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ZBA grants variance after homeowner enclosed front porch without a permit at 22 Wedge St.
Summary
The board approved a variance Sept. 9 for 22 Wedge Street, where a contractor enclosed an existing front porch without pulling the required permit; the owner paid a fine and sought to regularize the work.
The City of Lowell Zoning Board of Appeals on Sept. 9 granted a variance allowing the enclosed front porch at 22 Wedge Street to remain in its current setback position after city staff notified the owner that the work lacked a required permit.
Pushmanda Afshar of Taj Engineering, representing the owner, told the board that the contractor obtained a siding permit and then enclosed the existing front porch without filing a separate permit for the enclosure. The owner was fined by the city and paid the fine promptly; Afshar said the porch’s built footprint did not extend farther into the front setback than the prior porch. “I personally think it looks better,” Afshar said of the enclosed porch.
Vice Chair Callahan and Member McCarthy asked whether the contractor had removed structural elements; Afshar said the porch remains and was covered rather than torn down. Member McCarthy used the case to call for stronger deterrents against contractors who do not follow permitting rules, saying many homeowners are unaware of requirements and can be harmed.
Member McCarthy moved approval of the variance for relief from the front-yard setback under Section 5.1; the motion was seconded by Vice Chair Callahan and passed unanimously (Chairman Peck, Vice Chair Callahan, Member McCarthy, Member Prokop and others voting to approve). The board did not attach special conditions beyond standard compliance; Afshar said the enclosure was completed in July and the citation followed within days.
