* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. ALL GOOD. [00:00:01] OKAY. GOOD EVENING. UH, WELCOME TO THE JULY 30TH, 2026 MEETING OF THE CAMBRIDGE BOARD OF ZONING APPEAL. MY NAME IS STEVEN ING AND I AM THE CHAIR PURSUANT TO CHAPTER TWO OF THE ACTS OF 2023, ADOPTED BY MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL COURT AND APPROVED BY THE GOVERNOR, THE CITY IS AUTHORIZED TO USE REMOTE PARTICIPATION AT MEETINGS OF THE CAMBRIDGE BOARD OF ZONING APPEAL. THIS MEETING IS BEING VIDEO AND AUDIO RECORDED AND IS BROADCAST ON CABLE TELEVISION CHANNEL 22 WITHIN CAMBRIDGE. THERE WILL ALSO BE A TRANSCRIPT OF THE PROCEEDINGS. ALL BOARD MEMBERS, APPLICANTS, AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WILL STATE THEIR NAME BEFORE SPEAKING. ALL VOTES WILL BE TAKEN BY ROLL CALL. MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WILL BE KEPT ON MUTE UNTIL IT IS TIME FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. I WILL GIVE INSTRUCTIONS FOR PUBLIC COMMENT AT THAT TIME. AND YOU CAN ALSO FIND INSTRUCTIONS ON THE CITY'S WEBPAGE FOR REMOTE BZA MEETINGS. GENERALLY, YOU WILL HAVE UP TO THREE MINUTES TO SPEAK. I'LL START BY ASKING STAFF TO TAKE BOARD MEMBERS' ATTENDANCE FOR OUR 6:00 PM UH, ITEM, AGENDA ITEM AND VERIFY THAT ALL MEMBERS ARE AUDIBLE. BRAND CHI PRESENT. DANIEL FERNANDO ALGO PRESENT. MIRANDA CECIL PRESENT, VIRGINIA KEESLER. VIRGINIA KEESLER. PRESENT. STEVEN ANG, STEVEN ING PRESENT. THANK YOU. UH, OUR FIRST ITEM, UH, WE HAVE TWO ITEMS ON THE THIS EVENING'S AGENDA. AND FIRST UP IS CASE NUMBER BZA 1 2 1 8 2 1 5, UH, CAMBRIDGE HOUSING AUTHORITY, UH, REPRESENTED BY MARGARET MORAN AND CLARA FRADEN. UH, FOR A SPECIAL PERMIT FOR TWO NON-CONFORMING CURB CUTS ALONG VALLA AVENUE THAT ARE LOCATED WITHIN 25 FEET OF AN INTERSECTION. UM, SEEKING SPECIAL PERMIT UNDER SECTIONS 6.4, 3.4 B INTERSECTION, CURB CUT, LOCATION SECTION 6.4, 3.5, SPECIAL PERMIT PROVISIONS, AND ARTICLE 10.40 FOR SPECIAL PERMIT. UH, IS MS. MORAN OR MS. FRADEN AVAILABLE FOR PRESENTATION? UH, YES. UH, HI, UH, UH, LET ME, UH, HI, THIS IS MARGARET DOLEY MARANN. I'M THE DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR DEVELOPMENT AT THE CAMBRIDGE HOUSING AUTHORITY. UM, WANNA THANK THE COMMITTEE FOR HEARING OUR, UH, REQUEST TONIGHT, AND I'M GONNA TURN IT OVER TO OUR PROJECT MANAGER, JOE BEDNER, WHO'S GONNA WALK THROUGH THE SPECIFICS OF, UM, MY REQUEST. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. MY NAME IS JOE BEDNER. I'M A PROJECT MANAGER OF THE CAMBRIDGE HOUSING AUTHORITY. UM, UH, WE'RE ALSO JOINED TONIGHT BY REPRESENTATIVES FROM OUR DESIGN TEAM, STUDIO G ARCHITECTS AND, UH, NICHE ENGINEERING. UH, AGAIN, ON BEHALF OF THE CHA, I'D LIKE TO THANK THE CHAIR AND THE BOARD FOR CONSIDERING OUR SPECIAL PERMIT APPLICATION FOR TWO CURB CUTS ALONG THE VAL AVENUE. UM, AS YOU MENTIONED, UM, WE ARE REQUESTING, UM, THE SPECIAL PERMIT IN ACCORDANCE WITH, UM, 6.43, OR, I'M SORRY, 6.4, 3.5 D, UM, WHICH STATES THAT THE DISTANCE OF DRIVEWAYS FROM THE STREET CORNERS OF CROSSWALKS AS REQUIRED IN PARAGRAPH 6.4, 3.4 B MAY BE MODIFIED IF THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT AN ALTERNATE ARRANGEMENT WOULD BETTER FACILITATE TRAFFIC AND SAFETY. UH, WE BELIEVE THE STRONG LETTERS OF SUPPORT FROM THE PROFESSIONALS AT THE CAMBRIDGE DEPARTMENTS OF TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS AND HOUSING DEMONSTRATE THAT THE REQUESTED CURB CUTS WOULD BETTER FACILITATE TRAFFIC AND SAFETY. UH, I'D LIKE TO PROVIDE SOME OF THE BOARD WITH SOME BACKGROUND ON THIS REQUEST IN PART TO RESPOND, UH, TO SOME CURRENT CONCERN THAT WAS RAISED ABOUT THE PROCESS OF OUR REQUEST. UH, WE'VE BEEN WORKING CLOSELY WITH CITY STAFF IN ALL THE DEPARTMENTS FOR SEVERAL YEARS NOW TO DEVELOP PLANS TO IMPROVE THIS SITE AND IS BECAUSE OF THIS COORDINATION THAT WE'RE HERE BEFORE YOU TODAY. CORCORAN PARK IS APPROXIMATELY AN EIGHT ACRE AFFORDABLE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT IS BUILT IN THE 1950S, AND THE EXISTING BUILDINGS ARE AT RISK OF FREQUENT FLOODING. THE BUILDING SYSTEMS ARE AT THE END OF THEIR USEFUL LIFE, AND THEY DON'T MEET MODERN, THEY DON'T MEET MODERN STANDARDS FOR ACCESSIBILITY, MAKING IT DIFFICULT FOR RESIDENTS TO AGE [00:05:01] IN PLACE 'CAUSE OF THESE FACTORS. THE CHA DECIDED TO BEGIN PLANS FOR ALL NEW CONSTRUCTION UNDER THE CITY'S AFFORDABLE HOUSING ZONING OVERLAY. IN 2024 CHA INTRODUCED PLANS TO RESIDENTS AND NEIGHBORS AT A SERIES OF COMMUNITY MEETINGS, ALONG WITH THE CH A'S GOAL TO INCREASE THE NUMBER OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING UNITS ON THE SITE TO 290. AT THAT TIME, WE HEARD CONCERNS FROM