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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1953-04-16221 BOARD OF APPEALS BEARINGS I April 16, 1953 A meeting of the Board of Appeals was held in the Selectmen's Room, Town Office Building, Lexington, on April 16, 1953• Chaiiman Locke, Messrs. Lynah, Ballard, Redman and Ripley were present. The Clerk was also present. At 8:00 p.m. hearings were declared open upon'the following petitions: Gre Nuns Charities, Inc. - to use the first floor of the frame house at Pelham . as a Nursery School and Kindergarten. Grey Nuns Charities, Inc. - to use the first and second floors of the brick ouse at 6 Eliot Rd. as a Convalescent and Rest Home. Charles Chicarello - to erect a single family dwelling on lots 129- 30-31, being #34 Ta Avenue, in accordance with plot plan submitted. Follen Community Church - to erect a one-story addition at the rear of the present c rc at 755 Mass. Ave. on the area shown on the plot plan submitted. Ba rZ Lipton - to erect a single family dwelling, breezeway and ' garage at baSimonds Rd. Elbert A. Fisher - to erect a breezeway and garage attached to the dwellOg—al 12 Rangeway Rd. Western Real Estate Trustees - to eliminate the emergency door at the rear of 1737 Mass. ve. o install one rear entrance 5 feet wide equipped with one pair of doors. Following the hearings an Executive Session was held during which the following decisionswere reached: Grey Nuns Charities, Inc. - granted subject to the rules and regu- lations as laid down by the Dept. of Public Health and the Dept. of Public Safety of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Grey Nuns Charities, Inc. - granted subject to the following con- ditions: 1. that not more than 14 persons shall be accommodated at one time; 2. that no mental cases shall be accepted; 3. that all rules and regulations of the Dept. of Public Safety and the Dept. of Public Health of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts shall be complied with. Charles Chicarello - granted subject to the condition that all conditions of the Lexington Building By -Law be complied with. Follen Community Church - granted Harry Lipton - granted Elbert A. Fisher - granted Western Real Estate Trustees - granted Muriel C. Stone, Clerk 23, GREY NUNS, INC. HEARING ' At 8:00 p.m. hearing was declared open upon the petition of the Grey Nuns Charities, Inc., for permission to use the first and second floors of the brick house at 6 Eliot Rd., Lexington as a convalescent and rest home. Notice of the hearing was read by Mr. Locke. Notices of this hearing had been mailed to the owners of all property deemed by the Board to be affected thereby as they appear on the most recent local tax list. Mr. Locke: Mr. Lynch, do I understand that you will present the case to the Board? Mr. Lynch: Yes, Mr. Locke Locke - Will yok give us the story please. Lynch - Mr. Chairman, gentlemen, for the purposes of the record I would like to state that I am appearing as Attorney for the Grey Nuns Charities, Inc. I do not know what your agenda is tonight Mr. Chairman, do you have other hearings in addition? Locke - I think there are five or six. Lynch - Much of what I will say will apply to both of these petitions. I will not repeat it. I think that this is the first time in the history of the Town of Lexington that a group of Catholic mzns have come to this Board asking for something in the Town of Lexington. Mr. Chairman I would like to present to this Board the Sisters who have accompanied me here tonight. (Mr. Lynch introduced the Sisters by name, to the Board.) The Grey Nuns were organized in 1738 in Montreal, Canada. At the present time the Nuns operate 33 General Hospitals, 2 Hospitals for Incurables, 14 Homes for the Aged, 15 Schools and Orphanages and many other Homes and Services. (Mr. Lynch stated in detail the many other operations of the Sisters.) I think this will give us a general background of the Sisters, who they are and what they are. They came in to Lexington and have purchased the Engstrom and Bond properties. The Sisters are already living in the Engstrom property. I have prepared a plan of the Engstrom and Bond prop- erties, and all the property in that general area taking in Warren St., Eliot Rd'., Bennington Rd., Washington St., etc., showing the location of all properties and I have had the Assessors put on this plan the assessed value of the property. The Engstrom and Bond properties are adjoining properties and the properties so sold to the Sisters as one piece. Locke - There was one piece? I Lynch - The Sisters acquired from Mr. and Mrs. Bond and also the Tower property. The Engstrom property