Boston Zoning Board of Appeal October 22, 2026 Subcommittee Hearing

0:00 All right.

0:10 Thank you.

0:16 Good evening. The city of Boston zoning

0:18 board of appeal hearing for October

0:20 22nd, 2026 is now in session. This

0:23 hearing is being conducted in accordance

0:25 with the applicable provisions of the

0:27 open meeting law, including the updated

0:29 provisions enacted by the legislature

0:31 this year. The new law allows the board

0:33 to continue its practice of holding

0:35 virtual hearings through June 2027. This

0:38 hearing of the board is being held

0:39 remotely via the Zoom webinar event

0:41 platform. This hearing is also being

0:43 recorded.

0:47 In order to ensure this hearing of the

0:49 board is open to the public, members of

0:51 the public may access this hearing

0:53 through telephone and video

0:55 conferencing. The information for

0:57 connecting to this hearing is listed on

0:59 today's hearing agenda, which is posted

1:00 on the public notices page of the city's

1:02 website, boston.gov. Members of the

1:05 public will enter the virtual hearing as

1:07 attendees, which means you will not see

1:09 yourself on the screen, and you will be

1:11 muted throughout unless administratively

1:13 unmuted when asked to comment. Board

1:14 members, applicants, and their attorneys

1:16 or representatives will participate in

1:18 this hearing as panelists, and they will

1:21 appear alongside the presentation

1:22 materials when speaking. Panelists are

1:24 strongly encouraged to keep video on

1:27 while presenting to the board.

1:30 [clears throat]

1:32 As with our in-person meetings, comments

1:33 in support will be followed by comments

1:35 in opposition. The order of comments is

1:37 as follows: elected officials,

1:39 representatives of elected officials,

1:41 and members of the public. The chair may

1:43 limit the number of people called upon

1:45 to offer comment and the time for

1:46 commenting as time constraints require.

1:49 For that reason, the board prefers to

1:50 hear from members of the public who are

1:52 most impacted by a project. That is

1:54 those individuals who live closest to

1:56 the project.

1:59 If you wish to comment on an appeal,

2:01 please click the raise hand button along

2:03 the bottom of your screen in the Zoom

2:04 webinar platform. Click it again and

2:06 your hand should go down. When the host

2:08 sees your hand, you will receive a

2:10 request to unmute yourself. Select yes

2:12 and you should be able to talk. If you

2:14 are connected to the hearing by

2:16 telephone, please press star 9 to raise

2:18 and lower your hand. You must press star

2:20 six to unmute yourself after you receive

2:23 the request from the host. Those called

2:25 upon to comment will be asked to state

2:26 their name and address first and then

2:28 can provide their comment.

2:31 [clears throat]

2:32 In the interest of time and to ensure

2:34 that you have enough time to do so,

2:36 please raise your hand as soon as Mr.

2:37 Stebridge reads the address into the

2:39 record. Do not raise your hand before

2:41 the relevant address is called or the

2:43 meeting host will not know to call on

2:44 you at the appropriate time. We ask that

2:46 you keep your comments brief and all

2:48 public testimony will be limited to 90

2:50 seconds uh per speaker.

2:53 Mr. Stebridge.

2:56 Good evening, Madam Chair. President,

2:58 good evening. Miss Better Braza.

3:00 Good evening, Madam Chair. President,

3:02 good evening. Uh Mr. Stebridge, the

3:04 floor is yours.

3:06 Thank you, Madam Chair. Um, we'll begin

3:10 with the hearing scheduled for 55 p.m.

3:13 this evening. Um, Madame Chair, I have a

3:17 note on the first case, which is case

3:20 BOA

3:22 1862080

3:26 with the address of 85 Champ Street.

3:30 Um we have a note from the staff that um

3:35 we have to move this case. Uh the

3:38 attorney representing the client uh is

3:41 sick and won't be able to make make uh

3:44 this evening's hearing. So, um, this

3:48 case is going to be moved to November

3:52 17th at 9:30 a.m. And I will make a

3:56 motion, um, that this case be moved to

4:00 November 17th at 9:30 a.m.

