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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1930-04-04BOARD OF APPEALS MEETING. APRIL 4, 1930. A meeting of the Board of Appeals was held at the Selectmen's Roam, Town Office Building at 8 P. M. Messrs. Maddison, Chairman, Baldrey, Clerk, Glynn and Custance were present. The Secretary, H. C. Whittemore was also present. Mr. James Stuart Smith, Chairman of the School Committee, Mr. Howard S. 0. Nichols also Of the School Committee and Mr. Thomas S. Grindle, Supt. of School Schools and Secretary of the School Building Building Committee appeared at the hearing. Mr. Baldrey read hearing. the notice of the hearing as inserted in the local paper and sent to the owners of property within a radius of one-half mile, Mr, James S. Smith presented a plan showing, the proposed location of the school house and land owned by Swenson Brothers; the building faces on an old county road near Allen Street and is located approximately 120' back on a lot of eight and -one-half acres. The Committee informed the meeting that the playground in the rear is well located and would probably need very little money spent on it to put it in condition, owing to its natural resources. At the present time negotiations for this land are being made at a price of $6000. The frontage of the land is approximately 640', and the Committee believed it a desirable location far the School house. leo persons appeared to object to the granting of the permit and the hearing was therefore declared closed. The Board in private session, made the following findings: The Board of Appeals, acting under General Laws, Chapter 40, sec. 271. having received a written petition addressed to it by 1homas S. Grindle, Secretary of Lexington School Building Committee, a copy of which is hereto annexed, held a public hearing thereon of which notice was mailed to the petitioner and to the owners of all property deemed by the Board to be affected thereby as they appear on the most recent local tax list, and also advertised in the Lexington Times -Minute Man, a newspaper published in Lexington, which hearing was held in the Selectmen's Room in the Town Office Building on Friday, the fourth day of April, 1930, at eight o'clock P.M. Four members of the Board of Appeals were present at the hearing. A certificate of notice is hereto annexed. At this hearing evidence was offered on behalf of the petitioner Zy0 tending to show that this was a desirable location for a school house. No-one appeared in opposition and no evidence was offered in opposition to the said petition. At the close of the hearing the Board in private sension gave consideration to the subject of the petition and voted unanimously in favor of the following findings: 1. hat in its judgment the public convenience and welfare will be substantially served by the making of the exception requested. 2. That the exception requested will not tend to impair the status of the neighborhood. 3. That the exception requested will be in harmony with the general purposes and intent of the, regulations in the Lexington Zoning By-law. 4. That the enforeement of the Lexington Zoning By-law as to the locus in question would involve prac- tical difficulty and unnecessary hardship and the relief requested may be granted without substantially derogating from the intent and purpose of such Lexington Zoning By-law. Pursuant to the said findings, the Board hereby unanimously decides that the application of the -said Lexington Zoning By-law is hereby varied so far as may be necessary to permit the Town of Lexington to erect a school house on a lot of about eight and one-half acres on the easterly side of Old County Road at or near the junction of Allen Street, provided said Town of Lexington b ecomes the owner of said lot on or before April 1, 1931, and Instrictsathe Inspector of Buildings of Lexington to grant a permit therefor, if and when the Town becomes the owner of said property as above. The Board hereby makes a detailed records of all its proceedings relative to such petition and hereby sets forth that the reasons for its decision are its findings hereinbefore set forth and the testimony presented at the said hearing, including that herein summarized, and directs that this record immediately following this decision shall be filed in the office of the Town Clerk of Lexington and shall be open to public inspection and that notice of this decision shall be mailed forthwith to each party in interest. rri 39 BOARD OF APPEALS OF LEXINGTON (Appointed under G. L. Ch. 40, sec. 27) Arthur N. Maddison Roland W. Baldrey Theodore A. Custance C. Edward Glynn Curlys L. Slocum I, Roland W. Baldrey, Clerk of the Board of Appeals of Lexington, appointed under General Laws, Chapter 40, section 27, hereby certify that I sent by registered mail on March 12, 1930 to Patrick E. Carroll, Exor., Axel & Henning W. Swenson, Jacinth() S. Candinho, George