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Brookline ZBA delays vote on CH Realty waiver list, asks for more revisions
Summary
The Town of Brookline Zoning Board of Appeals continued a vote on waiver requests tied to CH Realty Ventures’ comprehensive permit application for 621 Hammond Street, asking the applicant to supply a revised waiver list and corrected decision language before the board will consider final action.
The Town of Brookline Zoning Board of Appeals on Wednesday continued its review of waiver requests for a comprehensive permit application from CH Realty Ventures for a proposed multifamily building at Hammond, Heath and Sheaf streets, and said it would not vote on the waivers until the applicant submits a revised list.
The board’s chair, Johanna Schneider, opened the remote hearing and asked the applicant to walk the board through a redlined waiver list. Jennifer DePazio Gilbert, the applicant’s attorney, told the board the team had updated the waiver list and “we've done that” in response to questions raised at prior hearings.
The board said the draft waiver list still needs language fixes and clarifications before a vote. ZBA members and town staff flagged specific items they wanted changed: the design-review waiver (Section 509) should not be a blanket waiver, references to the town’s stormwater bylaw should cite General By-law 8.26, and schedule and exhibit lists in the draft decision should be compiled and attached as a record of plans and memos.
ZBA member Jesse Geller said he was “not prepared to vote on those waivers,” and several other members concurred. Building Commissioner Dan Bennett and Director of Traffic and Engineering Dan Murphy attended at the board’s request to comment on technical waiver elements; both described edits they wanted reflected in the list before the board acts.
The board directed the applicant to incorporate the changes raised in the hearing and to return with a revised waiver list and updated draft decision at the next public meeting. The hearing was continued to June 11, 2025 at 7 p.m.
Polly Selko, planning staff, and the applicant agreed to prepare a consolidated exhibit list of record documents and to correct multiple place-name and numeric inconsistencies that appeared in earlier drafts of the decision.
The continued hearing preserves the board’s ability to vote only after the applicant provides the requested clarifications and staff incorporates technical comments from town departments.