4:03 Okay. May I have a second?

4:05 Barza. Second.

4:07 Okay. Mr. Stebridge.

4:09 Yes.

4:11 Brazo.

4:11 Yes.

4:13 Chair votes yes. The motion carries.

4:20 So with that, if we can move on to the

4:22 next case,

4:30 which will take us to case BOA 187 29 1

4:36 N with the address of 10 to 18 Bowden

4:40 Street. If the applicants andor their

4:43 representative are present, would they

4:45 please explain the case to the board?

4:48 Hi. Hello. Hello member of the board. My

4:52 name Lucy, the res uh the owner of the

4:55 the cafe at the at the unit 16 at the

4:59 address. And um we here today to request

5:03 a conditional use zoning relief um from

5:07 the board allow the restaurant to um

5:10 open uh to to allow us to open a

5:13 restaurant here. Uh before is the the

5:16 zoning for retail only but now we would

5:19 like to train to the restaurant um to we

5:22 um our business will offer a coffee

5:24 bobati um fresh truth and some light

5:28 food and um the business it desire

5:31 primary for tech only and there will be

5:34 no seating inside the the the store but

5:38 um we will provide um waiting area for

5:40 customer to come waiting and pick up the

5:43 orders. Um uh our posted opening time

5:46 from 7:00 am to 7 pm and um uh besides

5:52 we also complete the neighborhood

5:54 community process and require for the

5:57 application and we um we communicate

6:00 with the neighborhood associations and

6:02 their members and explain our business

6:05 plans and receive a support from some of

6:08 the associations. Um and through the

6:12 conversation with the team with the

6:14 association members uh we heard that

6:16 direct directly from them that they

6:18 really want to have the best type of

6:21 business in the area. Um so our proposed

6:25 um our work includes framing, heating,

6:28 electrical and sprinkler work associated

6:30 with the cafe as reflect in our permit

6:33 application and plans as you can see on

6:35 the screen. So um we respectful as the

6:41 board to approve the request to the

6:43 conditional use relief so we can

6:45 continue the necessary permitting

6:47 process and bring the cafe to serve the

6:50 community as soon as possible. Um thank

6:52 you for your time and consideration.

6:55 We're happy to answer any question.

6:58 Thank you. Are there questions from the

7:00 board?

7:01 Uh one question madam chair. Um all the

7:04 work all the work it's going to be done

7:07 is going to be done inside

7:10 inside the premise.

7:11 Yeah.

7:12 Yeah. Inside.

7:14 Okay.

7:16 Thank you.

7:19 With that, I'll open it to public

7:21 testimony.

7:22 Madam Chair and members of the board,

7:23 for the record, my name is Jeremy

7:25 Bereie. I serve as the community

7:26 engagement specialist for the Office of

7:28 Neighborhood Services. The applicant has

7:30 completed the community process which

7:31 consisted of an mayor's office of

7:33 neighborhood services subcommittee

7:34 notification flyer informing residents

7:37 of the proponent's intent to which no

7:38 feedback was received. Next, the

7:40 proponent presented to Mount B and

7:42 betterment association where they

7:43 supported the proposal. To date, our

7:45 office has received two letters of

7:46 support from the Mount Bo and Betterment

7:48 Association and the Greater Cardman the

7:50 Greater Chamberlain uh Neighborhood

7:52 Association. Thank you for your time and

7:53 the mayor's office of neighborhood

7:54 services would like to defer to the

7:56 board for their judgment.

7:58 Thank you,

7:58 Madame Chair. No additional comments.

8:01 Okay. With that, may I have a motion?

8:04 Madam Chair, I'd like to put forward a

8:05 motion of approval.

8:07 I have a second.

8:08 Second.

8:09 Mr. Stebridge.

8:11 Yes.

8:12 Miss Better Braza.

8:14 Yes.

8:15 Chair votes yes. The motion carries.

8:16 Good luck, ma'am.

