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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1941-06-06 248 BOARD OF AITF .LS MEETING June b, 1941 A meetinL of the Board of Appeals was held in the Selectmen' s Room, Town Office Building, Lexington at 8 00 P. i, Messrs. Kimball, Robbins, Loc__e, and Brown were present. The Secretary was also present. In- the absence of Lr. Glynn, Kr. Kimball acted as Chairman Pro-tem At 8 00 P M hearing was declared open upon the application of Clesson C Schofield for permission to add one room to the house located at 7 Pleasant St. , Lexington. The notice of the hearin , which was duly published in the Lexington Linute Lan on Lay 15, 1941 , was read by Clerk Robbins Kr. Schofield and a Mr. Cook were present at the hearing. Kr. Schofield presented a sketch showing the pro- posed addition. The room will be 12' x 18' . He said that his house was built before the Zoning Law went into effect, and the whole house was too near the side line. He said that he nad contacted most of his neighbors, and there was no objection NO other persons wishinL, to be heard, the two men retired at 8 10 P. N. Upon motion of fur Brown, seconded by I:ir. Locke, it was voted to grant the petition in the following form (i•..r. Glynn wishing to be recorded in favor) BOARD OF APPEALS PERMIT The Board of Appeals, acting. under General Laws, Chapter 40 , Sec. 27, having received a written petition addressed to it by Clesson C. Schofield, 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 nropert;r deemed by the Board to be affected thereby as they appear on the most recent local tax list and also advertised in the Lexington hinute-Lan, a news- paper published in Lexington, which hearing was held in the Selectmen' s Room, in the Town Office Building on the 6th day of June, 1941. 249 One Associate and three 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 tending to show That he desired to add one room to his present house located at 7 Pleasant Street , that the existing building was closer to the side line than the Building Laws now permit, and it was, therefore , necessary to receive per- mission to make the addition, that a room added with the necessary setback would not only be smaller than he desired, but would also be less attractive from an architectural standpoint, and that there were no buildings in the immediate vicinity. At the close of the hearing the Board in private session on Tune 6, 1941 gave consideration to the subject of the petition and voted unanimously in favor of the following findings 1. That 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 owing to conditions especially affecting the said parcel but not affectint generally the Zoning district in which it is located, a literal enforcement of t e pro- visions of the Lexin. ton Zoning By-law as to the locus in question would involve substantial hardship to the petitioner and that desirable relief may be granted without substantially derogating from the intent or purpose of such Lexington Zoning By-law. Pursuant to the said findings, the Board hereby unani- mously decides that the application of the said Lexington Zoning By-law is hereby varied so far as may be necessary to permit Clesson C. Schofield to add one room on the pro- perty located at 7 Pleasant Street in accordance with the plan submitted, that the work be completed within six months from the date of the permit . The Board hereby makes a detailed record of all its pro ceedings relative to such petition and hereby sets forth that the reasons for its decision are its findings herein- before 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 250 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. BOARD OF APPEALS OF LEXINGTON (Appointed under G.L Ch.40,Sec. 27) Edward W. Kimball Errol ?. Locke J. Milton Brown Howard W. Robbins C . Edward Glynn I, Howard W. Robbins, Clerk of the Board of Appeals of Lexington, appointed under General Laws, Chapter 40, Section 27, hereby certify that I sent by postage certificate of mailing on May 21 , 1941 to J. Alexander Wilson, Albion W. bhaw, Annie J. Neilan, Rebecca Farnham, and Clesson C. Scho- field, and also advertised in the Lexington Minute-Man on May 15, 1941, a notice of which the following is a true copy. Howard W. Robbins Clerk, Board of Appeals Lay 3, 1941 1 Board ton g of Zoning Appeals Town Office Building Lexington, Mass . Gentlemen: The undersigned hereby petition the Lexington Board of Appeals , appointed under General Laws , Chapter 40, Section 27, to vary the application of section 9A of the Lexington Zoning By-law with respect to the premises at 7 Pleasant Street, owned by Clesson Schofield of Lexington by per- mitting the following: addition of one room. Clesson Schofield by R L. Cook 7 Pleasant St . Lexington, Mass . 