Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Use topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
ZBA approves second‑floor expansion at 10 Crown Avenue with compliance conditions
Summary
The ZBA granted a special permit to expand the second floor at 10 Crown Avenue (Falmouth Heights), requiring the applicant to submit a revised plan showing cottage height, parking, removal of a fence, and a two‑sided sign location; the board also reaffirmed the cottage is an accessory space, not a separate rental.
The Falmouth Zoning Board of Appeals on Wednesday approved a special permit to expand the second floor of a nonconforming dwelling at 10 Crown Avenue in Falmouth Heights, subject to conditions intended to assure compliance with prior ZBA decisions and municipal referrals.
Attorney Kevin Clauer, representing owners John Mannix Jr. and Carmel Shields, told the board the property has a small lot (4,287 square feet) and multiple previous ZBA decisions. Clauer said the current proposal adds 228 square feet to the second floor without increasing the building footprint and that previous conditions (including removal of a cobble strip and fence) have been addressed. He and Clancy Construction explained the plan keeps lot coverage at 36% and indicated the accessory cottage would remain habitable space tied to the principal residence, not a separate rental unit.
Board members focused on a set of plan corrections and compliance items. Tony Petrucci and others asked the applicant to add the cottage ridge height on the submitted plan, to show the third parking space that was referenced in the 2020 special permit materials, to remove the fence that remained in the roadway layout, and to reflect a two‑sided DPW sign that the town will install. The applicant agreed to file a revised plan and accept conditions, including a clause to prevent the cottage from being used as a separate rental unit (no cooking facilities were to be provided in the cottage per prior decisions).
The board read findings noting the lot is a nonconforming 4,287 square feet with frontage of 74.5 feet and that the proposed work will not increase the footprint or exceed bylaw height limits. The board approved the special permit unanimously with conditions tying final approval to the revised plan showing parking, cottage height, fence removal, the DPW sign location and verification of compliance with prior ZBA decision 19/2020.
The decision leaves outstanding coordination items for engineering (stormwater containment), the water department (service relocation as needed), and the board of health (septic and bedroom counts) to be addressed through the conditioned plan submission and administrative review.