RESIDENTS AND NEIGHBORS ABOUT THE BUILDING HEIGHTS AND PARKING, AND WE RESPONDED BY REDUCING THE BUILDING HEIGHTS AND INCREASING THE PARKING RATIO IN 2025. THIS NEW PLAN WAS PRESENTED AT A COMMUNITY MEETING IN PREPARATION FOR BEGINNING THE A HO ZONING PROCESS. HOWEVER, IN 2025, DPW EXPANDED THEIR MODELING AND UPDATED THEIR CALCULATIONS FOR FLOODING IN CORCORAN PARK. UM, THIS REQUIRED THE PROPOSED BUILDINGS ON A LOWER PORTION OF THE SITE TO BE RAISED BY TWO FEET. SO BECAUSE OF THIS, THE EXISTING PLANS FOR THE LOWER PORTION OF THE SITE BETWEEN LAWN STREET AND THINK FALL AVENUE HAD TO BE SCRAPPED. THE CHA DECIDED TO SPLIT THE REDEVELOPMENT INTO TWO PHASES, PROCEEDING WITH THE PLANS WE HAD FOR THE UPPER MORSE PORTION OF THE SITE NORTH OF LAWN STREET, NOW KNOWN AS PHASE ONE. AFTER HOLDING ADDITIONAL RESIDENT AND COMMUNITY MEETINGS, UH, INCLUDING TWO MEETINGS WITH THE PLANNING BOARD AS PART OF THE, AS PART OF THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING OVERLAY PROCESS, UM, WE EXPECT TO BEGIN CONSTRUCTION ON PHASE ONE IN THIS WINTER. THE EXISTING CORCORAN LANE DRIVEWAY ON THINK VLA AVENUE ESSENTIALLY CREATES A THIRD INTERSECTION ON THE SHORT STRETCH OF ROAD. IN ADDITION TO THE ERICKSON STREET AND EDWARD SULLIVAN ROAD INTERSECTIONS. PREVIOUS SITE PLANS PROPOSED NEW CURB CUTS TO ALIGN WITH THE TWO EXISTING INTERSECTIONS, AND THOSE LOCATIONS WERE REVIEWED AND ENCOURAGED BY STAFF FROM THE CAMBRIDGE DEPARTMENTS OF TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS. AFTER RESTARTING CONCEPTUAL DESIGN PROCESS FOR PHASE TWO CHA BEGAN A SERIES OF MEETINGS WITH CITY STAFF FROM HOUSING ZONING DPW TRANSPORTATION AND INSPECTION SERVICES TO PROVIDE DIRECTION ON THE LOCATION AND PERMITTING PROCESS FOR THE CURB CUTS. AND THE NEW DEVELOPMENT CITY STAFF EXPRESSED A STRONG PREFERENCE THAT THE NEW DRIVES ALIGN WITH EXISTING INTERSECTIONS OF ERICSSON AND EDWARD SULLIVAN, BUT THAT A SPECIAL PERMIT FROM THE BZA WOULD BE REQUIRED WHILE NEW ZONING COMPLIANT CURB CUTS COULD BE PLACED ANYWHERE ALONG VALLA AVENUE AS LONG AS THEY WERE 25 FEET FROM THE EXISTING INTERSECTION. CITY STAFF REQUESTED THAT THE CHA TRY TO OBTAIN A SPECIAL PERMIT TO ALIGN THE DRIVEWAYS WITH EXISTING INTERSECTIONS BEFORE EXPLORING OTHER OPTIONS. BECAUSE THE CHA PLANS TO REDEVELOP PHASE TWO UNDER THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING OVERLAY, WHICH REQUIRES COMPLIANCE WITH ALL NON HO ZONING REQUIREMENTS, ZONING AND HOUSING STAFF HAD ADVISED THAT A SPECIAL PERMIT REQUEST MUST HAPPEN BEFORE THE A HO ZONING PROCESS TO AVOID ANOTHER COSTLY REDESIGN. CHA HAS PAUSED THE RESTART OF THE PHASE TWO DESIGNS UNTIL WE HAVE CERTAINTY OVER THE LOCATION OF THE CURB CUTS 'CAUSE OF THIS. UM, WE DO NOT HAVE CURRENT PLANS FOR PHASE TWO. WE EXPECT THAT THE CONCEPTUAL DESIGN WILL BE SIMILAR TO THE PREVIOUS ONES THAT WE'VE SHARED PUBLICLY, BUT THE NEW ELEVATION REQUIREMENTS PRESENT ADDITIONAL CHALLENGES THAT NEED TO BE WORKED THROUGH. OUR GOALS ARE STILL THE SAME, AND WE ARE COMMITTED TO SHARE TO THE SAME ROBUST AND EARNEST RESIDENT COMMUNITY AND PLANNING BOARD PROCESS THAT WE CONDUCTED FOR PHASE ONE. UM, AND WE ARE EAGER TO BEGIN THAT PROCESS ONCE WE HAVE A NEW DESIGN. OKAY. THANK YOU. MR, GO AHEAD. GO AHEAD. I WAS JUST GONNA SAY, SO HERE YOU CAN SEE THE TWO PROPOSED CURB CUT LOCATIONS, UM, AND THE DASH LINE IS THE EXISTING, UM, DRIVEWAY THAT WOULD BE REPLACED. UM, SO, YOU KNOW, ESSENTIALLY CREATING TWO NEW FOUR-WAY INTERSECTIONS, UM, WHERE THERE WERE PREVIOUSLY, UM, THREE, THREE-WAY INTERSECTIONS. UM, AND, YOU KNOW, ALTERNATIVELY THE ZONING COMPLIANT OPTION WOULD, COULD BE TO ADD A FOURTH INTERSECTION TO THIS, UH, STRETCH OF ROAD, WHICH I, I THINK EVERYONE AGREES WOULD, WOULD NOT BE THE BEST OPTION. OKAY. THANK YOU MR. BEDNAR. UM, ARE THERE ANY OTHER, UH, MEMBERS OF THE HOUSING AUTHORITY WHO [00:10:01] OR TO SPEAK? NO, NO, I THINK WE'RE ALL SET. UM, OKAY. WE CAN RESPOND TO QUESTIONS. SO ANY QUESTIONS FROM, UH, FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS? UH, WOULD YOU BE ABLE TO TALK THROUGH SOME OF THE OTHER OPTIONS YOU CONSIDERED A LITTLE BIT MORE? SO YOU'RE SAYING YOU COULD CREATE FOUR INTERSECTIONS. I'M NOT SURE I UNDERSTAND WHERE THAT FOURTH INTERSECTION WOULD COME IN. UM, SO, YOU KNOW, AS OF RIGHT OR NOT AS OF RIGHT, BUT A, A COMPLIANT CURB CUT COULD BE ADDED HERE, UM MM-HMM . OR, YOU KNOW, WE COULD, WE 25 FEET IS THAT FAR? WE COULD ADD ONE HERE. UM, BUT I THINK THE BEST PREVIOUS SITE DESIGNS, UM, HAVE INCLUDED CONSOLIDATING THE INTERSECTIONS INTO FOUR-WAY INTERSECTIONS. UM, AND THE CITY HAS, HAS, UH, EXPRESSED A STRONG, UM, PREFERENCE THAT, THAT