Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning Special Permit topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board approves special permit for 204‑sq‑ft kitchen addition at 367 Thoreau Street
Summary
The Town of Concord Board of Appeals granted a special permit to allow a 204‑square‑foot first‑floor kitchen addition to a nonconforming dwelling at 367 Thoreau Street, after the applicant’s architect described the design and neighbors submitted supportive emails.
The Town of Concord Board of Appeals on Thursday approved a special permit to allow a 204‑square‑foot first‑floor kitchen addition to a nonconforming house at 367 Thoreau Street.
The addition, described by the project architect as a 204‑square‑foot extension off the northeast side of the house, will enlarge the existing kitchen. The applicant sought the special permit under the Town zoning bylaw to allow work on a structure already nonconforming for lot size, lot width, frontage and front setback, and to exceed the 50% gross‑floor‑area increase threshold used by the town’s five‑year look‑back rule.
Marshall McLean, the project architect, told the board the proposed work is a 204‑square‑foot kitchen addition that will extend from the northeast side of the dwelling and that the lot and existing house are nonconforming. “The proposed project is 204 square feet, and it will extend off the northeast side of the house,” McLean said. He explained the board should assess the current project against the house’s gross floor area as measured before a 2023 addition that previously required a special permit.
Board members noted neighbors had submitted supportive emails and there was no public opposition at the hearing. The filing record included a recent email of support from Paige Hamilton Reed and an earlier brief message from Linda Holmes, according to the board record.
After closing the public comment period the board voted to approve the application. The motion to approve was made and the board recorded unanimous affirmative votes.
The decision permits the modest kitchen addition while leaving in place the zoning determinations tied to the property’s pre‑2023 gross‑floor‑area baseline. The board did not provide further conditions in the hearing record beyond the special‑permit approval and noted that the project remains below the lot’s floor‑area‑ratio limit.
No further action was recorded in the minutes for this item at the meeting; the board moved on to the next agenda item after the approval.
