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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZBA_01051999°i' ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS 2: 0 8 MIWTES JANUARY 5, 1999 The Board of Appeals held its regular meeting in the Town Hall, Mansfield, MA, at 7:30 P.M. Present at the hearing were the following members: Richard Devine, Chairman, Leonard Flynn, Clerk; Eric Butler; Richard Secher; Donald Daniels; Jack Vultaggio, Associate Member; and Olivier Kozlowski, Associate Member. Mr. Vultaggio was appointed voting member for this hearing in place of Mr. Daniels (who arrived late.) The hearing on the application of Richard Rys for a Variance from Section 4.2.1 of the Zoning By -Law to allow for an addition, with less than the required side yard setback, to a house located at 1 Cherry Street began at 7:30 P.M. The application as labeled as Exhibit "A; a newspaper advertisement was labeled as Exhibit 'B'; and a Proposed Addition to Hse No. 1 Cherry Street, Mansfield, MA dated November 11, 1998 and prepared by RIM Engineering Co., Inc., Mansfield, MA, was labeled as Exhibit "C ". Mr. Flynn read a letter from the Planning Board into the record. "With four (4) members present, they voted three (3) in favor and one (1) opposed to send a negative recommendation on the appli cation because the proposed construction is much more than the replacement of the burned -down garage and the massive two -story structure would appear to dominate the surrounding neighborhood." Mr. Devine asked the applicant to present his case. Mr. Rys explained that he was planning to do an addition before the fire they had at their home in August, 1998. The existing officeigarage was heavily damaged. The proposed addition is a re- placement and an improvement compared to the existing damaged structure. Mr. and Mrs. Rys have lived at this house since 1980 and have made a number of improvements. The house was built approximately 1796 while the barn was built approximately 1865. Mr. Rys has operated a small engineering consulting business for the last 2 years where he is the sole proprietor and only employee. The nature of his busjness does not involve frequent visits to his office by customers and he is typically traveling to their locations or working at his office. The proposal for this addi- tion leaves 10 feet of side lot setback where 15 is required. Mr. Rys feels that the hardship for Minutes of January 5, 1999 Page 2 of 5 this application is the shape of the lot. The proposed addition is approximately 36'x24', two -story addition with a crawl space. The proposed structure is considerably larger than the existing house and due to the fact that there are solar panels along the back of the existing house, the addition could not be placed in the rear of the house. Further, Mr. Rys stated that he met with the abutters, Mark Lawton, Richard Coffey, Wilbur Birman and Martha Flint, and they had no objection with this proposed addition. The hearing closed at 7:55 P.M. Mr. Kozlowski stepped down from the Board and sat in the audience for this hearing since this is the neighborhood in which he lives. The hearing on the application of Timothy Kiely for a Variance from Section 4.2.1 of the Zoning By -Law to permit an existing deck which has less than the required sideyard setback, said house and deck located at 57 Tracy Circle began at 7:55 P.M. The application as labeled as Exhibit "A'; a newspaper advertisement was labeled as Exhibit "B'; and a Zoning Plan 57 Tracy Circle dated December 4, 1998 prepared by Hutchins- Trowbridge Associates, 200 Chauncy Street, Mansfield, MA, was labeled as Exhibit "C ". Flynn read a letter from the Planning Board into the record. "With four (4) members present, they vote unanimous to send a positive recommendation on the application because it is not fair to have the homeowner remove a deck that the original builder put in the wrong place." Mr. Devine asked the applications to present his case. Mr. Kiely explained that he was in the process of refinancing his home when it was discovered that the builder had put the deck 10'+ from the property line. The error was not picked up when the house was purchased and now the bank will not accept his application for a refinance without a variance. The hearing closed at 8:00 P.M. The hearing on the application ofFolkman & Zola Builders for a Variance from Section 4.2.1 of the Zoning By -Law to permit an existing house which has less than the required sideyard setback from the original lot lines, said house located at 11 Plantation Road, a/kJa Lot 132 Stearns Hill r Estates [R -11 Zone began at 8:00 P.M. Minutes of January 5, 1999 Page 3 