THEY'D BE ALIGNED WITH THE EXISTING TWO INTERSECTIONS. MM-HMM . OKAY, THAT MAKES SENSE TO ME. I WAS JUST CURIOUS ABOUT WHERE THAT WOULD GO. THANK YOU. AND MR. BEDNAR WITH, UH, WITH THOSE, UH, LOCATIONS WITH THE RECOMMENDED, YOU KNOW, KIND OF A TWO, YOU KNOW, FOUR WAY INTERSECTION. UM, SO FROM THAT, THOSE LOCATIONS, ARE YOU PLANNING TO DEVELOP AN, THE LAYOUT FOR THE HOUSING AFTER THIS IS, YOU KNOW, IN THE CASE OF THIS APPLICATION, IF IT'S APPROVED OR THE SPECIAL PERMIT GRANTED, YOU WOULD KIND OF TAKE THAT AND THEN CONTINUE WITH THE PLANNING OF HOUSING ON THE SITE? YEAH, THAT'S, THAT'S CORRECT. UM, SO, YOU KNOW, ONCE WE HAVE A CERTAINTY OVER WHERE WE CAN PLACE THESE, YOU KNOW, WE WOULD BEGIN, UM, CONCEPTUAL DESIGN, SCHEMATIC DESIGN, AND, YOU KNOW, AS SOON AS WE HAVE THE SCHEMATIC DESIGN, WE WOULD BE BACK OUT, UH, MEETING WITH THE, THE NEIGHBORHOOD. UM, AND, UH, BEGINNING THAT, THAT COMMUNITY PROCESS AGAIN. BUT WE JUST KIND OF NEED A STARTING POINT. OKAY. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER COMMENTS FROM, UH, FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS? ALL RIGHT. UH, HEARING, UH, NONE, UM, WILL, UH, MOVE ON TO PUBLIC COMMENT. UH, ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO WISH TO SPEAK SHOULD NOW CLICK THE ICON AT THE BOTTOM OF YOUR ZOOM SCREEN THAT SAYS, RAISE HAND. IF YOU'RE CALLING IN BY PHONE, YOU CAN RAISE YOUR HAND BY PRESSING STAR NINE AND UNMUTE OR MUTE BY PRESSING STAR SIX. I'LL NOW ASK STAFF TO UNMUTE THE SPEAKERS ONE AT A TIME. YOU SHOULD BEGIN BY SAYING YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS, AND STAFF WILL CONFIRM THAT WE CAN HEAR YOU. AFTER THAT, YOU WILL HAVE UP TO TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK BEFORE I ASK YOU TO WRAP UP. UH, STEVEN, SHOULD I READ THE CORRESPONDENCE IN THE FILE FIRST, OR? OH, YEAH, SURE. OKAY. SO BEFORE WE DO THAT, I'LL, UH, I'LL READ, UH, LETTERS THAT WE'VE RECEIVED IN THE FILE. UM, A LETTER CAME IN FROM, UH, MR. NATHANIEL HENDRON FROM 89 OXFORD AVENUE IN CAMBRIDGE. UM, AND I CAN, I SHOULD RECITE, BUT READ THE WHOLE, YOU CAN SUMMARIZE IT. SO, UM, I'LL JUST RECITE IT. UH, MY NAME IS NATHAN HENDRON AND I'M PROFESSOR OF ECONOMICS. AT MIT, MY RESEARCH EXAMINES HOW AND WHY NEIGHBORHOODS SHAPE UPWARD ECONOMIC MOBILITY FOR LOW INCOME CHILDREN. MY FAMILY IS A RESIDENT OF STRAWBERRY HILL, AND WE ABUT PHASE ONE ON OF THIS PROJECT. IN RESPONSE TO THE ORIGINAL RELEASE OF PLANS A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, I AND A COUPLE NEIGHBORS, ALONG WITH A COUPLE OF FRIENDS WHO ARE RESIDENTS OF COCORAN PARK, INTERVIEWED OVER HALF THE HOUSEHOLDS RESIDING IN THE PARK, OVER 90% RAISED SERIOUS OBJECTIONS TO THE DESIGNS, INCLUDING CONCERNS AROUND TRAFFIC AND SAFETY, AND SIGNED A PETITION OPPOSING THE PLANS. FROM MY OWN ACADEMIC PERSPECTIVE, I ALSO RAISED CONCERNS ABOUT DESIGN ASPECTS THAT THREATEN TO INCREASE THE MICRO SEGREGATION OF COCHRAN CORCORAN PARK FROM ITS SURROUNDING COMMUNITY IN THE PHASE ONE A HO PROCESS, CHA, [00:15:01] ENGAGED WITH THE RESIDENTS AND ARRIVED AT PLANS THAT DID NOT SATISFY EVERYONE, BUT COM COMPROMISED ON SEVERAL DIMENSIONS. IN VIEWING THIS SPECIAL PERMIT APPLICATION, I WAS SURPRISED AND CONCERNED ABOUT THE PROCESS OF SEEKING A SPECIAL PERMIT WITHOUT SHARING PLANS FOR THE PROJECT WITH THE COMMUNITY. I UNDERSTAND THAT THE CURB CUT APPLICATION SHOULD BE EVALUATED ON A SET OF CRITERIA FOCUSED ON HOW THE PROPOSED PROJECT AFFECT SAFETY ISSUES IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD. BUT I DON'T BELIEVE IT IS POSSIBLE TO EVALUATE OR UNDERSTAND THE POTENTIAL IMPACT OF THIS SPECIAL PERMIT WITHOUT SEEING ANY ACTUAL PLANS OR DETAILS ABOUT THE PROJECT. WHAT WILL THE TRAFFIC FLOW LOOK LIKE FROM THE NEW BUILDING? HOW MANY ADDITIONAL CARS AND PEOPLE WILL BE IN THE AREA ON WHAT ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT THE PROJECT ARE PEOPLE AT NICHE DPW AND DOT SUGGESTING THAT THE NEW TRAFFIC SETUP WOULD BE BETTER? THE APPLICATION AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT LETTERS FROM CHA IMPLICITLY SUGGESTS THAT SOME GROUPS IN THE CITY AND STATE HAVE ADVISED CHA TO SUBMIT FOR THE SPECIAL PERMIT PRIOR TO SHARING THE SITE PLANS WITH RESIDENTS AND NEIGHBORS. I FIND THIS EVEN MORE CONCERNING AS I FEAR THE SAME INDIVIDUALS ADVISING CHA ON THEIR DESIGN PLANS ARE THE ONES WHOSE VIEWS INFLUENCED THE ORIGINAL DESIGNS THAT LED TO STRONG RESIDENT OPPOSITION. I DON'T THINK AS A CITY WE SHOULD GIVE BLANKET SPECIAL APPROVALS TO A PROJECT SITE UNSEEN THAT MIGHT FACE 90% OPPOSITION FROM THE FAMILIES LIVING IN CORCORAN PARK. ON THE GROUNDS. IT IS DIFFICULT TO SUITABLY