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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1973-06-26BOARD OF APPEALS HEARINGS June 26, 1973 A regular meeting of the Lexington Board of Appeals was held on Tuesday, June 26, 1973 at 7:30 p.m. in the Selectmen's Meeting Room of the Town Office Building. Present were Chairman Nickerson, regular members, G. Sheldon, W. Brodhead and G. Wadsworth, and associate member L. Clarke. The Chairman announced that the courts had upheld the Board's decision in regard to the petition of Lexington Gardens, Inc., 554 Lowell Street. The Board applauded Mr. Sheldon for his part as acting chairman in this case. Public hearings were held on the following petitions, notice having been mailed to the petitioners, to the owners of all property deemed by the Board to be affected thereby as they appear on the most recent local tax list, to town boards and officials who will or might be affected by decisions made, and also advertised in the Lexington Minute -man. Michael and Judith H. Bass variance of section 27 of the zoning by-law so as to maintain the existing dwelling located at 18 Flintlock Road with a front yard of 28.62 ft. instead of the required 30 ft. Ira Stepanian and Jacquelynne M. Stepanian - variance of section 27 of the zoning by-law in order to build an addition (approximately 18 ft. by 18 ft.) to the rear of the existing dwelling at 5 Carol Lane, which addition will have a side yard of 12 ft. instead of the required 15 ft. Violet F. Horn - variance of sections 27 and 12.3 of the zoning by-law to allow Violet F. Horn, owner of an option to purchase, to build a single family residence on lot 3, No. 7 Jean Road, which lot has insufficient frontage as defined by the zoning by-law, but more than the required area, and to face the building and have its principal entrance facing in a northerly direction. The 115 Kendall Corporation - site plan review and approval for a special per- mit pursuant to section 13 and related subsections of the zoning by-law to make a finding and determination with respect to the second floor of phase 3 and all of phase 4 that the proposed placement of buildings, major topographic changes, provisions for waste disposal, surface and ground water drainage, erosion control, parking areas, loading areas, maneuvering areas, driveways, and the location of intersections of driveways and streets will constitute a suitable development and will not result in substantial detriment to the neigh- borhood. The proposed use of the addition to the building numbered 29 Hartwell Avenue is office and research and development. Following the hearings the Board made the following decisions, all in public meeting and all unanimous. Bass - Granted. Stepanian - Granted. Horn - Granted subject to the following conditions: 1. That if a septic tank system is built on lot 3 it must have Board of Health June 26, 1973 hearings (continued) Page 2 approval. 2. If Aaron Road should become an accepted street a 30 ft. setback shall be required. 3. Construction must be started within a period of three years from this date. The 115 Kendall Corporation - granted if the change in gradient is made from 4% to 0.4%. The buildings must be started within a year from date. All pertinent material is on file under the name of each petitioner in the Board of Appeals' office. The meeting adjourned at 10:35 p.m. 1 i- C�Y' � Evelyn F. Cole Clerk IRA STEPANIAN AND JACQUELYNNE M. STEPANIAN HEARING - June 26, 1973 ' In public session the Board of Appeals met in the Selectmen's Meeting Room. Present were Chairman Donald E. Nickerson, regular members, George C. Sheldon, George P. Wadsworth and Woodruff M. Brodhead, and associate member Logan Clarke, Jr. and an audience of interested townspeople. The Chairman read the notice as follows: June 7 and 14, 1973 The Board of Appeals will hold a public hearing on the petition of IRA STEPANIAN AND JACQUELYNNE M. STEPANIAN for a variance of section 27 of the Lexington zoning by-law in order to build an addition (approxi- mately 18 ft. by 18 ft.) to the rear of the existing dwelling at 5 CAROL LANE, which addition will have a side yard of 12 ft. instead of the re- quired 15 ft. The hearing will be held on TUESDAY, JUNE 26, 1973 in the TOWN OFFICE BUILDING at 7:35 P.M. Chairman: This notice was published in the Lexington Minute -man newspaper as required by law and people deemed interested notified. You have submitted a plot plan engineered by Albert A. Miller & Wilbur C. Nylander, dated August 30, 1968, showing the lot, the building on it and the proposed addition. And you have submitted plans and elevations, a porch and deck planand floor framing plan, 2 drawings by Moore Construction Company ' of Woburn. Mr. Stepanian do you wish to add anything? Mr. Stepanian: The reason for the variance can be seen by looking at the plot plan. The line goes back at an angle. He explained that about k way back to the rear corner the addition would be less then the required 15 ft, from the lot line. At the farthest corner it would be 12 ft. from the line. If the lot line had run parallel there would have been no problem. He had figured the square footage