandise on downtown streets would make the village seem more lively and colorful, and it would be a valuable addition to the downtown aesthetic.
At the Sept. 6 public hearing, no residents commented on the proposed law change, although one speaker did ask if the board would consider adding more bicycle racks downtown.
The board voted unanimously to keep the public hearing open until its next meeting on Oct. 3, at which time they may discuss it further and possibly take a vote.
Flag lots
The board also held a public hearing on a proposal to change the village code to eliminate the prohibition against “flag lots” in the village and allow the planning board and zoning board of appeals to approve or reject proposed flag lots based on individual circumstance.
A flag lot is defined in the village code as “A lot which has limited, nonconforming frontage on a public street providing access to the lot, but has sufficient lot area and other lot dimensions which meet the requirements of the zoning district in which the lot exists.” In layman’s terms, a flag lot as a narrow frontage that extends into a larger back lot, basically in the shape of a flag, Wheeler said.
Stokes said this issue is being considered by the village board because it “came to light” in a recent case pending before the village planning board and zoning board of appeals. By amending the code to give the PB and ZBA approval of flag lots based on individual circumstances, the change would make a “technical correction” that exists within the code, he said.
The change would simply give the PB and ZBA “latitude” in such cases if they “deem it in the public interest,” Wheeler said.
Stokes said the flag lots prohibition was a case of a law sounding good in theory but impractical in practice.
Three village residents opposed the law change during the public hearing, stating that lifting the flag lot prohibition could create unwanted lot expansions creating greater density in the village, that the board needs to do more thorough research on the issue before changing the law after two mentions of it at two board meetings and that, if changed, the law should create formal guidelines for allowing flag lots and not simply vest authority in the planning board or ZBA.
“The board should take a hard look at this before adopting it willy nilly,” said resident Randy Light. “Flag lots raise a lot of flags.”
Wheeler said these were “valid issues” that need further consideration before the board makes a final decision.
The board unanimously voted to close the public hearing, but Wheeler said they will take up the issue again at their Oct. 3 meeting.