EVALUATE THE SAFETY IMPACT OF A PLAN WITHOUT SHOWING A PLAN. I WOULD ASK THAT THE BOARD SHOULD CONTINUE THIS MEASURE UNTIL CHA IS WILLING TO SHARE DETAILS ON ITS ACTUAL PLANS FOR THE PROJECT. THANK YOU. UH, I HAVE, UH, ADDITIONAL LETTERS. ONE FROM, UH, THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS, UH, SUPPORTING, UH, THE CO ONE CORCORAN LANE CURB CUT SPECIAL PERMIT. UH, THEY, IN THE LETTER SUMMARIZING QUICKLY, THE PROPOSED LOCATIONS WILL ALLOW FOR ESTABLISHMENT OF ACCESS DRIVES THAT WILL BEST SUPPORT SAFE CONDITIONS FOR ROAD USERS OF ALL MODE TRANSIT. AND, UM, SO THAT WAS FROM PUBLIC WORKS. UH, CITY OF CAMBRIDGE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION ALSO WRITES A, A LETTER IN SUPPORT OF THE SPECIAL PERMIT, UM, AND LOCATING THE TWO CURB CUTS FOR THE FUTURE DEVELOPMENT DRIVEWAYS AT THE TWO EXISTING T INTERSECTIONS IS PREFERRED OVER THE EXISTING CONDITIONS WHERE CORCORAN LANE CREATES WHAT IS ESSENTIALLY A THIRD INTERSECTION ALONG THIS SHORT STRETCH OF VALLA AVENUE. SO THAT WAS FROM TRANSPORTATION AND A, A LETTER FROM THE CHIEF OF HOUSING, CHRISTOPHER KOTTER, UH, CITY OF CAMBRIDGE, UM, AND THE CA HAS BEEN PLANNING THIS CRITICAL REDEVELOPMENT SINCE 2016 AND IS ADVANCING THE PROJECT IN PHASES UNDER AFFORDABLE HOUSING OVERLAY ZONING PROVISIONS. THEY'VE COMMITTED, UH, OVER 14 MILLION TOWARDS THE FIRST PHASE OF THE PROJECT AND ARE EAGER TO, UH, SEE THE SECOND PHASE GETS STARTED AND ADVANCED. AND THAT WAS IT FOR CORRESPONDENCE. UH, WE'LL OPEN IT UP TO, UH, PUBLIC COMMENT ON ONLINE. SEE ANYBODY? NO ONE, UH, IT SEEMS THAT NO ONE'S ON, UM, HAS THEIR HAND RAISED FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. OH, WE, WE GOT SOMETHING. STEPHANIE PETERS. AM I GOOD TO GO? YEP. HI, STEPHANIE PETERS, 85 OXFORD AVENUE. MY FAMILY HAS LIVED IN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD FOR OVER A HUNDRED YEARS. UH, VERY CONCERNED ABOUT ALL THE CONSTRUCTION THAT'S GOING TO BE ON. VERY CONCERNED KNOWING THE NEIGHBORHOOD THAT, UH, ORIGINALLY THE BUILDINGS WERE BUILT ON MARSHLAND. THE LAND WAS, UH, FILLED IN WITH THE REMAINDER OF COAL. I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE PRODUCT IS CALLED, BUT IT'S VERY TOXIC. AND I'M VERY CONCERNED THAT THAT'S GONNA BE SOMETHING THAT IS LOOKED INTO BECAUSE JUST THE REMOVAL OF THAT COULD CAUSE MANY PEOPLE TO GET SICK. [00:20:01] UM, I THINK THE FACT THAT YOU GUYS ARE MAKING DECISIONS TO MAKE CUTS IN A ROAD WHERE NONE OF THE NEIGHBORS HAVE ACTUALLY SEEN WHAT'S ACTUALLY GONNA BE HAPPENING IN THAT SECTION OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD IS PUTTING THE CART BEFORE THE HORSE. I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT MY HUSBAND AND I ARE GETTING TO THE AGE OF RETIREMENT. THIS IS GONNA BE SIX YEARS OF CONSTRUCTION. WE'VE DECIDED TO MOVE OUT OF OUR HOME THAT I'VE LIVED IN, MY FAMILY HAS LIVED IN FOR OVER A HUNDRED YEARS, BECAUSE SIX YEARS OF CONSTRUCTION IS NOT SOMETHING THAT I WANNA RETIRE TO. BUT YOU CAN'T FIGHT CITY HALL. BUT I REALLY THINK THAT, UM, WHEN YOU PEOPLE CONSIDER THIS NEIGHBORHOOD, YOU'RE NOT CONSIDERING THE, UH, PEOPLE THAT ARE GONNA BE OUTRAGED BY CERTAIN THINGS ONCE THEY START HAPPENING. OKAY? NOT EVERYONE CAN READ A FLOOR PLAN. NOT EVERYONE CAN UNDERSTAND EXACTLY WHAT'S HAPPENING, SO WE CAN'T JUST GIVE LITTLE CUTOUTS. AND JUST BECAUSE THE CHA WANTS IT, I KNOW YOU'RE TRYING TO MAKE PEOPLE IN THE FUTURE HAPPY THAT THEY CAN LIVE FREE AND, AND, YOU KNOW, UH, UM, HAVE LOW INCOME HOUSING. I KNOW ANY OPPOSITION AUTOMATICALLY, PEOPLE CALL YOU A NIMBY. I'M NOT A NIMBY. I'VE LIVED IN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD. I'VE GROWN UP WITH PEOPLE WHO'VE LIVED IN HOUSING. THEY'RE MY FRIENDS. I, IF ANYONE, UH, IT'S IN MY BACKYARD AND I LOVE IT IN MY BACKYARD, AND IT'S ALWAYS BEEN A GREAT NEIGHBORHOOD. SO, TO OUTRAGE THE PEOPLE WHO OWN THE HOMES AROUND THE OUTSKIRTS, I THINK IS A, UH, A BIG MISTAKE ON THE PART OF EVERYTHING THAT'S GOING ON. THANK YOU, MS. PETERS. THANK YOU, MS. PETERS. NATHAN HENDRON. HI THERE. CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES. AWESOME. WELL, THANKS FOR, UH, READING WHAT I, WHAT I SUBMITTED. OF COURSE. UM, I ALSO WANT TO THANK THE HOUSING AUTHORITY AND JUST WANTED TO, TO SAY, UM, I DO HAVE THE UTMOST RESPECT FOR THE HOUSING AUTHORITY. THEY HAVE BEEN MANAGING A SERIES OF COMPLEX, UH, SITUATIONS AND COMPLEX INTERESTS. I THINK HERE, YOU KNOW, I JUST WANT TO REITERATE MY OWN CONCERN, UH, HERE WITH THE PROCESS. UM, YOU KNOW, THIS WAS PRESENTED AS A PROJECT THAT WAS, UH, DOABLE UNDER A HO, UH, AND A HO GIVES A LOT OF AUTHORITY TO, UH, TO FOLKS. UH, AND IN THIS