of 5 Mr. Flynn read a letter to Richard Lewis from Paul Folkman dated December 30, 1998 into the record: "RE: Zoning Variance Hearing, January 5, 1998 at 8:00 P.M. by Folkman & Zola Builders, Inc., Lot #132 Stearns Hill - 11 Plantation Road. Please accept this letter as our withdrawal of our zoning variance request for a sideyard variance at 11 Plantation Road (Lot #132 Stearns Hill Estates). We were able to adjust the lot lines /ownership between the two properties so that 11 Plantation Road now has a conforming sideyard setback. Should you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me at 339 -6709. A motion was made by Mr. Flynn and seconded by Mr. Butler to accept the withdrawal by Mr. Folkman of his application. Unanimously granted. The Board had a few minutes until the 8:15 P.M. scheduled hearing so they decided to vote on Mr. Kiely's application on Tracy Circle. A motion was made by Mr. Secher and seconded by Mr. Daniels to approve the variance to Mr. Kiely. Unanimously approved (Devine, Butler, Flynn, Secher, Daniels). The hearing on the application of Scott Austin for a Variance from Section 4.2.1 of the Zoning By -Law to allow an addition [garage and breezeway] with less than the required sideyard setback, said house located at 9 Robin Hill Road (R -2 Zone) began at 8:15 P.M. The application as labeled as Exhibit "A "; a newspaper advertisement was labeled as Exhibit "B "; a ZBA Plan of Land in Mansfield, MA 9 Robin Hill Road dated November 6, 1998 and prepared by Bay Colony Group, Inc., Foxborough, MA, was labeled as Exhibit "C'; and Plan Views dated 10/16/98 prepared by S.P. Rapoza, was labeled as Exhibit "D ". Mr. Devine asked the applicant to present his case. Mr. and Mrs. Austin explained that they are requesting a variance to exceed the sideyard setback requirement for the purpose of adding a breezeway and 2 -car garage to the existing home. The addition would be approximately 36'x28' and would be approximately 8+ feet from the sideyard property line. This addition should add value to both our home and surrounding homes. The neighbors have supported us with this proposed project. An abutter, James Hindman of 78 Brook Street was in support of this application. An abutter, Charles Mulcahy, 11 Robin Hill Road was in support of this application. Minutes of January 5, 1999 Page 4 of 5 Mr. Flynn asked Mr. Austin why he needed such a large garage. Mr. Austin explained that they have two cars and also a motorcycle; and since he was requesting a variance anyway he would just request the largest garage he could. Mr. Daniels stated that he lives approximately 5 houses from the applicant and most of those houses do have garages. The hearing was closed at 8:20 P.M. The Minutes of December 15, 1998 were approved with a minor revision. Unanimously approved. A Discussion of Mrs. Miller's application for a finding was discussed at 8:30 P.M. The hearing was closed and the Board was there to make the decision. Mr. Devine stated that they had waited until tonight to make the decision because Attorney Bobrowski had stated that he would send the Board members copies of case law in support of his argument. The Board members did not receive any documents. The Board discussed the issue of whether this is a non - conforming lot and if it creates more of a non - conformity, and it does create a new non - conformity. A motion was made by Mr. Flynn and seconded by Mr. Kozlowski to deny a Finding to Mrs. Miller. Those in favor of the motion (Devine, Flynn, Kozlowski) - those opposed (Butler, Vultaggio). Motion passes, Finding Denied. A motion was made by Mr. Secher and seconded by Mr. Flynn to deny a Variance to Mr. Rys. Those in favor of the motion (Devine, Flynn, Secher, Vultaggio) - those opposed (Butler). Motion passes, Variance Denied. A motion was made by Mr. Flynn and seconded by Mr. Butler to grant a Variance to Mr. Austin with the modification that the garage be 24'x24'. Those in favor (Flynn, Butler, Daniels, Secher) - those opposed (Devine). The letter regarding Troy which was sent to the Board at the request of Mr. Cook was discussed. The applicant should go through the procedure for appealing the decision. The Board will not meet with the applicant, unless they file an appeal. Minutes of January 5, 1999 Page 5 of 5 i Mrs. Miller was in the audience for the entire meeting and was very upset. She stated that he did not know that the Board was waiting for case law and if she was notified should would have gotten the Board the information they needed. A motion was made by Mr. Secher and seconded by Mr. Vultaggio to adjourn the meeting. Unanimously approved. The meeting adjourned at 9:00 P.M. Clerk