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Board grants setback variance for proposed Acadia Road single‑family after conservation constraints reshaped plan
Summary
The Zoning Board approved a variance on March 18 for a single‑family home at 68 Acadia Road after the applicant redesigned the house to avoid a 60‑foot conservation no‑build buffer; the applicant must record the decision at the registry of deeds before construction.
The Gardner City Zoning Board of Appeals on March 18 granted a variance allowing dimensional relief for a proposed single‑family home at 68 Acadia Road (Parcel ID M32‑21‑6) after the applicant revised the design to comply with a conservation commission 60‑foot no‑build buffer.
Trevor Fletcher, the project engineer, explained the new design: to avoid the conservation buffer the house footprint was altered to an L‑shape and shifted so the right side of the new house sits approximately where an older trailer had been removed. Fletcher told the board the right‑side setback to the adjacent lot would be roughly eight feet, consistent with the footprint of the former trailer, while the front setback measured roughly 4.9 feet from a nearby right‑of‑way line (the transcript records that geometric result as a product of the right‑of‑way geometry rather than a closer approach to the paved road).
Fletcher said the conservation commission reviewed and accepted the plan. A nearby abutter, Raleigh Brown, attended and said he had no objection provided the work complies with conservation and building rules; Brown asked whether prior notice had been received (the applicant and staff confirmed notices were mailed). The board discussed stakeout and inspection processes and noted that, once recorded, the board decision would allow the applicant to proceed to obtain building permits and inspections under the building commissioner’s oversight.
The motion to approve the dimensional‑relief variance passed unanimously. The board instructed the applicant to have the written decision recorded at the registry of deeds (recordation is paid for by the applicant) and reminded the owner that building‑permit approvals and inspections remain under the building commissioner’s purview.
