Planning board recommends ZBA consider a use‑variance to allow self‑storage at 105 Cabot St.

The Needham Planning Board voted to recommend that the Zoning Board of Appeals grant a use‑variance to allow a self‑storage reuse at 105 Cabot St., a former data‑center building, citing the property's unique constraints.

Attorney George (presenting for the applicant) told the board that the 128,000‑square‑foot building lacks basic infrastructure for typical human‑occupied uses, has only about 45 on‑site parking spaces and was built and approved with a floor‑area‑ratio bonus tied to a low‑traffic prior use. He said the owner engaged a national brokerage firm and marketed the property for over a year; potential users either withdrew because retrofits would be prohibitively expensive or were otherwise infeasible. Given those constraints, George said the only economically feasible reuse the team identified was self‑storage.

Board discussion focused on precedent and whether a variance for this property would open the door to similar variances elsewhere. Members noted that Needham historically grants few use variances and that the statute and case law make variances difficult to obtain; several members concluded the site's combination of lack of parking, unusual construction and already‑granted FAR relief made the property a narrow candidate for variance relief.

The planning board paused before making a formal motion earlier in the discussion but later moved to recommend the ZBA approve the applicant's request, and the motion passed. The board clarified the recommendation is for this specific building and emphasized that the applicant does not propose exterior changes beyond signage.

Next steps: The Zoning Board of Appeals will consider the use‑variance application; if it grants relief, the reuse would be limited by the terms of that variance and would not change the town's zoning map or allow unrestricted expansion of the use elsewhere.