Published in the September 1, 2016 edition.
By MARK SARDELLA
WAKEFIELD — In a busy night of hearings, the Zoning Board of Appeals last week granted Special Permits, variances and other forms of zoning relief to residents and businesses with applications on the agenda.
The ZBA approved a request for a Special Permit that will allow Cori Ann DiDonato to operate a one-on-one personal athletic training business out of her garage at 50 Parker Rd.
Representing DiDonato, Atty. Brian McGrail told the board that many people who start such home-based businesses do not even seek the required Special Permits but he said that his client wanted to “do it the right way.”
He explained that DiDonato has a young child and wishes to be close to home and this business would allow her to do that.
He said that DiDonato would be the only employee and she would only work with one client at a time. He said that there would be no alterations to the premises, no signage and there was ample parking in the driveway.
The ZBA granted the Special Permit with the conditions that there would be no additional employees and no signs. They approved the hours of Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
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The board granted the necessary variances that will allow Thomas and Doris Stapleton to build a one-story detached garage with a pitched roof at their 22 Summer St. home. The garage will be in the rear yard but will be closer than the required 7.5 feet from the boundary of the side yard.
McGrail represented the Stapletons and said that the closest neighbor did not object to the project. Thomas Stapleton agreed that there would be no windows on the neighbor’s side and to replace a fence along the side yard. He will also install a roof gutter on the neighbor’s side to handle runoff.
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The ZBA made a finding that will allow Peter and Diane Paone to raze a single-family home at 34 Butler Ave. and construct a new single-family home on the same non-conforming lot.
Architect David Kinsella said that the new home would meet all setback requirements. The non-conformity relates to the frontage and lot width.
The planned new bungalow-style home will consist of two levels with a finished basement and a two-car garage with a turn-around driveway.
The board liked the idea that the new home would be further back from the street and that it met all setbacks.
McGrail asked for flexibility on the architecture as long as all of the setbacks were met. But the board said that the position of the foundation could shift slightly one way or another within the setbacks, but if the footprint of the foundation changed, the applicant would have to come back to the board.
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The board continued a hearing to Sept. 14 on a request from Louis D’Olimpio of 8 Newhall Ct. to raze an existing garage and rebuild a new larger garage with a breezeway connecting it to the house.
Representing D’Olimpio, Att. Michael McCarthy said that the first floor of the proposed new garage would be used for storage and would have a non-commercial workshop on a second level. The new garage would be about 27 feet 6 inches at its tallest point.
Neighbor Joseph Tavano of 122 Butler Ave. said that he had a problem with the side setback and believed that the proposed garage would overshadow his house. He said that he would have less of a problem with the side setback if the top floor were to be removed from the garage plans.
McCarthy requested a continuance to Sept. 14 to allow time for discussions with the neighbor.
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The board approved the application of Janice DiPrizio to allow the transfer of an in-law apartment at 7 Evangelista Way from the previous owner, who had been granted the accessory unit in 2010. The DiPrizios acquired the property earlier this month and wished to continue to use the unit as an in-law apartment.
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The ZBA reviewed and approved a number of minor modifications to Jonathan Main’s plans to build a 24-unit garden-style apartment building at 600 North Ave.