8:18 I don't know what it is.

8:20 When you look over, please.

8:25 Next we have case BOA

8:28 1862299

8:32 with the address of 21 Street. If the

8:36 applicant andor representative are

8:39 present, would they please explain case

8:41 of the board?

8:43 Good afternoon, Madame Chair, members of

8:45 the board. My name is Eileen Rosa with

8:48 Rosa Design and Construction. I'm here

8:50 on behalf of the applicant to present uh

8:53 this proposal to alter the existing

8:56 single family residence, construct an

8:59 addition above the existing structure,

9:01 and convert the property from a single

9:03 family to a two family dwelling. This is

9:06 a two f uh two family 5,000 square ft

9:10 lot zone. The primary purpose of this

9:13 project is to accommodate two family

9:15 members in separate living spaces. Uh

9:18 the second unit will be occupied by the

9:20 property owner. Well, you

9:26 this

9:30 independent uh living units. The zoning

9:35 review identifies uh seven items

9:38 requiring relief, many of which relates

9:40 to existing non-conforming uh

9:43 non-conforming conditions including lot

9:46 area and the front side and rear yard

9:49 setbacks. Um this proposal also

9:52 increases the floor area ratio from the

9:54 existing 6 to 0.8 where the maximum

9:59 allowed is 0.5.

10:02 Additionally, the open usable space

10:05 requirement is in this area is 750

10:09 square ft per unit. The existing

10:12 property provides 865 square ft while

10:16 the proposed design provides

10:19 approximately 330 square ft per unit.

10:23 Unit one will contain approximately

10:25 1,020 square ft with two bedrooms, 1.5

10:29 bathrooms. The second unit, which will

10:31 be owner occupied, will contain

10:34 approximately 2,145

10:37 square ft. Um, this proposal also

10:40 includes a twocar garage. Uh, from an

10:44 architectural standpoint, uh, we intend

10:46 to use exterior design elements that

10:48 complement the surrounding neighborhood

10:51 and help the proposed addition blend

10:53 with the existing streetscape. And you

10:56 can scroll down as I speak to we can

10:59 take a look into the renderings and get

11:01 a better idea of the proposal.

11:06 Yep.

11:08 Thank you.

11:10 Yeah. And um the project was also

11:12 presented to the civic association and

11:15 feedback regarding green space and site

11:17 improvements was considered as part of

11:19 the design process. We have considered

11:22 more environmental friendly driveway

11:24 materials and include an on-site storm

11:27 drain to address storm water management.

11:30 [clears throat] Overall, this proposal

11:32 is intended to accommodate the family's

11:34 housing needs while improving the

11:36 functionality of the property and

11:38 remaining mindful of the neighborhood's

11:41 character. Uh we respectfully ask the

11:43 board to consider their proposal and

11:45 appreciate your time and consideration.

11:48 That's all we have for now. Now I'll

11:50 move for any questions. Thank you.

11:52 Thank you. Are there questions from the

11:54 board?

11:55 Hearing none, may I have public

11:56 testimony?

11:57 Madam chair and members of the board,

11:59 for the record, my name is Jeremy

12:00 Benbury. I'm the Doorchester community

12:02 engagement specialist for the Office of

12:03 Neighborhood Services. The applicant has

12:05 completed the community process which

12:06 consisted of an abuters meeting

12:08 facilitated on April 16th, 2025 with one

12:11 guest uh and no concerns were raised.

12:13 Next, the proponent presented to Fields

12:15 Corner Civic Association where they

12:17 voted in conditional support for the

12:19 proposal to build a new two family with

12:21 the conditions the revised plan to show

12:23 all proposed green space. The project

12:25 provides an on-site storm drain and to

12:28 provide their driveway with earth

12:29 echofriendly material. To date, our

12:32 office has received one letter of

12:33 support from the Fields Corner Civic

12:35 Association again signing the

12:36 conditional support. Thank you for your

12:38 time and the mayor's office of

12:39 neighborhood services would like to

12:40 defer to the board for their judgment.

