ZBA grants variance to Brightfields solar array after as‑built survey shows minor front-setback encroachment

The Woburn City Zoning Board of Appeals voted 4–1 to grant a variance allowing a solar array at 132 Commerce Way to remain where an as‑built survey showed a small portion encroached into the 25‑foot front setback.

Darren Welch, appearing for ECA NEMA Brightfields 2 LLC, told the board the array was built on ballast blocks on a site where soil disturbance is restricted because the property is an EPA‑regulated Superfund parcel. Welch said the southern-most row of the array encroached by roughly 1 foot, 5 inches because the site was constructed on straight grid lines while the public right-of-way curves; the encroachment was discovered when the building commissioner requested an as‑built survey during permit closeout.

Board members asked whether the array could be moved; Welch said relocating panels would cause additional soil disturbance and require removing the ballast blocks and array. The building commissioner had recommended the applicant seek a variance. One board member characterized the error as an oversight by construction and moved to grant a variance based on the shape of the lot and existing conditions; the motion passed 4–1.

The board’s chair instructed staff to prepare and file a written decision; the variance will not be effective until the statutory appeal period expires without any appeals being filed. Welch said construction began after the project was acquired in early 2021 and the array was completed following EPA and other regulatory constraints; the board recorded that the site’s Superfund status and construction constraints were part of the factual record.