On January 21, the Mattapoisett Zoning Board of Appeals heard an application for a Special Permit filed by Rene and Sheila Macie for property located at 3 Pinebrook Lane within a small subdivision. The applicants sought permission to construct a third garage bay to an existing attached garage where the pavement had already been placed.
Represented by engineer David Davignon, the project was described as a simple addition to the existing garage. However, the small subdivision created on Pinebrook Lane had caused a stir in the neighborhood, including the abutters requesting and receiving Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection oversight when the subdivision was first permitted several years ago.
On this night, one abutter questioned the functioning of dry wells meant to help control stormwater run-off. Another aired concerns that traffic would increase if the garage were expanded, and that water is flowing off the site into neighboring yards, and that the town, which had promised to improve stormwater systems along Holly Lane, had failed to do so.
Davignon reminded the ZBA that the subdivision had received permitting and a Certificate of Compliance from the DEP, that the Mattapoisett Conservation Commission had also permitted the project, and that the case before the board was nothing more than the garage bay addition situated on an existing paved area. “There is not going to be an increase in run-off,” he said.
Several board members asked about the intended use of space above the new bay and whether it would be accessible via an outside door. Davignon said the space would be used for storage.
The Special Permit was issued with special conditions, including no plumbing in the space, no commercial use of the bay, no habitable space in the garage, and no exterior door access.
In other business, a Special Permit was granted to David and Mary Pendergast, 3 Ned’s Point Road, to construct a second floor over an existing attached garage for a master bedroom suite and other interior improvements.
A Commercial Special Permit was granted to Dr. Marya Gabriel, 7 Alderberry Lane, that permits the running of a veterinary acupuncture and herbal medicine business from her residence.
A Special Permit application filed by Stephen Goulston, 27 Nashawena Road, was continued at the request of Andrew Perry, the applicant’s attorney. Perry said his client was awaiting notification from FEMA that the project could be permitted. No date was set for the re-opening of the filing.
The next meeting of the Mattapoisett Zoning Board of Appeals was not set upon adjournment.
Mattapoisett Zoning Board of Appeals
By Marilou Newell