12:43 Thank you,

12:44 Madam Chair. We don't have additional

12:46 comments

12:47 with that. May I have a motion?

12:49 Madam Chair, I'd like to put for a

12:50 motion of approval.

12:52 I have a second.

12:53 Second.

12:55 Mr. Stebridge. [clears throat]

12:57 Yes.

12:58 M Brazza.

13:00 Yes.

13:01 Chair votes yes. The motion carries.

13:03 Good luck.

13:03 Thank you.

13:06 Next we have case BOA1883829

13:14 with the address of 18 Baker Avenue. If

13:17 the applicant and with a representative

13:20 present, would they please explain the

13:21 case to the board?

13:23 Hello. Good afternoon. My name is Joanne

13:25 Wilkerson. Um I am here to get relief

13:30 for two violations that were on the

13:32 property. When I bought the property, um

13:35 there was a large shed in the backyard.

13:38 So, we had to have a new plot plan drawn

13:42 up to um cover that. And

13:46 it to legalize the existing shed and the

13:49 storage of two bobcats which are used

13:51 for personal property only and to add a

13:54 curb cut for the driveway. That's all.

13:57 There's no building or anything involved

13:58 here.

14:02 Are there questions for the

14:03 I'm sorry.

14:05 No, I don't have any questions.

14:07 Yes. If you can just Can you tell us um

14:10 how wide is your curb cut?

14:14 10 ft.

14:14 10 feet.

14:16 Okay. Thank you.

14:18 Thank you. Okay. With that, I'll take

14:21 public testimony.

14:22 Madame Chair and members of the board,

14:23 for the record, my name is Jeremy

14:24 Benbury. I'm the Doorchester community

14:26 engagement specialist for the Office of

14:28 Neighborhood Services. The applicant has

14:29 completed the community process which

14:31 consisted of an abutters meeting

14:32 facilitated on August 27th with no

14:34 abutters present. Following the abuters

14:36 meeting, no further community process

14:37 was required. Thank you for your time

14:39 and the mayor's office of neighborhood

14:40 services would like to defer to the

14:41 board for their judgment.

14:43 You,

14:44 Madame Chair, we don't have additional

14:46 comments.

14:48 Okay. With that, may I have a motion?

14:52 Madam Chair, I'm going to put forward a

14:54 motion of approval with BPD design

14:57 review to look at the screening on the

15:00 proposed property.

15:03 We have a second.

15:06 Mr. Stebridge,

15:08 yes.

15:09 Miss Better Braza,

15:10 yes.

15:12 Chair votes yes. The motion carries.

15:13 Good luck, ma'am.

15:14 Thank you. Thank you for your help.

15:16 Appreciate it.

15:19 Next we have case BOA

15:22 1777438

15:27 with the address of 68 Theodore Parker

15:30 Road. If the applicant andor their

15:33 representative are present, would they

15:35 please explain to the board?

15:38 Yes. Hello. Um, we are just looking to

15:41 add a uh dormer to the uh attic so we

15:46 can finish the attic for more living

15:48 space and then just adding a small mud

15:51 room in the back of our house um against

15:54 for more for more storage. But that's

15:55 that's it.

15:58 Okay, thank you. Questions from board?

16:02 May I have public testimony?

16:04 Madam Chair and board members, Sigy

16:05 Johnson with the Office of Neighborhood

16:07 Services. This petitioner completed the

16:08 community process. Our office oversaw

16:10 distribution of anformational flyer to

16:12 all of Butters in a 300 ft radius which

16:15 solicited no comments to our office. The

16:17 West Roxbury Neighborhood Council is

16:19 supporting this application. With that

16:20 background, ONS defers judgment to the

16:22 board. Thank you.

16:24 Thank you,

16:25 Madame Chair. Uh there are no additional

16:28 comments.

16:29 With that, may I have a motion?

16:32 Madam Chair, I'd like to put for a

16:33 motion of approval.

16:35 May I have a second? Second,

16:38 Mr. Stebridge.