A. & Esther L. Calderwood, Michael J. Carroll, Exor, Jesse P. Farria, Mary C. Faria, and Thomas S. Grindle, and also published in the Lexington Times -Minute Man on March 21, 1930 a notice of which 'the following is a true copy. Roland W. Baldrey Clerk. Lexington School Building Committee Lexington, Mass., March 7,1930. To the Board of Appeals, Lexington, Mass . Gentlemen: The Lexington School Building Committee of Seven petition the Board of Appeals to waive the Zoning Laws of the Town as applied to R. 1 one -family -dwelling residence districts and grant the Town permission to erect a Public School Building on the Old County Road near Allen Street. This is in accordance with Article 33 of. the Annual Town Warrant. Thomas S. Grindle Secretary for Above Committee. 40 Semonian house. FOTICE Lexington, Mass. March 12, 1930. The Board of Appeals will hold a hearing on the application of Thomas S. Grind's, Secretary of the School Building Committee, on the matter of varying the application of the Zoning Law by.permitting the use of the property situated on Old County Road near Allen Street and known as a portion of the Swenson Brothers farm, containing approximately eight acres, to erect thereon a public school building, in accordance with sub -section 6 B of Section 4 being "Permitted Uses" in R 1 Districts and Section 9 of the Zoning Law of the Town, sad Chapter 133, Acts of 1924. The hearing will be held on April 4, 1930 at 8 P.M. at the Selectmen's Office,` Town Office Building. Arthur N. Maddison Chairman, Board of Appeals. Letter was received from the Building Inspector in which he stated that he allowed Semonian Brothers to put in two doors in the front of their house o 137 Woburn Street after the Board of Appeals had given permission to Semonian Brothers to use this house as a two family house, inasmuch as he felt that two exits were required in case of fire and he thought the Insurance company would prefer a separate exit to the second floor. He also stated that he had found it necessary to add another window and granted permission fofi Awls, change which, in his opinion, he felt he had a right to do. The Board decided to write to Mr. Tibbetts_ informing him that their decision had' not been adhered to, owing to the fact that two separate entrances had been erected which changed the exterior of the house, and asked that he take the matter up with Mr. Semonian and call his attention to the fact that the house is being occupied by two families contrary to the Zoning Law, and asked Mr. Tibbetts for a written report. Letter was received from the Town Counsel in reply to a letter written to him asking for information regarding the application of Mrs. Edgar W. Houghton, c 356,Marrett Road, Lexington, for permission to place a sign on her house advertising rooms to rent for tourists. Mrs. Houghton did not with to serve meals but simply wanted to use her home to earn additional money by renting a few rooms over -night. The Town Counsel advised urging the applicant to secure legal advice regarding the Zoning Law. He felt however that there was a distinction between" a lodging house where the business over -shadows the domestic life of the family and the taking of a small number of lodgers in a house where the family makes its home, and also whether or not the family owns the house or has purchased a house to do business of this kind. The Board decided to notify Mrs. Houghton that owing to the possibility of a technicality in the Zoning Law in regard to using houses in a single residence district for a tourist business, that it might be advisable for her to consult her own attorney and in regard to a sign which she wished to place on the house, that she should also consult her attorney regarding this matter. In regard to the verbal application of Mr. P. Ferri, Bow Street, Mr. Maddison reported that he and Mr. Custance had viewed the premises and found that Mr. Ferri wantdd to move his tin garage on his premises off onto the side of the lot near Albemarle Avenue, thereby bdautifying his premises. Mr. Ferri was unable to get the garage on any other location on his land and therefore wanted to place it nearer to the street than the 201 prescribed by the Zoning Law. It was found upon looking up the Zoning Law, that the 201 applied to private ways as well as public ways, and the Board did not feel they had a right to grant a permit in connection with the set back of the Zoning Law in this particular instance. It was therefore decided to notify Mr.' Ferri that the Board regretted to think they could not do anything for him, but it was not within their juris- diction for them to grant a permit for the construction of a garage nearer to the lot line than is allowed by the Zoning Law. The meeting adjourned at 10:15 P. M. A true record, Attest: C-34-62°'161 Clerk. 11 Mrs. E. W. Houghton's application for sign. Mr. P. Fel .7s application refused.