After its regular March 5 meeting was cancelled because of icy conditions, the Gloucester County Planning Commission held a special meeting last Thursday night in the colonial courthouse, planner Sean McNash said, but took no votes.

However, the board held a discussion of accessory apartments, a subject that has been on the agenda for several meetings in recent months.

Anne Ducey-Ortiz, director of planning and zoning, said that the Gloucester Board of Supervisors requested the commission consider amendments to the zoning ordinance to remove the cap on the square footage for accessory apartments. The current ordinance allows for a maximum gross area of 1,200 square feet for an accessory residential structure.

McNash said that several commission members had concerns about the possibility that a principal structure and its accessory structure both be occupied by renters. Discussion followed on whether there should be a requirement for the property owner to reside in the principal stru...