CASE, I THINK THE WORRY THAT I HAVE BEEN SEEING IS THAT THOSE, UH, AUTHORITIES CAN KIND OF COME AT THE EXPENSE IN THIS CASE, POTENTIALLY, OF EXISTING RESIDENTS. AND I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT DOES NOT HAPPEN. AND SO I THINK THAT WAS THE, YOU KNOW, MOTIVATION FOR ASKING TO SEE SOME SORT OF PLAN FOR WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE. I WAS ENCOURAGED TO HEAR JOE SAY THAT THE PLAN IS SIMILAR TO WHAT WAS DEVELOPED IN THE FIRST ROUND OF PHASE, UH, UH, OF THE A HO PROCESS FOR THE BROADER, UH, BROADER, UH, NEIGHBORHOOD. UM, BUT WOULD VERY MUCH, UH, ASK THAT WE SEE SOMETHING ABOUT WHAT IS GOING TO BE PLANNED FOR THIS PHASE TWO BEFORE WE, UH, APPROVE, UH, THE REQUIRED SPECIAL PERMIT FOR THE PLANS. THANK YOU, MR. HENDRON. NO ONE ELSE. OKAY. SO, UH, NO ONE ELSE, UH, WISHING TO SPEAK. UH, WE CAN CLOSE PUBLIC COMMENT AND MOVE TO BOARD DISCUSSION. UM, ANY THOUGHTS OR COMMENTS FROM MY FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS? THIS IS, THIS IS DANIEL ALGO. UM, YES, I GUESS I JUST, I'M JUST KIND OF CURIOUS WHY, YOU KNOW, UM, THE, THE PLANS HAVEN'T BEEN DEVELOPED. I UNDERSTAND THERE'S THIS WHOLE HO PROCESS THAT'S BEEN PRESENTED TWICE BEFORE, BUT THEN I GUESS I'M TRYING TO UNDERSTAND THE GAP BETWEEN GOING THROUGH THE HO PROCESS, ET CETERA, AND THEN, BUT PEOPLE SAYING THEY HAVEN'T SEEN THE PLANS FOR, UM, UH, FOR WHAT'S GONNA BE THERE. SO I JUST TRY TRYING TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THAT, WHAT THAT IS. I DON'T KNOW IF ANYONE HAS ANY INSIGHT ON THAT, OR MAYBE I MISSED IT. SO THERE, THERE WAS A PRE MULTIPLE SETS OF PREVIOUS PLANS THAT WERE DEVELOPED, UM, AND FOR THE ENTIRE SITE, UM, AS, AS RECENTLY AS THE SPRING OF 2025. UM, AND THOSE WERE SHARED, UH, WITH, WITH, UM, THE COMMUNITY. UH, THEY'RE STILL AVAILABLE ON THE CHA WEBSITE. UM, BUT WE'VE HAD TO SCRAP, UM, THREE QUARTERS OF IT, UM, AS WE [00:25:01] LOOK TO REDESIGN TO MEET THE NEW FLOOD ELEVATIONS. I SEE. SO IT'S, YOU KNOW, OUR, OUR GOAL IS, IS, YOU KNOW, S SIMILAR. WE, WE DON'T WANNA HAVE TO CHANGE IT MUCH, BUT WE HAVE TO WORK THROUGH THE REALITY OF, OF RAISING EVERYTHING UP TWO FEET AND FIGURING OUT HOW WE'RE GONNA DO THAT. UM, SO THAT'S, THAT'S WHERE WE'RE AT. AND IS THE DECISION TO KIND OF LOCATE THE, THE NEW CURB CUTS WHERE THEY ARE MORE A BASIC, UH, DESIGN FOR, YOU KNOW, LIKE SAFETY AND IDEAL ACCESS AND, AND SO FORTH, OR, I THINK THAT THAT SEEMS TO BE THE CONFUSION OR FRUSTRATION ON THE PUBLIC'S END IS. SO IT'S WHERE THE CURB CUTS WERE LOCATED IN PREVIOUS PLANS, AND WE WENT THROUGH A PROCESS, UH, OVER THE PAST COUPLE MONTHS WITH, UH, MULTIPLE CITY DEPARTMENTS, UM, YOU KNOW, TRYING TO UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, ARE THESE, UH, IS THIS GONNA BE A PRIVATE ROAD THAT WE'RE BUILDING? UM, IS IT A PRIVATE DRIVE? AND, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, DPW FELT STRONGLY THAT IT WAS, THAT IT WOULD BE A DRIVEWAY, UM, WHICH FALLS UNDER THIS, UH, CURB CUT PROVISION. UM, AND, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS SOME, A BACK AND FORTH ABOUT WHETHER A, A CURB CUT IN THE INTERSECTION OF WAS LESS THAN 25 FEET AWAY. UM, AND, YOU KNOW, WE GOT THE DIRECTION THAT IT, YOU KNOW, NEEDED, UM, A SPECIAL PERMIT. UM, AND YOU KNOW, IT, THIS IS OUR PREFERENCE. UM, I THINK THE, THE SITE DESIGN WILL WORK BETTER WITH, UM, CURB CUTS AT THESE LOCATIONS, BUT, UM, WE NEED TO KIND OF, WE NEED TO MOVE FORWARD. AND, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE ASKED STAFF IF, YOU KNOW, IF WE SHOULD CONSIDER LOOKING AT A, A ZONING COMPLIANT CURB CUT, THEY ASKED US, UM, TO BRING IT TO, UH, TO YOU. OKAY. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER, UH, COMMENTS FROM FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS? I, UH, I JUST WANNA SAY THAT I, I HEAR CONCERNS ABOUT, UM, WHAT THE DEVELOPMENT MIGHT LOOK LIKE, BUT WHAT'S ULTIMATELY BEFORE US TONIGHT IS THESE CURB CUTS AND SPECIAL PERMIT ABOUT THE CURB CUTS. UM, AND FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE, THIS LOOKS LIKE THE MOST REASONABLE SOLUTION TO ME TO, TO WORK WITH THE EXISTING INTERSECTION. SO, OH, THANK YOU, MIRANDA. YEAH. UH, THIS IS VIRGINIA. I WOULD AGREE THAT IT SEEMS LIKE THE SCOPE OF WHAT WE'RE BEING ASKED TO CONSIDER HERE IS PRETTY NARROW. YEAH, I AGREE WITH THAT. UM, OKAY. UH, SO IF THERE'S, UH, NO OTHER, UH, ANY OTHER ADDITIONAL COMMENTS, I'LL, I'LL MAKE A MOTION. UH, THE CHAIR MAKES A MOTION TO GRANT A SPECIAL PERMIT FROM THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE ORDINANCE UNDER SECTIONS 6.4, 3.4 B INTERSECTION, CURB CUT LOCATIONS, SECTION 6.4, 