16:40 Yes,

16:41 M. Raza.

16:42 Yes.

16:44 Chair votes yes. The motion carries.

16:45 Good luck.

16:46 Thank you.

16:49 Next, we have case BOA

16:52 186 2338

16:56 with the address of 11 Alter Crest Road.

17:00 If the applicant and or the

17:02 representative are present, would they

17:03 please explain to the board?

17:07 Hello. Yes, we are the uh owners of 11

17:09 Altar Crest. Um we're requesting to

17:11 widen the curb of our driveway from 12

17:14 to 14 ft. Uh this approve this uh 14t

17:18 width is already approved by a public

17:20 works department. Um and uh you can see

17:24 in the diagram there that uh

17:27 if you zoom in towards the bottom

17:29 possibly you can kind of see the

17:32 difference. Um, our

17:36 retaining wall was widened and now

17:38 there's a a curb jutting out and uh we

17:42 had the the driveway widened be uh

17:47 and then found out that we may need to

17:48 go through this approval process.

17:52 So, I'm sorry. Can you explain why you

17:54 need it widened? Why does it need to be

17:56 widened?

17:57 Uh, yes. Uh so the because of the

17:59 tapering of the wall uh we weren't able

18:01 to load or unload passengers um and uh

18:06 so

18:07 uh for for kids or for um older family

18:10 members, we weren't able to actually

18:12 open the doors to our car.

18:13 Also um as folks park right behind our

18:16 driveway, uh we do not have a wide

18:18 enough driveway to not do probably like

18:21 I would say maybe like a 10point turn.

18:24 Um, so if anyone's behind us, we ask

18:25 that they have to move in order to get

18:27 our car out of the driveway. And

18:28 sometimes, um, to get in the driveway is

18:30 difficult if a car is parked right

18:32 behind our driveway opening.

18:34 And the ambassador just lower the

18:37 drawing a little bit so we can I can see

18:39 the top portion. The the zooming is

18:42 good. I just can't see the top.

18:44 Yeah, just scroll back to the full

18:45 picture.

18:46 To the top? Yeah, the scrolling. No, you

18:48 don't need to. Can

18:50 we just need to see the and the drive

18:52 the driveway?

18:53 The driveway. Yeah. So, can you zoom

18:55 back in and just show us the house?

18:59 Yep. Zoom in a little bit more.

19:03 Yep. Thank you.

19:08 So, can you explain

19:10 um what's the width?

19:13 It's a current hatch.

19:17 I'm sorry. It's currently 12 feet wide

19:19 at the opening at the moment and we are

19:21 proposing to widen it to 14 ft. So it's

19:24 a twoft difference.

19:28 Two foot difference. Okay. And the only

19:31 reason is so you can allow for opening

19:36 in the driveway

19:39 uh that is open to the air. Uh, and once

19:44 you open the door, how do you get to the

19:47 front steps? Do you have to go around

19:49 the retaining the retainer wall?

19:51 Yes. Yes.

19:54 And also the um the current because we

19:56 had the driveway and the retaining wall

19:59 widened after public works departments

20:01 approved the 14T width, but before uh um

20:05 the zoning board denied. Um

20:09 uh we now have a a 4-in trip hazard in

20:14 on the sidewalk between the sidewalk and

20:17 our property. Um that's another reason

20:20 to have the curb cut done.

20:25 Okay. Any other questions?

20:26 Yeah. So, um could we just lower it one

20:29 more time to go underneath so I can see

20:32 the edge of the sidewalk? Okay. Right

20:34 there. So, um,

20:38 why do you need to increase the curb

20:41 cut? Why can't the existing curb cut

20:45 exists, but that you you create a

20:49 greater width and you move the retaining

20:52 wall

20:53 so that you allow for a car to come in

20:56 with an existing curb cut, but you now

20:58 have enough room to open a door.