is the property they desire to use as a Rest Home, maintaining not more than 14 patients. on the second floor of 224 Engstrom property there are 7 large rooms and 5 unusually large bath- rooms. This second floor is the only part of the building that will be used for aged or convalescing patients. No patients will be housed on the second floor. On the second floor there will be a large living room, not only for the patients but for the nuns who staff the hospital. The solarium will be used as a chapel. We have had the property inspected by the Dept. of Public Safety. We have been advised as to what will be necessary before the patients can be accommodated in the property that comes within the exclusive jurisdiction of the State, and whatever they want we will do and anything else that from the broad and wide experience of these nuns is necessary to maintain perfect safety at all times. As far as the exterior of the property is concerned, and there may be a fear on part of some of the neighbors that it might cause the neighborhood to deteriorate. I believe the people in this neighborhood are close enough to Mrs. Engstrom, who visited the nuns this afternoon, to know that they would not have sold the property to these nuns if they had thought that it would be harmful to this area. The outside of the property will be just the same. The gardens will be kept just as beautifully. The nuns do not plan to fill this house immediately, but gradually. As far as safety is concerned, the property will be left pretty much as it is now. There will be at either end of the building a very modern fire escape. There will be no other outside changes in the property except the front and rear doors which now swing in will swing out, to conform with the de- partment of public safety. Otherwise there will be no changes in the , outside of this building. If there are any questions - but before I go into that I would like to say that as far as the Town of Lexington is concerned we are not asking for a precedent here. There are, as I think the Board knows, other convalescent and rest homes in the Town of Lexington. This is by no means an all-in- clusive list, but I have noted several. This Board granted permission on June 29, 1950 to Mary and Thomas Walsh to operate a convalescent home on Lowell St. They now have, I understand, permission for 35 patients and that has been increased from 35 to 116, and it is operated under the Fiar- lawn Nursing Home. Permission was given to Clara K. Stanley to operate a boarding home for the aged at 20 Parker St. On May 16, 19117 permission was given to Virginia Coleman to operate a rest home at 6 Raymond St. In- cidentally all three of these are in residential zones. We have the Lex- ington Home for the Aged on Massachusetts Ave. in a residential zone. There are other houses in town caring for patients that need no permit and where no permit is necessary, under the State law we much procure a State license to comply with the State Dept. of Safety regulations. We do not ask for a precedent. We think that the group of nuns here are well able to run this type of institution and I say that the Town of Lexington should welcome these women into our town with open arms. It will prove to be one of the best investments this town has ever made. Locke: What type of convalescent cases would there be? Lynch: No people will be admitted to this Home for diagnostic purposes and ' there will be no surgical operations in this Home. No resident physician, (trey Nuns -2- and anyone in need of medical care will be taken out of this Home imme- diately. We will take in women exclusively. We will take in people who are in need of a rest of any kind, and all people in the Home will be and must be ambulatory. We will have no bed patients. Locke: I assume that your classification would include mental cases? Lynch: Definitely no. Locke: Has any member of the Board any questions? Ripley: Would you be willing to take up the frame house at the same time? Lynch: I would be happy to do so. Locke: I think we should go through the formality of reading the notice. Ballard: How many exits are therefrom the second floor? Lynch: From the second floor at the present time there are two stairways. As you go into the main entrance of the Home the stairs lead off the main hall. There will be fire doors sealing off a part completely. At either and of the building there will be a door with a very modern fire escape leading out. There is a main stairway and then there is a stairway leading down to the kitchen. ' ' Locke: I might say that our usual procedure in handling a heariw of this kind is next to provide for general questions so