of the triangle which would extend into the side yard. It was only a small percentage of the addition. Shrubbery had been planted on the side and permanent trees. Mr. Stepanian came forward to explain the plans he had submitted and the various alternatives that had been discussed in an attempt to place the addition in such a way that a variance would not be necessary. He felt that the proposed plans had the most merit and would be attractive and add to the appearance of the house and area and not be a detri- ment to the neighborhood. He said that he was aware that a neighbor objected but couldn't understand why. He said that he would try to answer any objections. The Chairman asked several questions as to where the deck was, what would happen if it were all pushed over, etc. Mr. Stepanian explained how the windows and the bulkhead would be affected. Chairman Do Board members have any questions? Mr. Brodhead: Did you build it yourself? ' Mr. Stepanian: Yes. It was built in 1968. Chairman: Does anyone wish to speak in favor? •�.I pM isr¢u,IN x r gM1r'^ '. Stepanian hearing,- 6/26/73 g (continued) Page 2 Mr. Chase, 97 Bedford Street asked if he could ask a question. He and his wife didn't think they were abutters but they had received a notice. Board members checked the Assessors' map and determined that they were notified correctly. Mr. Chase said that he had served on the Board of Appeals in another town. Apparently it was before it*wa.s requiret,.to ee*id notices to abutters of abutters. He wasn't certain as to how his land backed up to the lot in question which was on another street. The Chases' had no objection when they realized that the addition would have no affect on their property. Mr. Erivan Hagopian, 7 Carol Lane: My wife and I live at 7 Carol Lane, next door. The following letter had been received from him prior to the hearing: Dear Mr. Nickerson: I plan to attend the June 26, 1973 public hearing on the petition of Ira and Jacquelynne Stepanian for a variance to build an addition to the rear of their home. At that time, I will ask the Board of Appeals for permission to speak in opposition to this petition. Very truly yours, /s/ Erivan Hagopian Mr. Hagopian read the following letter: ' Gentlemen: We strongly urge the Board of Appeals to deny the petition of Ira and Jacquelynne M. Stepanian for a variance to build an addition to the rear of their home which would extend to 12 ft. of our common lot line instead of the required 15 ft. The Stepanians have ample space along the approximately 60 ft. rear length of their dwelling to build the addition without the need for this variance. We would certainly not oppose this variance if we felt that the Stepanians were too crowded in their existing dwelling which they had built only four years ago and if there was no possible way for them to build this addition without a variance. In our opinion neither of these two condi- tions exist. Another objection we have is that the proposed addition would reduce our back yard privacy. Both the Stepanians and we have planted shrubbery along our common lot line to provide privacy. Since their lot is at a higher eleva- tion than ours, this proposed addition would overlook our entire back yard. Admittedly, by denial of this petition the Stepanians can simply build three feet further in from the lot line, and we will have no recourse. Nevertheless, in such a situation we would at least be protected to the extent of section 27 of the Lexington zoning by-law. We invite the members of the Board of Appeals to visit our property and judge for themselves whether or not our objections are valid. Erivan Hagopian /s/ Sion Hagopian ' Chairman: Does anybody else wish to speak in opposition? No response. Hearing none,we will declare the hearing (that portion of the hearing which produces the evidence on which the decision is based) closed and we'll notify you. -end of hearing evidence- Stepanian hearing - 6/2/73 (continued) page 3 ' The Board discussed further the facts of this petition in open meeting. Mr. Clarke restated three objections that the Hagopians' seem to have, the feeling that there was ample space to build the addition without a variance, that it might reduce their privacy and the fact that the Stepanians' land was on a higher level but the amount of the variance and the fact that it would not prevent them from building an addition which could cost considerably more and have a jagged appearance outweighed the objections in his opinion. Dr. Wadsworth pondered the question and wondered if it would be better to build the addition without the variance. A motion was made by Mr. Sheldon to grant the petition as requested. Mr. Clarke seconded the motion. It carried unanimously. The usual conditions would apply: Construction must be started within a period of one year from date; before acting on this permit, it will be necessary to secure a building permit from the building inspector and in accordance with State law, before this permit becomes effective, notice that such a permit has been issued must be recorded at the Registry of Deeds by the petitioner. Respectfully submitted, ^A/CW-ee- Evelyn F. Cole, Clerk 1