Neighboring Trinity Church members express concerns
The Town of Washington Planning Commission voted unanimously Monday to approve the construction of a small, in-ground pool that will serve The Inn at Little Washington’s Parsonage guest house — an addition that representatives of the inn assured residents in attendance would be quiet, tranquil and unnoticed.
The pool, which Zoning Administrator Steve Gyurisin said will be about 12 feet by 20 feet, will be located behind 360 Main St. — the Parsonage guesthouse — and will back up to Gay Street.
In accordance with the town’s ordinance on swimming pools, which Chair Caroline Anstey said is a relatively “new initiative,” the pool will be completely fenced in and not visible from the street. The Architectural Review Board (ARB) approved the fence at its January meeting.
The Town of Washington Planning Commission discusses the application from The Inn at Little Washington to construct an in-ground pool at 360 Main Street. (Photo/Ireland Hayes)
Gyurisin said the pool meets all zoning and technical requirements. There was relatively little discussion among the commission members before its approval. Commission member David Pennington was not in attendance.
“From the perspective of Gay Street, it would look like a hedge,” chef and proprietor Patrick O’Connell said during public comment. “As far as noise goes, it’s in our best interest in order to please our guests that there be minimal noise in the town in general.”
Several members of Trinity Episcopal Church, which will become a neighbor to the pool, attended the meeting, and voiced concerns about noise, light pollution and the disturbance of church events and meetings.
Town resident and church member Penny Kardis provided a list of weekly and monthly events held in a fellowship hall next to the pool, and asked how noise would be controlled so as to not affect those meetings.
“It really concerns me that we have these kinds of church and nonprofit type of meetings and things that go on in our fellowship hall. How will noise pollution affect that?” Kardis said.
Penny Kardis speaks during public comment at Monday’s Planning Commission meeting after the commission voted to unanimously approve the construction of a pool at The Parsonage guesthouse. (Photo/Ireland Hayes)
“It is our belief that the guests using that space will be the typical inn demographic, it’s going to be older people … and we really believe that they’re mostly going to be sleeping off their meals as they lay around the pool in relative silence,” Ed Gannon, general manager of the inn, told Kardis. “We genuinely believe that that’s not going to be a problem, but if it is, we will react to that problem.”
The Rev. Elizabeth Keeler said representatives from the inn came to her months ago to discuss the project, and they were able to voice concerns, which she said she believes were understood by the inn. She said she “trust[s] that the collaborative, consultative process will continue.”
“A pool is not something that we would ever choose to have next to the church, it would not be on our list — a garden — but a pool would not be what we would choose to have next door,” Keeler said. “Parishioners have named the concerns about noise and light and the effects on the Parish Hall, and I do believe those concerns were heard.
“It’s a small town. We all know that, and we all exist in the town together, and the way we do that matters,” she said.
