Board approves amended 1975 variance and front-yard relief for 3 Pine Street application

The Westford zoning board voted to amend a 1975 variance and grant front-yard setback relief for the property listed on the agenda as 3 Pine Street after a public hearing where applicant Charles Golovin described plans to add a second floor, enlarge the kitchen and add a front porch.

Golovin, who identified himself at the microphone as the property owner, told the board the existing house is about 816 square feet and the project would add just under 900 square feet to create separate bedrooms for his two sons, who attend Westford schools and are autistic. "I'm trying to get separate bedrooms for them," he said.

Staff told the board the dwelling was built with variance relief in 1975 that included a condition requiring the driveway be located on the easterly side; the current driveway is on the westerly side. Staff recommended the board amend the prior variance rather than treat the project as eligible for a special permit, and proposed conditions including: recording revised plans showing a 19.1-foot front-yard setback with a maximum 2-foot permitted overhang (anything over 2 feet would require additional relief); modifying the rear-yard setback consistent with the plan; allowing the driveway to remain on the westerly side; requiring removal or relocation of the shed that encroaches onto a neighbor's property before issuance of a certificate of occupancy; and striking an erroneous 16.1-foot notation on the survey.

Board members pressed staff and the applicant on numerical details: the front-porch overhang and whether the 16.1-foot figure on one drawing was a survey typo, the exact bump-out dimension for the second-floor garrison (applicant said it should be a 1-foot bump-out), and whether the addition would trigger a special-permit threshold based on a 50% increase in gross floor area. Staff said there is not a blanket ratio that automatically requires a special permit in every case and that the board could grant the variances requested or require additional review if it deemed the change significant.

There were no public comments in favor or against the petition during the hearing. The board closed the public hearing, moved to amend the 1975 variance per staff's conditions, and then voted to approve the requested front-yard variance. The roll-call approvals were recorded on the record.

The board directed the applicant to submit corrected, recordable plans that reflect the board's dimensions and to work with staff to ensure compliance; staff will prepare a written decision within 14 days and there is a 21-day appeal period after that filing. The board also noted the applicant should confirm the Title 5 septic designation remains adequate for the proposed bedroom count; the applicant said his Title 5 inspection was up to date and that the system is listed for a 4-bedroom, 2-bath layout.

The record will reflect the board's instruction that the shed (if found to encroach on an abutter) be moved to the applicant's property prior to final inspections or be otherwise addressed to the building commissioner's satisfaction.