Neighbors urge delay of Sheaf/Heath/Hammond 40B permit over contamination and drainage concerns

Residents near the proposed Sheaf/Heath/Hammond Street 40B development told the Town of Brookline Select Board they want environmental and drainage questions answered before the project’s comprehensive permit moves forward.

Multiple neighbors said the proposed six‑story building with an underground garage would place stormwater infrastructure and a garage entrance too close to adjacent houses and urged the town or Zoning Board of Appeals to require a full environmental site assessment before issuing a comprehensive permit.

The concern first voiced by Kathleen Burton, owner of 22 Sheaf Street, focused on how the developer’s proposed drainage system and driveway would sit adjacent to older homes. “It’s a 6 story building with an underground parking garage,” Burton said, and she told the board that the developer seeks a variance to move a drainage system from the regulation’s 10 feet from the property line to 5 feet, which Burton said could cause her stone‑and‑cement basement to flood more frequently. She also said the developer wants the garage entrance 16 feet from the property line, under a…