Board carries contentious 47 Red Road renovation after debate over massing and attic FAR

The board took testimony for an extensive renovation proposed at 47 Red Road (Red River LLC), where counsel and witnesses described a severely undersized lot (the applicant reported 4,437 sq ft versus roughly 9,300 sq ft required in the R2 zone) and seven variances including FAR (D4), front/side/rear setbacks, and building/lot coverage.

Architect Pietro Rosado described a plan that squares off a sunroom footprint, adds roughly 376 sq ft of floor area (a 230 sq ft second-floor addition and attic modifications totaling about 364 sq ft usable attic area), and raises the roofline by about 3 feet to a proposed 33 ft 1 in from average grade. The applicant said the project reduces impervious surface by removing a patio and walkway and that some nonconforming conditions would be improved, but neighbors pressed for conditions on fencing and drainage. "We have underground pipes," neighbor Corey Moss told the board and asked for drainage work to be addressed as a condition.

Board members probed the calculation of attic floor area, cathedral-ceiling effects on gross floor-area calculations, sight-line and bulk/massing impacts, and precedent among nearby undersized lots. Several members expressed reservations about increased lot and building coverage and the degree of attic FAR; others found the design modest from the street. Rather than decide that night, the board carried the application to the regular October 23 meeting and asked the applicant to return with refined plans and any necessary planner follow-up.