21:01 So we uh we waited for public works

21:04 department to for final approval of

21:06 public works to approve the 14 foot and

21:08 then we had the entire retaining wall

21:10 moved to the red uh solid line that you

21:13 see here the proposed um so we already

21:17 we already moved and rebuilt the entire

21:20 uh driveway and retaining wall

21:22 and well which now is now a tripping

21:25 hazard because there's now a gap and a

21:26 giant uh the the uh curb is too big to

21:30 get back over it or back into it over

21:33 it. Um, and it it's a trip hazard for

21:36 pedestrians. But additionally, a reason

21:38 why we also wanted to widen our curb and

21:40 not just the retaining wall is because

21:43 when folks are parked right behind our

21:46 driveway, not parked up on the sidewalk,

21:49 we can't get out. So, if there's any

21:51 large work vehicles, the widening of 12

21:54 the current 12 feet is not enough for us

21:56 to get out.

21:58 So I'm a little bit I'm a little bit

22:00 confused. Do you mean you have two cars

22:02 behind uh next to each other?

22:04 No. So

22:05 because it wouldn't fit correct.

22:07 Yeah. Um if I can

22:09 What's the What's So what's the at the

22:11 at any point? What is the overall width

22:14 from wall to the new retaining wall

22:17 surface? What's the largest What's the

22:19 greatest width?

22:20 Uh it would be the the mouth of the

22:23 driveway, which would be 14 feet. That

22:25 would be the the largest width.

22:27 as you can see in the diagram.

22:29 Yeah. And right now you have an existing

22:31 curb of what's the dimension?

22:34 Uh I think it's 11' 8 in.

22:36 Okay. And 14T was approved by public

22:40 works already.

22:41 Yes.

22:42 And so you had to come in front of us

22:46 because there was a zoning violation and

22:49 what for what? So, the request was that

22:52 we need to um apply for a curb cut

22:55 permit and the sidewalk deposit team

22:59 requested a uh um

23:04 this uh basically we were denied based

23:07 on the fact that this amount this twoft

23:11 amount could not be used as a driveway.

23:13 So, we needed a relief from the zoning

23:15 board.

23:17 says LA, yeah, last use for sidewalk and

23:19 will now be occupied for a curb cut to

23:21 extend entry into driveway for parking,

23:23 right? Because you're taking away public

23:24 way.

23:25 Yep.

23:26 You're taking [clears throat] away two

23:26 foot of public way. Okay. Uh thank you.

23:30 Thank you.

23:32 Okay. Any other questions from the

23:34 board?

23:36 May I have public testimony?

23:37 Madam Chair and board members, Sigy

23:39 Johnson with the Office of Neighborhood

23:40 Services. This petitioner completed the

23:42 community process and butters meeting

23:45 was held on August 5th at which no

23:47 comments were made. The West Roxbury

23:48 Neighborhood Council supporting this

23:49 application with that background ons

23:51 defers judgment to the board. Thank you,

23:55 Madame [clears throat] Chair. We don't

23:56 have additional comments.

23:59 Okay. Uh with that, may I have a motion?

24:08 Madam Chair, I'll make a motion of

24:10 approval.

24:11 Is there a second?

24:13 I I I I second this because I think it's

24:17 a very um

24:20 special condition. Um you know,

24:22 typically you don't want to um encourage

24:26 any front yard parking, but that's not

24:28 the case because it's not wide enough.

24:30 Um, and it seems like there is kind of a

24:34 a conflict with public works approval,

24:38 um, the work being done. And so, I find

24:41 this to be a very special case. So,

24:42 Norm, I'm glad that you put that motion

24:44 forward because I do support it.

24:46 Okay.

24:48 Um, okay. So, you seconded it. So, Mr.

24:50 Stebridge,

24:52 yes.

24:53 Miss Ba Brazza,

24:55 yes.

24:56 Chair votes yes. The motion carries.

24:57 Good luck.

24:58 Thank you.

24:59 Thank you. Mhm.

25:03 Next we have case BOA187

25:08 99905

25:11 with the address of 294 Stratford

25:14 Street. If the applicants andor the

25:18 representative are present, will they

25:19 please explain the case to the board?

