|
Q: What is the wording of Warrant Article 9?
A: The proposed wording is:
Are you in favor of amendment to Warner Zoning Ordinance, Article XI,
Commercial District C-1, F., as follows:
The maximum gross floor area footprint for shops, restaurants, and other retail and
service establishments shall be 20,000 square feet.
Where more gross floor footprint area is required, multiple buildings may be
grouped on the same lot up to a maximum footprint of 40,000 square feet,
with no one building footprint to exceed 20,000 square feet.
Q: Will the proposed changes to Zoning Ordinance XI allow "super sized" stores?
A: No it will not. Both the current wording and the proposed wording restrict the physical
building dimensions. The proposed changes actually limit the size more than the current
regulations do if multiple buildings are involved. If only a single building is involved,
both the old and the proposed wording limit the size to the exact same size.
Q: Why have I been told that this proposed change would allow a building that is two and a half times the size of a football field?
A: Let's look at that statement factually:
A football field has a playing field that is 100 yards long and 53 1/3 yards wide.
Each end of the field has an end zone that is 10 yards long and 53 1/3 yards wide.
The end calculation is a field that is 120 yards long and 53 1/3 yards wide.
Converting yards into feet: 120 yards is 360'. 53 1/3 yards is 160'.
The footprint of a football field is: 360' x 160' = 57,600 sqft
This means that it would be against both current and proposed zoning regulations to build a building
with the footprint of a single football field.
To answer your question, I don't know why you've been told this.
Q: Why have I been told that this proposed change would allow a building that is twice the size of the Market Basket / Aubuchon building?
A: Let's look at that statement factually:
The Market Basket / Aubuchon building has about a 60,000 sqft footprint.
Under current and proposed zoning regulations, the Market Basket / Aubuchon building could not be built.
The largest building allowed with the proposed zoning change is 20,000 sqft footprint.
This means the largest a building could be is about 1/3 the footprint of the Market Basket / Aubuchon bulding.
To answer your question, I don't know why you've been told this.
Q: Why am I confused about this article?
A: The purpose of the article is about changing the unit of measure from what it is now a 3 dimensional volume to
a 2 dimensional area (footprint). It is confusing when different units of measurement are used in the same
sentence without having the unit of measurement specified.
It is important to keep in mind the unit of measure when discussing the proposed
changes. It is not accurate to compare volume with footprint as one is a 3 dimensional measurement and the other
is a 2 dimensional measurement.
By way of example, think of a 1' square cake that is 6" high. If that cake has only a single layer, you only need
enough frosting for the top which is 1 sqft. If that same cake has 2 layers, then you need enough
frosting for 2 sqft. If that same cake has 3 layers, then you need enough frosting for 3 sqft.
In all cases, the cake is still only 1' square and 6" high. If someone were try and sell you the
3 layer cake saying it was "super sized" at 3 sqft, you would not be misled because you can easily
see that it is only 1'x1'x6".
This article change is can also be summarized by the following comparisons:
| Width | Depth | Height | Floors | Footprint | Gross Floor Area |
|---|
| 200' | 100' | 35' | 1 | 20,000 sqft | 20,000 sqft |
| 200' | 100' | 35' | 2 | 20,000 sqft | 40,000 sqft |
| 200' | 100' | 35' | 3 | 20,000 sqft | 60,000 sqft |
As you can see, the size of the building never changes. The only thing that changes is the
sum of the footprint of each floor. If there are more floors inside a building, the property taxes
on that building will increase.
If you vote no on Article 9 you are only restricting what can be done within the shell of a building.
If you vote no on Article 9 you are limiting the tax revenues that the town can obtain.
If you vote no on Article 9 you are saying you prefer to pay higher property taxes.
If you vote no on Article 9 you are saying you would approve a one story building that has almost 40,000 sqft footprint when
there is more than 1 building on the same lot.
Warrant Article 9 Summary:
Voting Yes on Warrant Article 9 is a vote for reducing your property taxes.
Voting Yes on Warrant Article 9 supports the Warner Master Plan.
Voting Yes on Warrant Article 9 supports the Intervale Charrette.
Voting Yes on Warrant Article 9 supports sensible business growth.
Signed,
Daniel and Mary Watts
Jean Grandy
Ken Klinedinst
Wayne Eigabroadt
For additonal facts, please visit http://warnernh.org/
If you'd like to add your name to this document, please let me know
using our contact form at http://warnernh.org/contact.php.
|