1 251 Lexington, Mass May 15, 1941 The Board of Appeals will hold a hearing on the matter of varying the application of the Zoning Law by permitting on the premises owned by Clesson C . Schofield and located at 7 Pleasant Street, Lexington, the addition of one room, under the Lexington Zoning Law or in accordance with Chap- ter 40, Section 27A of the General Laws and amendments. The hearing will be held on June 6, 1941 at 8 :00 P. M. in the Selectmen ' s Room, Town Office Building, Lexington, Mass . C EU;iARD GLYNN, Chairman, Board of Appeals . At 8:15 P. M. hearing was declared open upon the appli- cation of Francis M. Wilson, Inc. for permission to maintain an undertaking establishment at 1556 Mass. Ave. Lexington, Mass . The notice of the hearing, which was duly published in the Lexington Minute Man on May 22, 1941, was read by Clerk Robbins. About fifteen persons were present at the hearing . Mr . Ralph M. Smith of 1162 Mass. Ave . , Lexington said he was appearing for Francis Y. Wilson, Inc . , who propose to occupy the premises if the permit is granted. Mr. Smith said that he was formerly a Somerville resident. If this permit is granted, the ',Wilson firm propose to use the premises for the purpose of operating an undertaking establishment. He said that the corporation of Frances M . Wilson, Inc. had been operating in Somerville for some forty or fifty years. Mr. Smith knew Mr. Frances M. Wilson very well for many years, and he was highly thought of in Somerville. He died in 1928, and the business is now incorporated and is being operated by his relatives. This is a well established firm. Mr . Smith presented a sketch showing the proposed changes in the house . The present establishment is located on College Avenue in Somerville, and is opposite the Baptist Church. Mr. Smith said he lived 600 or 700 yards away from this establishment for some twenty years, and it never was ob- jectionable. The man they propose to have for the resident undertaker here is Mr. Burt R. Martin, a brother of Ernest Martin of Lexington. Mr. Charles R. Corwin, Mr . Wilson's grandson, is treasurer of the corporation. The firm' s idea in locating here is the fact that we have in Lexington many Somerville families . They will make very few changes in the exterior of the house. 252 Mr. Charles R. Corwin of 7 Worthen Road, Winches- ter, the treasurer of the firm, was the next speaker. He said that downstairs they will have to tear down a partition between the living room and dining room in order to make room for a chapel. There will be a pre- paration room in the rear. They plan to make the upstairs into living quarters for Mr. Martin. There will have to be a kitchen, etc. No plans have been drawn up yet, however . The Chairman asked if the garage went with the place, and Mr. Corwin replied in the affirmative He said they probably would keep one car here, but did not believe they would keep a hearse here. They have two in their other establishment . The Chairman asked if there was any ca sket concern directly interested in the corporation, and Mr. Corwin replied in the negative. The Chairman asked if quite a number of licenses were necessary for this business, and whom they were held by. Mr. Corwin said that the licenses were held by the corp- oration itself. The Chairman asked if a corporation could hold licenses in various towns , and Mr Corwin said that as they have a license to do business in Somerftille, the State also permits that the Town of Lexington can issue a license to do business and maintain an establishment in Lexington. Mr. Smith said that Mr. Kimball wanted to know if Martin had to be locally licensed. Mr. Corwin said that Mr. Martin was licensed by the State . The Chaim asked if this was expanding a present corporation, and Mr Corwin said that it was . Mr. Kimball asked if the business in Somerville had been carried on above reproach, and Mr. Corwin said that it had. Mr. Kimball asked if there had been any suspension of licenses, etc , and Mr. Corwin said there had not. Mr. Martin said that the firm had been established in Somerville for many years, and that it had always en- joyed a healthy reputation. Mr. D. J. O' Connell said that he was the present owner of the premises . He acquired the property from a Miss Liscomb and acquired the MacDougall property at the same time, paying more for the places than was warranted, but it was before the depression. The property is in the business zone. O 'Connell said that he was as much in- terested in the neighborhood as anyone. IIe said that he nad expressions of approval from the abutters in great numbers , but not from all of them. He could not see any objection to the funeral home, and he informed the Board that his investment at that corner exceeded anything except the Baptist Church. He said he did not wish to 253 dispose of the property in any way that would affect his property adversely. Mr. O ' Connell said that the house was as good as any in Lexington as far as modern equip- ment is concerned. He thought this location was better adapted for a funeral home than any other location in the business zone in Lexington He said that the Baptist Church had no objection to this . Mr. O ' Connell said that he was going to dispose of this property, and for business purposes, and he had held it as long as he intended to. He was going to sell it , or put it to some other ase. If the Board rejects