Orleans Planning Board reviews parking bylaw rewrite ahead of fall public hearings

ORLEANS -- June 23, 2026, Orleans Planning Board reviews sweeping parking bylaw rewrite, eyes September public hearings. The board heard a detailed walkthrough from Assistant Planning Director Elizabeth Jenkins and Director of Planning and Community Development George Mazervi of a redlined draft replacing the town's outdated off-street parking requirements, including a provision specifying spaces per washing machine at laundromats, with a streamlined minimum table, explicit stall dimensions of nine by 18 feet, and enhanced landscaping standards imported from the town's overlay districts. A new special permit provision would allow the Zoning Board of Appeals to modify parking standards without requiring applicants to prove hardship for a variance. Vice Chair Debra Oakes pushed for creative shared parking solutions in the village center, saying the board does not want to require more asphalt in a district meant to feel like "a walking village center." Mazervi flagged the reclassification of medical offices from three and a half spaces per examining room to one space per 300 square feet as a question requiring further thought before town meeting. Staff plans to convene two to four stakeholder focus groups in July and August; the board also learned the 2025 Orleans Local Comprehensive Plan is expected to receive Cape Cod Commission certification at a Thursday hearing.