25:23 Hello, my name is Derek Rubinoff uh from

25:26 Derek Rubenoff Architecture, 84 Spring

25:29 Street in West Roxbury. I'm the

25:31 architect for the project and uh uh we

25:33 also have u Matt uh Lepley on on the on

25:38 the on the Zoom as well. Matt and Kelly

25:40 are the uh Lepley are the owners of the

25:42 house. They have a a family with two

25:45 kids, eight and nine. uh kids are at BPS

25:47 and uh it's a relatively small single

25:50 family dwelling in in West Roberry and

25:53 uh this is a very simple project. They

25:55 just want to finish the basement. So um

25:58 you have a view of the back of the house

25:59 right there. You can see the basement

26:01 that gray gets lots of natural light

26:02 through the French doors there which

26:05 actually will replace with other French

26:06 doors. But uh um really we're just

26:09 finishing roughly about 70 700 excuse me

26:12 square feet in the basement. Um and the

26:14 only violation that we have is for F

26:17 in this U West Roxberry neighborhood uh

26:20 district subdist 1 1 F6000

26:24 uh is um 0.4 the existing house is 0.46

26:29 and what's proposed is 0.64.

26:34 The uh the basement space uh will meet

26:37 code for both ceiling height and for uh

26:41 natural light.

26:47 So basically they just want to put a

26:48 recck room down there and expand the

26:49 bathroom.

26:54 Okay. Any questions from the board?

26:57 Uh madam chair just um there's current

27:00 egress um to and from the basement from

27:04 the outside.

27:06 Yes. you saw in the uh the photograph

27:08 that we went by earlier, there's uh

27:10 those those doors that are at the bottom

27:11 of the page there. Those uh that's the

27:13 rear French doors and then there's also

27:16 a stair that goes up inside to the first

27:19 floor above.

27:21 Thank you.

27:22 You're welcome.

27:24 Thank you. Any other questions from the

27:25 board?

27:27 Hearing none. May I have public

27:28 testimony?

27:29 Madam Chair and board members, Sigy

27:31 Johnson with the Office of Neighborhood

27:32 Services. This petitioner completed the

27:34 community process. Our office oversaw

27:36 distribution of anformational flyer to

27:38 all occupied parcels in a 300 foot

27:40 radius which solicited no comments to

27:42 our office. West Roxbury Neighborhood

27:44 Council is supporting this application.

27:46 With that background, ONS deferred

27:48 judgment to the board. Thank you.

27:50 Thank you,

27:51 Madam Chair. We don't have additional

27:53 comments.

27:54 With that, may I have a motion?

27:56 Madam Chair, I'd like to perform a

27:58 motion of approval.

27:59 May I have a second?

28:01 Second.

28:03 Mr. Stebridge.

28:04 Yes,

28:06 better.

28:07 Yes,

28:08 chair votes. Yes. The motion carries.

28:10 Thank you.

28:13 And next we have, excuse me, next we

28:17 have case BOA

28:20 186 2382

28:23 with the address of 75 Oakland Street.

28:27 If the applicant andor their

28:29 representative are present, would they

28:31 please explain to the board?

