The Gloucester Planning Commission instructed staff to come up with a plan to clarify the permitting process for setbacks for accessory structures. Planners discussed the matter at its May meeting, which was held last Thursday in the colonial courthouse.

The commission wants staff to come up with an interim solution to address minimum separation from principal and accessory structures. Looking a bit further out, Anne Ducey-Oritz, planning and zoning director, said the matter should be included in the county’s Comprehensive Plan that’s now being revised.

Ducey-Ortiz said that Gloucester’s zoning ordinance has setback requirements for principal and accessory structures. “Traditionally, the zoning office has recommended that if a detached structure is within five feet of the principal structure, it should meet the principal structure setbacks,” she wrote in an April 21 memorandum to the commission. “However, we have had recent inquiries questioning th...