3.5, SPECIAL PERMIT PROVISIONS, AND SECTION 10.40 FOR A SPECIAL PERMIT. UM, AND TO ENSURE, UH, THE APPLICATION MEETS THE CRITERIA FOR A SPECIAL PERMIT, UH, GUIDELINES, A, IT APPEARS THE REQUIREMENTS OF THIS ORDINANCE CANNOT OR WILL NOT BE MET. UH, CAMBRIDGE HOUSING AUTHORITY IS, UH, IS PLANNING THE REDEVELOPMENT OF THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING ON THIS PARCEL UNDER THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING OVERLAY IN FULL COMPLIANCE WITH THE CAMBRIDGE ZONING ORDINANCE. PREVIOUS PLANS FROM THIS PARCEL MUST BE COMPLETELY REDESIGNED TO ACCOMMODATE UPDATED FLOODING AND RESILIENCE RESILIENCY ZONING STANDARDS. SO, NO CURRENT PLANS EXIST, HOWEVER, BOTH THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS AND DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION HAVE REQUESTED THAT ANY NEW DRIVEWAYS FOR THE NEW DEVELOPMENT ALONG VALLA AVENUE BE COMBINED WITH EXISTING THREE-WAY INTERSECTIONS TO CREATE FOUR-WAY INTERSECTIONS. BECAUSE THE FOUR, THE ZONING ORDINANCE REQUIRES CURB CUTS TO BE AT LEAST 25 FEET FROM AN INTERSECTION. THE CURB CUT LOCATIONS REQUESTED BY THE CITY CANNOT MEET THE ZONING ORDINANCE. UH, ITEM B, TRAFFIC GENERATED, OR PATTERNS OF ACCESS OR EGRESS WOULD CAUSE CONGESTION, HAZARD, [00:30:01] OR SUBSTANTIAL CHANGE. UH, BOTH THE CAMBRIDGE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS AND DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION SPECIFICALLY REQUESTED THAT THE CHA SUBMIT THE SPECIAL PERMIT APPLICATION FOR THESE PROPOSED NON-CONFORMING CURB CUT LOCATIONS BECAUSE THEY BELIEVE THESE ARE THE SAFEST LOCATIONS FOR THE DRIVEWAYS FOR A PLANNED DEVELOPMENT OF CORCORAN PARK. UH, ITEM C, THE CONTINUED OPERATION OF, OR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ADJACENT USE AS PERMITTED IN THE ZONING ORDINANCE WOULD BE ADVERSELY AFFECTED, UH, TRAFFIC EXPERTS FROM CH A'S CONSULTANTS. NICHE, NICHE ENGINEERING, AND THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION BOTH AGREE THAT COMBINING THE DRIVEWAYS OF A PROPOSED NEW DEVELOPMENT WITH EXISTING THREE-WAY INTERSECTIONS TO CREATE NEW FOUR-WAY INTERSECTIONS WILL BE MUCH SAFER THAN THE EXISTING MISALIGNED INTERSECTION. IT IS THE EXPERT'S POSITION, UH, THAT ZONING COMPLIANT CURB CUTS THAT ARE 25 FEET AWAY FROM EXISTING INTERSECTION WOULD ADVERSELY AFFECT ADJACENT USES. UM, ITEM D NUISANCE OR HAZARD WOULD BE CREATED TO THE DETRIMENT OF HEALTH, SAFETY, WELFARE OF THE OCCUPANT. UH, TRAFFIC EXPERTS, UM, FROM CH A'S CONSULTANT TEAM, UH, AND THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION BOTH AGREE THAT COMBINING THE DRIVEWAYS TO CREATE, UH, TWO NEW FOUR-WAY INTERSECTIONS WILL BE MUCH SAFER THAN THE EXISTING MISALIGNED INTERSECTION, UH, ITEM. AND LASTLY, ITEM E. AND FOR OTHER REASONS, THE PROPOSED USE WOULD IMPAIR THE INTEGRITY OF THE DISTRICT OR ADJOINING DISTRICT. UH, CONS CON CONSOLIDATION OF THE CURB CUTS WITH EXISTING THREE-WAY INTERSECTIONS WILL IMPROVE AUTOMOBILE AND PEDESTRIAN SAFETY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD. SO IN THAT, BY THAT FINDING, THEY MEET THE CRITERIA UNDER SECTIONS 10.4 FOR A SPECIAL PERMIT. SO ON THE CONDITION THAT THE WORK PROPOSED CONFORMED TO THE SET, INCLUDED IN THE PACKAGE, WHICH INCLUDES, UH, THE STUDIO G ARCHITECT'S, UH, 18 CUSHING COURT PARCEL 2 55 DASH 1 0 0 PLAN OF PROPOSED CURB CUT LOCATIONS REQUESTING ZONING RELIEF, ALONG WITH, UH, SEVERAL GOOGLE MAPS, STREET VIEWS, AND AN EXISTING SITE PLAN, UH, EXISTING CONDITIONS PLAN DATED 3 6 24 BY ALAN AND MAJOR AND ASSOCIATES INCORPORATED. AND FURTHER THAT WE INCORPORATE THE SUPPORTING STATEMENTS IN DIMENSIONAL FORM SUBMITTED AS PART OF THE APPLICATION. UH, ON A VOICE VOTE, PLEASE. BOARD MEMBERS, UH, VIRGINIA KEESLER. VIRGINIA KEESLER IN FAVOR. THANK YOU. UH, BRAND SHIM. BRAND SHI IN FAVOR. THANK YOU. DANIEL HIDALGO. DANIEL HIDALGO, IN FAVOR. THANK YOU, MIRANDA. CECIL. MIRANDA. CECIL IN FAVOR, AND STEVEN ING IN FAVOR, UH, THE VOTE, UH, THE VOTE IS FIVE TO ZERO, UH, THE SPECIAL PERMIT IS GRANTED. UM, THANK YOU. AND, UH, NOW WE MOVE ON TO, UH, THE SECOND AGENDA ITEM THIS EVENING. UH, CASE NUMBER BZA 1 2 1 8 5 2 5, I BELIEVE, UH, FOR 1 62 OTIS STREET, UM, OWNED BY EAD AND SHELLY SHUSHAN IN, UH, REPRESENTED BY SARAH RATTIGAN. UH, SEEKING A VARIANCE FOR CONSTRUCTION OF A REAR EDITION THAT VIOLATES SIDE SETBACK REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DISTRICT. UH, CITING SECTIONS 5.31, UH, TABLE OF DIMENSIONAL REQUIREMENTS, SECTION 8.2 0.3, NONCONFORMING STRUCTURE, AND SECTION 10.30, UH, FOR A VARIANCE. GOOD EVENING. GOOD EVENING, SARAH. GOOD EVENING, MR. CHAIRMAN. UM, AND GOOD