Board continues 25 Wabash conversion after neighbors and members press parking and scale concerns

The Zoning Board of Appeals continued a proposed conversion at 25 Wabash Avenue at its May 18 meeting after residents raised repeated concerns about parking, emergency access and the building’s scale.

Ryan Gavin, representing Monroe Management, described plans to convert an existing two‑family into a four‑family and add rear parking. Applicant Adam Gavill said the plan includes compact spaces and an accessible unit on the first floor and argued the site is walkable and close to transit.

Several neighbors pushed back. Kim, a longtime Wabash Avenue resident, told the board the street already struggles with vehicles on both sides and that a fire truck had difficulty navigating the block during winter storms: "The parking on this street is horrific at best...we watched a fire truck try to get up our street for 15 minutes," she said. Marsha Grenier, another neighbor, added that a four‑family would “stick up like a sore thumb” on the street and questioned the applicant’s comparisons to larger buildings farther away.

Board members echoed those concerns. Several members said massing and parking management needed more work; the chair signaled that the board did not have the votes to approve the project in its present form. The applicant requested a continuance; the board continued the application to June 29 with a constructive deadline of July 21, 2026 to allow the team to return with revised plans addressing parking management, stormwater mitigation and design changes.

What’s next: The applicant was directed to submit revised plans and a clearer parking management plan to planning staff ahead of the next meeting. The board recommended the applicant consider reducing unit count or reconfiguring on‑site parking to reduce curbside spillover and maintain emergency access.