28:33 Uh yes. Uh uh good evening, Madam Chair

28:36 and members of the board. My name is

28:37 Kevin Keeler, chief designer for

28:39 Bradybuilt Sunrooms, representing

28:41 Maryanne Urban and James Phillip. Uh

28:44 they're longtime owners of 75 Oakland

28:47 Street. Um as [clears throat] as they've

28:50 been there a long time, they they're

28:52 getting older and mobility is becoming

28:54 an increasing challenge. Um, this lot

28:57 presents a unique hardship because there

28:59 is more than 25 ft of slope between the

29:02 front of the lot and the back rear. So,

29:05 it is very difficult to um uh add

29:09 anything to the home anywhere except for

29:11 the front of the house. They would like

29:13 to create a space that provides the

29:14 feeling of outdoors while remaining

29:17 easily accessible and protected from the

29:19 elements throughout the year. They have

29:21 an existing front porch right now um but

29:24 it is uh long and narrow measuring only

29:27 7 ft in depth and does not provide

29:30 functional living space. Um they've

29:32 hired us to add a sunroom addition to

29:34 the front of that porch measuring

29:36 approximately 6 ft by 13t 8 in. Um the

29:41 addition would be constructed on the

29:43 front of the porch and the existing wall

29:46 between the porch and the sun room would

29:48 be removed making it approximately 7 ft

29:51 in depth and a usable space. Um due to

29:54 the significant grade change on the

29:56 property there is extremely limited

29:58 access to the rear. So this is the only

30:00 practical location for this addition. Uh

30:04 Maryanne and James uh greatly value

30:08 their home uh their neighborhood and

30:10 their neighbors and they invested a

30:11 considerable amount of time and

30:13 resources in maintaining the property.

30:15 So relocating to another home uh for e

30:18 more easily accessibility is not a

30:20 desired option. This addition would

30:22 allow them to continue enjoying their

30:24 property as their mobility needs change.

30:26 The proposed sun room has been carefully

30:28 designed to complement the existing

30:30 architecture of the house. The

30:32 materials, the scale, and appearance

30:34 were selected to blend with the

30:36 character of the home, the surrounding

30:37 neighborhood while enhancing the overall

30:39 appearance of the property. The property

30:42 is located in a 2F5000 zoning district,

30:46 which requires a front yard setback of

30:48 20 ft. The existing house is located

30:51 approximately 13.2 ft from the front lot

30:55 line. This addition would extend that to

30:58 7 feet 2 in from the front lot line. The

31:01 required sideyard setback in that zone

31:03 is 10 ft. The existing house is located

31:06 approximately 9.4 ft from the sideyard

31:10 setback. The proposed addition would not

31:13 extend that any closer to the existing

31:15 lot line. Uh uh the applicant is seeking

31:19 relief from article 51 section 9 of the

31:22 zoning code for approximately 12.8 8 ft

31:26 of front yard setback and 6 ft relief of

31:30 sideyard setback. Because of the

31:32 addition is modest in size,

31:34 architecturally comparable with the

31:36 neighborhood and [clears throat] because

31:39 of the unique topography of the

31:40 property, we believe the relief can be

31:42 granted without deterrent to the

31:44 neighborhood or impair impairment from

31:46 the intent of the zoning bylaw.

31:49 The applicants have also received

31:51 support letters from the existing

31:53 neighbors at 80 Oakland uh street and

31:56 also 68 Oakland Street. And so we feel

32:00 that um for these reasons we

32:02 respectfully request that the zoning

32:04 board grant the relief requested so that

32:06 they can proceed forward with their

32:08 project.

32:10 Thank you. Any questions from the board?

32:13 Hearing none. May I have public

32:14 testimony?

32:15 Madame chair and board members. Sigy

32:17 Johnson with the Office of Neighborhood

32:18 Services. This petitioner completed the

32:20 community process. Our office oversaw

32:22 distribution of anformational flyer to

32:24 all of Butters in a 300 ft radius which

32:27 solicited no comments to our office. The

32:29 applicant provided our office with

32:30 letters of support from the direct of

32:32 Butters. The Brighton Alustin

32:33 Improvement Association is in support of

32:35 this application. With that background,

32:37 ONS defers judgment to the board. Thank

32:39 you.

32:41 Madame Chair, we don't have additional

32:43 comments.

32:45 With that, May I have a motion?

32:47 Madam Chair, I'd like to put forward a

32:48 motion of approval.

32:50 May I have a second?

32:52 Second.

32:54 Mr. Stebridge.

32:56 Yes.

32:58 Miss Better Braza?

32:59 Yes.

33:01 Chair votes yes. The motion carries.

33:03 Good luck.

33:04 Thank you for your uh time. I appreciate

33:06 it.

33:07 Thank you. Have a good evening,

33:08 everyone. We'll see you in November.

33:11 Thank you. Have a good night.

33:12 Good night, folks. You too.