“They want to build a large family recreation center costing millions of dollars, when we already have one that doesn’t get the use.”
Many of these have failed all over the country. Better to keep the town solvent. These people get bored, and think they have to do something. Stop em!
One of my Kiwanis club members is in the forefront of a group trying to stop them. We have another meeting Monday night. It’s an ongoing controversy.
You mentioned to that other FReeper that he was putting up commercial examples in his argument in favor of such regulations. It made me think of a neighbor around the block who operates a small equipment repair out of his garage (mowers, snowblowers, etc). I don’t know whether he operates under a variance (it’s zoned residential) or not, but I’m sure glad he’s around. I’ve used him when there’s something I’m not suited to tackle, and he does good work at a reasonable price.
There’s also the guy who lives outside of town, who fixes up old bicycles. He brings them into town about twice a year, to a relative who lives on a corner of a state highway in town (a residential area as well). The guy has about 50 bikes strewn across the driveway, the lawn, and on the flatbed he hauls them in behind his pickup (parked on the cross street - not the highway). I doubt the relative has a variance for this, but the guy provides a service, and I’d buy from him if I had the need. I’ve never heard of anyone being upset about this. But I’m sure it would take one new resident with a warped view of things, and this guy would be history.
My experience has been a lot of these are for "legacy building" and just happen to benefit builders that are politically connected.