that the facts may be well established. There will be an opportunity for any person present to ex- press themselves in favor of this application and then an opportunity for anyone who is opposed to express themselves of such disapproval. Are there any questions from the group? Worthen: Am I to assume that this property would be not tax exempt? Lynch: I do not know. Worthen: I think it is very germain. Lynch: All church and school properties are exempt. Locke: I think it is safe to say it is exempt. Lynch: I assume it would be. Locke: Any other questions? There will now be an opportunity for anyone to speak in favor of granting this application, and if anyone so wishes to be recorded will they kindly give their names and addressed for the records. Russell Kettell, 29 Pelham Rd: my sister and I are in favor. ' Adolph and Helen Samborski, b Eliot Rd. We are in favor. Lea E. Clancy, 28 Independence Ave. I have had many years experience with 225 226 the Grey Nuns and my father has known them. My sister happens to be a patient -of theirs at the Holy Ghost Hospital. In favor. ' Abettor: Are the patients to be admitted only of the Catholic faith? Lynch: The Grey Nuns will take anyone of any faith, color, or creed. Everybody is welcome at all times. Dr. Mooney, 1145 Mass. Ave., in favor. Locke: Anyone else? If not, there will now be an opportunity for anyone who wishes to speak in opposition E. T. Martin: I am an attorney for Mr. Hoyt of 11 Eliot Rd. who is opposed to the granting of this application on the ground that the comings and goings of all kinds of tradesmen and doctors, etc. would be hazardous to his children, and also thinks it would clearly be a loss of property values. Mr. Locke: Anyone else? John Kugler, 1347 Mass. Ave.: I am not immediately adjacent to this property but located in the same town. I am opposed to it. Helen C. Parsons, 12 Warren St.: Opposed. Margaret E. Davis, 7 Eliot Rd. We came to this town feeling that we had chosen a restricted neighborhood where nothing of this sort could come into our neighborhood. I am definitely opposed to it. Herbert Crowley, 1 Bennington Rd. I have the same point of view. F. Sherburne Carter, 24 Percy Rd. I express my opposition to this. Locke: Ar*one else? E. Colladay, 19 Eliot Rd. I am opposed to this project because I feel it will deteriorate the neighborhood. Mrs. Alice Newell, 20 Percy Rd. Opposed. Locke: Anyone else? Would you care to say anything else Mr. Lynch? Lunch: I can answer Mr. Martin. He misunderstood the purpose for which the Sisters will use this property. The activity will be less by far than the activity was when Mr. and Mrs. Engstrom entertained their friends there. I am sure that if Mr. Hoyt realized the use of this property he would not have written the letter. Ripley: The name of "Grey Nuns Charities" - is that a 100% charitable insti- tution? Does anyone pay anything? Lynch: Yes, sure they do. You will find that most every charitable hospi- tal people pay. If a poor person came to these nuns they could give them Grey Nuns things for nothing. -3- Ripley: It could be charitable? Lynch: Yes. These Sisters do not receive a fee for their work. Ripley: I gather from this conversation that patients that are financially able will be asked to bear the expense of their convalescence. Am I right in assuming that this property, under these circumstances, will be tax free? Locke: I believe so. Abuttor: We are told that they are not to have any mental cases or surgical cases. Will they have to come before the Board again if they want to take mental or surgical cases or do they just take them? Locke: I think that hinges upon the fact of if we make certain conditions. Lynch: The license that we seek is to ask to run a nursing home. The law requires a special permit for mental cases and we do not ask for that. Lombard, 23 Eliot Rd. We have no particular objection to the property be- ing used for the purpose which has been stated tonight. One thing does bother me however, as to whether this is a step to something else - a ' High School or Hospital across the street. Whether or not Mr. Lynch can give us the answer I do not know. Lynch: The Tower property will not be used at any time for a hospital. Some people think that it will be used for a Catholic hospital or a Parochial school, and there will not be a Parochial school at any time in the Tower property. Locke - Are there any other questions? Any further questions from the Board? If not, I will assume that we have all the facts we need on this case. We will close this hearing and the Board will take the matter under consideration. The hearing closed at 8:35 p.m. J K=iel C. Stone, Clerk 22:7