EVENING, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. UH, FOR THE RECORD, SARAH RATTIGAN, TRILOGY LAW, LLC. UH, THE ADDRESS IS 12 MARSHALL STREET IN BOSTON. UM, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HEARING US, UH, THIS EVENING. UM, I AM HERE REPRESENTING THE OWNERS OF THIS PROPERTY, IAD AND SHELLY SHUSHAN, WHO I BELIEVE ARE ON THE CALL, ALTHOUGH I'M LOOKING TO SEE IF THEY'VE BEEN INVITED IN YET. UM, AND HERE WITH MEMBERS OF OUR PROJECT TEAM, INCLUDING THE, UM, ARCHITECTURAL TEAM IN, UM, THE, UH, CIVIL ENGINEER AND THE PROJECT MANAGER. UM, THIS IS A PROJECT WE HAD, WE HAD APPLIED AND, AND SORT OF STARTED A HEARING THE OTHER DAY. WE, WE DIDN'T ACTUALLY OPEN THE HEARING, UM, BECAUSE OF SOME [00:35:01] PROCEDURAL ISSUES WITH HOW THE APPLICATION WAS WRITTEN. AND, UM, WE ARE BACK, UH, AGAIN. AND, UM, THE, UH, THE PROJECT IS, UH, INVOLVES A REQUEST FOR A VARIANCE THAT WILL ALLOW A RECONSTRUCTED, UH, A NEW, A NEW CONSTRUCTION ON AN OLD FOUNDATION, UM, TO ALLOW THE BUILDING TO EXTEND NINE FEET FURTHER BACK IN THE LOT THEN IT DOES CURRENTLY, OR DID CURRENTLY. AND, UM, IN THE APPLICATION, IF, UH, YOU HAD A CHANCE TO READ THE NARRATIVE, UM, WE TRIED TO SET OUT SORT OF THE HISTORY OF WHAT HAPPENED HERE, UM, BECAUSE IT WAS A LITTLE BIT UNUSUAL IN TERMS OF THE POSTURE THAT THIS WAS COMING TO THE, TO THE BOARD. UM, BUT ESSENTIALLY, UM, THE, THE HINS HAD OWNED THIS PROPERTY FOR, UM, A FEW YEARS, UM, WITH TENANTS LIVING THERE. UM, THE BUILDING WAS, UM, NOT IN GREAT SHAPE, AND THEY'VE KNOWN THAT THEY NEEDED TO DO A, A MAJOR RENOVATION, UM, UH, TO, YOU KNOW, TO BRING IT UP TO SORT OF, YOU KNOW, SAFER AND, AND MODERN LIVING, LIVING STANDARDS. UM, AND A PROJECT SUCH AS THIS WAS GONNA BE SIGNIFICANT. UM, AND AS THEY WENT THROUGH SORT OF THE PLANNING PROCESS, UM, THEY, UM, UH, DISCOVERED THAT STRUCTURALLY, UH, THE BUILDING WAS NOT SOUND. UM, SO IT HAS AN OLD MASONRY FOUNDATION THAT, UM, CAN BE WORKED WITH, BUT UM, WOULD NOT BE SUFFICIENT TO SUPPORT, FOR EXAMPLE, A FOUR STORY OR, YOU KNOW, HIGHER LEVEL, UH, BUILDING, WHICH COULD BE DONE UNDER THE MULTIFAMILY ZONING. UM, AND THEY WANTED TO, YOU KNOW, KEEP A PROJECT THAT WAS WITHIN THE, SORT OF THE AESTHETIC OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD, UM, AND CAME UP WITH PLANS TO ESSENTIALLY RECONSTRUCT ABOVE THE EXISTING FOUNDATION, UM, ON THE FOOT, THE FOOTPRINT OF THE OLD HOME. UM, AND TO ADD ONE STORY. SO BEFORE IT WAS DEMOLISHED, IT WAS A TWO STORY HOME, AND IT WAS ON A VERY NARROW LOT. SO IT'S A 20 FOOT WIDE LOT, UM, A RELATIVELY DEEP LOT. SO, YOU KNOW, IT HAS SOME SPACE THERE. UM, AND THE HOME IS, IS, IS RELATIVELY CLOSE TO THE SIDE LOT LINE, SO LESS THAN FIVE FEET, WHICH WOULD BE REQUIRED IF IT WERE, IF WERE NEW CONSTRUCTION, UH, GROUND UP. UM, AND SO LOOKING AT, YOU KNOW, WHERE CAN THEY SORT OF FIT THE ELEMENTS OF THE PROJECT THAT THAT NEED TO BE ADDED, UM, THEY FOUND THAT THE, THE, THE ONLY SORT OF CHOICE, OTHER THAN GOING UP FOUR STORIES WAS TO EXTEND THE BACK OF THE BUILDING, UM, BY THE, THE REQUEST TO YOU TODAY IS NINE FEET. AND TO EXTEND IT BACK WITHIN THE CURRENT, UM, LOT, UM, UM, SETBACKS, SO THE FRONT OF THE BUILDING, WE COULD REBUILD AS OF RIGHT IN ON THE FOOTPRINT OF THE EXISTING FOUNDATION. BUT THIS NINE FOOT EXTENSION WOULD BE WITHIN THE FIVE FOOT SIDE SETBACKS REQUIRING THE VARIANCE. SO THAT, THAT'S WHY WE'RE HERE TODAY. UM, AND I'LL GO THROUGH THE PLANS AND SHOW THEM, SHOW THEM TO YOU SO YOU CAN SEE THE, YOU KNOW, THE ACTUAL WORK. BUT BEFORE I DO THAT, I DID WANNA JUST TOUCH BRIEFLY ON THE VARIANCE STANDARD. YES. SO, UM, I FEEL, UM, EXCITED AND HONORED TO BE , TO, TO BE JUST, I JUST HAPPEN TO BE THE FIRST PERSON, UM, TO PRESENT TO THIS BOARD SINCE THE LAW CHANGED ON VARIANCES. AND, UM, SO THIS WAS, UH, PART OF A BUDGET BILL THAT PASSED THE, UM, WITH THE GOVERNOR SIGNING THE BILL ON JULY 9TH. BUT IT'S EFFECTIVE AS OF JULY 1ST. AND SO THE NEW VARIANCE LAW, I, I IMAGINE MEMBERS OF THE BOARD MAY HAVE RECEIVED SOMETHING FROM THE LAW DEPARTMENT, BUT UM, THE OLD STANDARD DOES NOT APPLY ANYMORE. IT'S COMPLETELY, IT'S REALLY COMPLETELY GONE. ALTHOUGH SOME ELEMENTS ARE, ARE IN ONE PORTION OF THE, OF THE VARIANCE STANDARD. UM, BUT IF IT'S OKAY, I THOUGHT I WOULD JUST, UM, READ THE ELEMENTS OF IT. I'M NOT GONNA READ THE WHOLE TEXT OF IT BECAUSE I THINK THAT'S TOO MUCH, BUT JUST THE ELEMENTS OF IT. 