I'm considering volunteering to sit on my Town's planning board. Has anyone here done this and can offer perspective or advice? What pitfalls are there, and what benefits are there beyond the satisfaction of volunteering?
> I'm considering volunteering to sit on my Town's planning board. Has anyone here done this and can offer perspective or advice? What pitfalls are there, and what benefits are there beyond the satisfaction of volunteering?
I could never see the up side to being on the planning board. I am on the cemetery committee instead.
Go for it. Help straighten up the mess created by self-serving money-grubbers.
Big time volunteer here. Boards, committees and such need intelligent, analytical types to offset the shoot-from-the-hip and change-the-rules-for-any-little-excuse types. Once you've been on for some time, start training others to take your place someday or to sign up also.
About five years ago, there was an engineer/planner from another local company that sat on our County Planning and Zoning board. My first thought was that this guy could argue against all of our applications and make us look bad. As it turned out, he was very professional and as I followed other development applications, he offered great, sound advice and I was glad he volunteered his time.
it is good provided there is no conflict of interest
be sure to double check with the ethics commission
in MA, if you own your company, you cannot submit any plans to any boards in the town where you serve
while these ethical considerations are often ignored, they are important to know and consider
have fun, i served on an advisory committee for a year, got fed up, volunteered on a community garden. i now am not sure what i will do to serve my community...
I have done it. I think it presents a real conflict of interest. It it very similar to having Jamie Dimon, CEO of Chase-JP Morgan, sitting on the Board of Governors of the New York FED. Wait a minute? Dimon is on the Board of Governors of the New York Fed! 🙁
It basically prevents you from bringing projects to the board and then there is the problem of standing in judgement of projects of your competitors.
Local planning commission had a land surveyors wife on it, another had a very active land development engineer on it. I think a surveyor is perfect for a planning commission with a lot to offer, but....if you are actively engaged in land development, you are going to have a lot of conflict of interest, even if it is other surveyors plats, if you vote against one, you could easily be hit with a claim of conflict of interest or favoritism or trying to put your competition down, even if it is not true.
I am on the Planning Commission, Board of Zoning Appeals, and several committees. The thing to remember or remind people of is the Planning Commission does not have final say on any application. Our vote is a recommendation to the Board on whether the application is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan.
I am only required to recuse myself if a decision will result in financial gain. However, I recuse myself if the person is a past or current client, if any of my surveys are being used in the application, or if there is any chance someone may think there is a conflict. Better safe than sorry.
I can still submit items professionally, but I hire a local engineer to represent my application, and I walk out of the room while it is being heard.
The best part is cleaning up the ordinance from the unintended consequences that pop up due to a sloppy ordinance. I have two revisions coming through the system right now, and usually make 5 or 6 a year. Plus the engineers and surveyors will call me if they come across something because they know I can understand the problem and help get the ordinance resolved.
I think every Planning Commission should have at least one local surveyor on it.
Having a surveyor on the board is fine if he, or his company, doesn't do any permit or subdivision work. IMHO, having an associate present your firms applications and you leaving the room does not cut it. I have seen that scenario many times. Every member of the board knows that your firm is behind the application and will feel pressure to pass the application or make the process easier because of their respect for you.
Why would a surveyor even want to be on a PB? The answer in most cases is to enhance his position in the community and in the big picture to get business exposure. IMHO, if there are more altruistic reasons for one's service, think about getting on a business non-related committee or board.
I sit on the local Community BoardPlanning and Zoning Committee as a "citizen member" (i.e., I am not on the main CB.....but my wife is vice chair).
AMong the fifteen or so members, there are architects, engineers and other professionals, as well as "just folks" who are interested in what goes on in their neighborhhods.
It's worth the time, first off, to be able to add to the understanding of certain aspects of potential development projects.
On several occassions, I have been able to identify issues which might not have been considered otherwise.
Also, it's great to get a handle on what's going on in the community.
I've been on my central Maine town's (Vienna's) PB for more thn 30 years. It can make you a better land surveyor -- as you get to see how things look from that side of the table. And your own expertise as a PLS can be invaluable to a local board. The only downside is that you'll have to recuse yourself from voting when any project you've worked on comes before the board. You can also be of benefit to your fellow land surveyors because you can help the board see where they're coming from.I've found it very rewarding to contribute to my Town this way.
Be careful. I did that and through a series of events 18 months later became Mayor. P&Z to Mayor in 18 months and never been on a ballot.
:good: Was there for 30 1/2 myself.
Surveyor on a planning board.>spledeus
That's not correct, spledeus.... I have an opinion from the attorney generals office that will dispute your contention. As chairman of the capital planning committee i can still present to the planning board, coms comm, BOH, ZBA selectmen, and so on.
I'm going to be in your backyard today.... What's for lunch??
Don
Surveyor on a planning board.>spledeus
I have an opinion from the ethics commission that if you serve on a regulatory board you cannot be made a special municipal employee and therefore cannot represent before the town.
i would assume that your committee is an advisory committee and not a regulatory board.
Surveyor on a planning board.>spledeus
lunch = scream and moan, i mean kream and kone
Surveyor on a planning board.>spledeus
True, and I am classified as a special town employee. I wasnt aware if the difference between advisory and regulatory. Swing by, I'm next door.
I'm on the county planning commission for over a year. So far it's been good. There is not much going on and I haven't done any projects that needed to come for approval. I'm more interested in getting some old policies updated and see that happening but it will take more time than I thought at first.
For the most part it seems the other members really value my input. I have some technical knowledge they can use and my experience working in other counties helps. There have been a few tough votes but that's just part of it. Any application for me personally I'd have to excuse myself. I'm not sure that I'd need to excuse myself from an application that I had worked on for a third party but I probably would.
In my area the planning commission is more of a policy setting board than a political decision board. Our state has sort of set things up that if a applicant has met all the regulations their application can't be denied. Usually the thing has been checked for all that before it gets to the commission for approval. Conditional use permits can be a lot harder.
What a surveyor knows is something that can be good on a planning board. If you don't like how things are being done you need a seat at the table to attempt to change it.