Sharon P&Z holds first planning session of 2025

SHARON —The Planning and Zoning Commission met on Jan. 22 for a planning session, focalizing ridgeline and horizon-line protection regulations, Airbnb regulations, and how to zone for new uses of farmland and estate lands as subjects in need of further investigation.

P&Z Vice Chair Betsy Hall presented the topics to the assembled group, with all agreeing that the issues were worthy of researching how they may develop zoning regulations appropriate for the town and its residents.

As this was a planning session, there were no motions or votes, but rather commissioners brainstormed how best to approach these issues from a town planning and zoning standpoint.

Vice Chair Hall drew attention to the fact that many regulations surrounding ridgeline protections only refer to prominent ridges with steep gradients. She expressed that the definition should be widened to account for less dramatic ridges, such as the horizon line of a rolling farm field.

“It concerns me because some of the old farms are all horizon ridgelines,” she said.

Land Use Administrator Jamie Casey suggested that the commission reach out to other towns where zoning regulations around ridgelines and horizons have been tested in practice. Several members were assigned to contact the towns of Morris, Farmington and Kent for reports of their experience with such regulations.

The next discussion topic concerned regulating Airbnbs in town, with several commissioners expressing that they’d like to find ways to avoid homes being purchased purely to be short-term rentals rather than true residences. Hall suggested that Sharon implement a registry to better keep track of Airbnb and other home rental services in town, which other commissioners agreed with. Members were again assigned to contact other towns in the region who have implemented registries and other regulations for research and guidance.

The group then discussed potential uses for Sharon’s extensive farmlands and estate lands that may be changing ownership or falling out of their traditional use. Commissioners floated many ideas, including wineries, breweries, and spaces for art shows and galleries.

Hall drew attention to Cornwall’s regulations which allow applicants for this type of proposal to suggest their intended use, which P&Z then determines if it fits within zoning regulations rather than have the uses themselves codified into the regulation.

The commission agreed to look into Cornwall’s handling of the issue.

Casey emphasized that the town has always been accommodating and supportive to creative ideas for land use, and expressed that it’s important for regulations to allow the space for such applications to be heard.

Latest News

Ruth Franklin discusses ‘The Many Lives of Anne Frank’ at Beth David

Ruth Franklin and Ileene Smith in conversation at Congregation Beth David in Amenia.

Natalia Zukerman

Congregation Beth David in Amenia hosted a conversation on the enduring legacy of Anne Frank, one of the 20th century’s most iconic figures. Ruth Franklin, award-winning biographer and critic, shared insights from her highly acclaimed book “The Many Lives of Anne Frank” with thought-provoking questions from Ileene Smith, Editorial Director of the Jewish Lives series. This event, held on July 23 — the date Anne Frank would have turned 96 — invited the large audience to reconsider Anne Frank not just as the young writer of a world-famous diary, but as a cultural symbol shaped by decades of representation and misrepresentation.

Franklin and Smith dove right in; Franklin reading a passage from the book that exemplified her approach to Anne’s life. She described her work as both a biography of Anne Frank and a cultural history of the diary itself, a document that has resonated across the world.

Keep ReadingShow less
Prokofiev, piano and perfection: Yuja Wang at Tanglewood

Yuja Wang performs with the TMCO and Andris Nelsons.

Hilary Scott

Sunday, July 20 was sunny and warm. Nic Mayorga, son of American concert pianist, the late Lincoln Mayorga, joined me at Tanglewood to hear Yuja Wang play Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 16. I first saw Wang on July 8, 2022, when she filled in for Jean-Yves Thibaudet on the opening night of Tanglewood’s summer season. She virtually blew the shed down with her powerful and dynamic playing of Liszt’s Piano Concerto No. 1.

Nic was my guest last season on July 13, when Wang wowed us with her delicate interpretation of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4. We made plans on the spot to return for her next date in Lenox.

Keep ReadingShow less