the proposal, the property will be devoted to business. He said he was all through paying for that property out of independent income. If he does not sell it now, he will demolish the building and put something in there of a bus- iness nature, and will construct right on the sidewalk line. He said there was nothing more for him to do . He said that the injury to the neighborhood might come from not granting the permit. The Chairman asked how deep the lot was, and Mr. O 'Connell said that it was 96 ' deep, and had 80' frontage . Mr. Robbins asked if the Baptist Church had any objection, and O ' Connell said that it had no objection whatsoever. Mr. Smith introduced Mr. L. Roger Wentworth of iuinches- ter, a director in the concern No other persons wished to be heard in favor of the granting of the petition. Mr. ' athan B. Bidwell was the next speaker. He said that he knew the Frances M Wilson Corporation very well; he knew Mr. Corwin's parents , and knew Mr. qentworth very well. He said that the following perscns had requested him to oppose the `ranting of the petition: Dr. and Mrs Norman C. Baker of Hunt Road, Mr. Mrs . James J. ,.alsh of 1508 Mass Ave. , Mr. C Ars . Tarren Russell, Mrs . Leavitt, I.4r. ° Mrs . E. J. Thivierge, Heirs of Lewis =? mt, (Owners of four houses) , and he was told that Mrs T W. Baker had asked that her name be recorded against it. He was in- formed that the Church was objecting to it The objection of the residents , as expressed to him, is to the character of the business . They feel that public convenience and necessity did not require it, and it would be very much against a general plan as outlined for this business section. At the time the Town voted to retain this side in the business zone, the discussion was tnat stores would be built in keeping with the architecture of the Town Offices and the Cary Memorial Building. re thought the maintenance of a funeral home would be very objectionable to the business outline of this section, and the Town as a whole. In the 254 establishment of a funeral home, he understood that the State required the establishment of a morgue, and there will have to be the usual incidents to such, which the abutters do object to. Mr Bidwell said that the State Plumbing Laws were very extensive, and the law in regard to the ventilation of the preparation room was very stringent. He said that the Town of Fitchburg had established a rule limiting the undertaking establishments to one for each 5,000 of population. We have four such establishments in Lexington. Mr Bidwell said that an undertaking establishment required a Registered Funeral Director In this concern, Mrs. t nra T Wilson is the only Registered Funeral Director. Mr. Martin and Mr. English are Enbalmers, and Mr. Corwin is an Apprentice All death certificates must be signed by the Registered Funeral Director, and Burial Permits may not be issued to anyone else. Er. Bidwell said that some of the objectors could not be present this evening, but the members of the Baptist Church Standing Committee are present. He repeated the seriousness of the objection of 1 )0.; of the abutters from Hunt Road to the Colonial Garage on that side of the street The Chairman requested Mr Bidwell to summarize his objections He said that the objections were as follows 1 The destruction of property values by the establish- ment of a morgue and funeral home , and the coming and going of gruesome things, which, because of the open lo- cation, the buildings would not shelter, 2. Question of parking, the funeral cars would have to go in front of the Church or beyond Winthrop Road in front of Mr. Walsh' s place. It is the belief that any increased traffic at the junction of Woburn Street and Mass. Ave was going to add its full share to the traffic problem which the Town is trying to solve, 3 . The third question is to the character of the bus- iness. So long as the houses are now Jecupied, it is placed in the hands of the Board of Appeals to use its discretion in what is to be allowed. The objectors feel that the character of this business is one that would do much to retard the general development of Lexington. They know that business will come there some day, but they do not want this kind of business Mr A. Randall Soderberg of 51 Dexter Road introduced Mr. Eugene L. Morgan, Mr. Howard A Patterson, and Wilbur H Abbott , representing the Standing Committee of the Baptist Church He said they were here to object to this petition Although this is a business zone, they were going to try to keep business away as long as possible. 255 The Church is over one hundred years old, and the present building is outmoded and the parish has outgrown the church. A Committee has been appointed to see if it is possible to build a new church. Mr. Morgan has drawn up plans which will call for an expenditure of approximately ? 200,000.00. They have an investment of 80, 850.00 now. The church has about 600 members, and it is growing He said they had no personal grievances , but were trying to protect the church property as far as possible. Mr. Corwin said that Mr. Bidwell said that the house was in an unsheltered position, and spoke of gruesome sights. He said that the driveway was on the left of the house, and there is a hedge between the house and the O ' Connell pro2erty The only sight they would ever see would be a hearse drive in, and he did not believe that anyone could call that gruesome. They are considering putting in a circular drive to the front door. He did not believe that the cars would ever have to park beyond the business zone. It would be very inconvenient if they did. He said that the third point stressed would be that the funeral home would be a detriment to the community. Naturally the firm wants to keep the place as dignified as it can for its own sake , because tnat is the way that successful funeral establishments are run This place is in the business zone-- ' if it were not , they would never have considered it. lir Morgan said he thought that parked cars were going to cause traffic congestion, and it would be much better if this could be avoided. Mr. O ' Connell said that if anyone had been bothered with parked cars , he had. The Baptist Church had never heard from him about this, and never would, excepting at this hearing . They have cars parked in front of all his property to Win- throp Road, so ile could not see their argument on the parking. He said he would do everything possible tc preserve this area, but if the neighbors want stores, or a garage , he will give thr; to them. It is a ruestion of what they would like best He said that he had never heard anything about the expansion of the church. He said he did not want anyone to go too far with him, because they could not do it. It is very simple to go around and get names on a petition--he could have got any number of names in favor of this petition He would not oppose anything that would help the neighborhood He said that there had been "For Sale" signs on the property for ten years, but he had not been able to sell it He said that everyone in the neighborhood would regret it if this permit was not granted. They are not going to tell him what he is gointo do with his own property 'Mrs. Leavitt said that she owned the house next to 1556 IIMass. Ave . , and she rents her house If she lived next door, 256 sza she would object to a funeral home being beside her. Her tenants are opposed to the funeral home going in--in fact, they said that they would move if it went in there. She thought it would depreciate her property. Mr. O' Connell asked why the peoole Mr. Bidwell men- tioned as objectors were not present, if they did really object. Mr. Bidwell said that it was impossible for some of the people to be present . He said he believed the Board did not have to be told that he would not give the names of persons unless they had requested him to speak for them. He did not solicit objectors. He said he did not believe that this question should be settled by blackmail, or by threats that the neighbors would have a saloon, or a garage there , if this permit was not granted. He thought it unwise to let personalities enter into the 9Iscussion. Lr. O' Connell said that he had not mentioned a saloon. He said he purchased the Leavitt property at a cost of x12, 500. , and spent ,x2, 500. to fix it up He sold it for one-half of what he paid for it He repeated that his house was in a business zone , and the people must realize that business was goinh in there He said that the par_cinh problem was not the concern of the Board of appeals . Mr Corwin said that when they first considered this proposition, he called on Rev. Crawford Smith, who said he could see no objection to the concern moving in there . Cor- win told him that before things progressed too far, he would call on him again to find out the reaction of the church. He thought that the plans for the new church must have come along very suddenly. Mr. Soderberg said that the Standing Committee had a meeting last Monday evening, and Rev Smith was present and objected to the funeral home. Mr. Morgan said that a year ago last February the Stand- ing Committee met and discussed having the church remodeled, and the question of having a new one built was considered The project was kept quiet until last January, when the annual business meeting was held, and it was put before the parishioners. He said that the plans had not progressed more rapidly due to war conditions, and lack of funds The project has merely been delayed. Hr Smith said that he was an attendant of the Baptist Church in Somerville, and the funeral home did not harm that church at all He thought the Board should consider what other busi- ness might go in here which might be a detriment to the church. Mo other persons wishing to speak, the hearing was de- clared closed at 9 30 P I The records of the meeting held on May 16th were declared approved 257 It was decided to postpone decision on tne O ' Connell petition until five bemb,srs of the B3ard were present Tae meeting was then adourned to g ' 0 P T. on Thursday, June 12, 1941. The meetiF ad,ourned at 10 15 E . I . A true record, Attest get„,,t).45i4.140214-4"42 4 11