'CAUSE THEN I CAN TELL YOU HOW WE MEET THIS NEW STANDARD. I THINK WE MET THE OLD STANDARD. YEAH. BUT I THINK FOR SURE WE MEET THE NEW STANDARD. SO, UM, SO UNDER THIS BUDGET, IT'S THE FISCAL YEAR 27 BUDGET BILL, SECTION 10 VARIANCES OF CHAPTER 40 A, UM, A VARIANCE, UM, APOLOGIES HERE. UM, UH, THE, UM, THE PERMIT GRANTING AUTHORITY, UH, MAY GRANT AN APPEAL OR UPON A PETITION A VARIANCE FROM THE TERMS OF THE APPLICABLE ZONE ZONING ORDINANCE. IF THE PERMIT GRANT GRANTING AUTHORITY, THAT'S THE BOARD SPECIFICALLY FINDS THAT STRICT ENFORCEMENT OF THE ORDINANCE WOULD RESULT IN A PRACTICAL DIFFICULTY. SO THOSE ARE KIND OF OUR NEW MAGIC WORDS AS OPPOSED TO HARDSHIP AND MM-HMM . BURDEN, ET CETERA. SO IT'S PRACTICAL DIFFICULTY AND MAKING ITS DETERMINATION. THE [00:40:01] PERMIT GRANTING AUTHORITY SHALL WEIGH THE BENEFITS TO THE APPLICANT, OR TO THE APPELLANT, TO THE PETITIONER AND TO THE PUBLIC INTEREST, INCLUDING THE INTEREST IN SUPPORTING THE PRODUCTION OF HOUSING AGAINST THE DETRIMENT TO THE PUBLIC HEALTH, SAFETY, AND WELFARE OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD. SO THERE'S A WEIGHING OF BENEFITS, WHICH IS INTERESTING. AND IN THIS PROJECT, UM, THE, THE, THE DRIVER OF THIS IS ONE TO, TO BE ABLE TO, UM, PRESERVE A HOUSE LOT, TO, TO CONTINUE TO HAVE RESIDENTIAL HOUSING HERE, THERE WERE TWO UNITS THAT WERE IN REALLY QUITE ROUGH SHAPE, UM, IN A BUILDING AT THE END OF ITS LIFE. AND THE NEW PROJECT WILL ALLOW FOR THREE UNITS OF HOUSING, UM, YOU KNOW, QUITE REASONABLE SIZED HOMES, UM, MODERN CODE COMPLIANT AND, AND SAFE. UM, AND SO THE, YOU KNOW, THE BENEFIT OF HOUSING IS, IS CLEARLY A, A STRONG ELEMENT HERE. MM-HMM . SO THE FACTORS THAT YOU CONSIDER THERE ARE THREE, FOUR, WHETHER THE PRACTICAL DIFFICULTY RELATES TO SOIL CONDITIONS, SHAPE, OR TOPOGRAPHY OF SUCH LAND OR STRUCTURES. SO THAT'S WHERE THE OLD VARIANCE CONCEPT COMES BACK IN. UM, AND, UM, WE HAD SET THIS OUT IN OUR ORIGINAL APPLICATION, BUT, UM, THE LOT, THERE'S THE, THERE SEVERAL FACTORS, BUT THERE'S A VERY NARROW LOT. SO ONLY 20 FOOT, 20 FEET WIDE, WHICH IS ONE OF OUR MAIN CONSTRAINTS. UM, AND IN TERMS OF THE SHAPE OF THE LOT, IT'S SORT OF LONG AND NARROW, UM, THE OLD EXISTING STRUCTURE, WHICH WAS CLOSE TO THE LOT LINE. SO AGAIN, SORT OF LIKE A SHAPE ISSUE. UM, AND THEN, UM, SOIL CONDITIONS, I THINK THAT THE FLOOD ELEVATION IS, IS, IS A, IS A TYPE OF SOIL CONDITION. SO FLOOD ELEVATIONS, PROVI, UM, UH, HAVE US IN A RISK AREA WHERE IT REQUIRES THAT WE MOVE MECHANICAL SYSTEMS UP IN THE BUILDING. AND ALSO THE ONE MECHANICAL AREA THAT WE DO NEED TO HAVE AT THE LOWEST LEVEL, UM, WE NEED TO CREATE LIKE AN ACCESS STAIR THAT GOES UP AND IN. UM, BUT ESSENTIALLY WE'RE, WE'RE LOSING SOME USABLE SPACE IN THE BASEMENT MM-HMM . AND SO THAT NINE FOOT EXTENSION IS EVEN MORE CRITICAL TO THE PROJECT BEING FEASIBLE AND, UM, YOU KNOW, CREATING ADEQUATE HOUSING. UM, THE THIRD PRONG IS WHETHER THE BENEFIT, I'M SORRY, THE SECOND PRONG IS WHETHER STRICT ENFORCEMENT WOULD, WOULD IMPOSE A FINANCIAL HARDSHIP. UM, AND THE FINANCIAL HARDSHIP IS LIKE VERY REAL AND VERY PRACTICAL, WHICH IS WITHOUT THAT ADDITIONAL SPACE, UM, THEY ARE LOSING VERY SIGNIFICANT AND, AND IMPORTANT, UM, RENTABLE SQUARE FEET. UM, THE PROJECT'S QUITE EXPENSIVE AS YOU CAN, UM, ALREADY KNOWS WHAT CONSTRUCTION COSTS ARE THESE DAYS. UM, AND THESE ARE NOT, YOU KNOW, FANCY DEVELOPERS WITH BIG POCKETS. IT'S A COUPLE WHO'S TRYING TO MAKE A PROJECT WORK. SO, UM, THE LOSS OF THIS POTENTIAL SPACE WOULD BE, WOULD BE A REAL, A REAL, UM, IMPEDIMENT TO THE PROJECT. UM, AND THE NEXT PRONG, THE THIRD PRONG IS WHETHER THE PETITIONER CAN ACHIEVE THIS BY SOME OTHER METHOD FEASIBLE. UM, AND WE HAVE LOOKED VERY LONG AND HARD AT THE SITE AND DON'T SEE ANOTHER FEASIBLE OPPORTUNITY. UM, I MENTIONED ONE COULD BUILD ON THE CURRENT FOOTPRINT AND BUILD UP FOUR STORIES, RIGHT? AS OF WELL, BUT IT WOULD NOT BE AS OF RIGHT BECAUSE WE WOULD NEED TO COME TO YOU FOR A VARIANCE BECAUSE WE WOULD, IN THAT CASE, WE WOULD HAVE TO DEMOLISH THE EXISTING FOUNDATION. WE COULDN'T BUILD UPON IT, IN WHICH CASE IT WOULD BE NEW CONSTRUCTION, YOU KNOW, FROM UNDERGROUND UP. AND THAT WOULD REQUIRE A VARIANCE FOR THOSE SIDE SETBACKS. UM, AND THE PETITIONER DOESN'T WANNA DO THAT PROJECT. UM, AND THE COST WOULD BE, UH, QUITE SIGNIFICANT. UM, THE LAST PRONG IS WHETHER THE PRACTICAL DIFFICULTY WAS SELF-CREATED AND THIS, THIS ONE WAS NOT. THERE'S NOTHING ABOUT THIS THAT, UH, THE APPLICANT SORT OF BROUGHT UPON THEMSELVES. UM, I'M SORRY THAT I, I DID A, A LONG DISCUSSION OF THAT, BUT I HOPE THAT WAS HELPFUL. UM, THEN SARAH, IT WAS PERFECT 'CAUSE WE WERE PLANNING TO HAVE TO DO THAT ANYWAY, SO, OKAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH. GOOD, GOOD, GOOD. I WAS TRYING TO SAVE YOU THAT WORK. UM, YES, YES. YEAH, IT TOOK A LITTLE BIT OF TIME TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE NEW LEGAL STANDARD, BUT, UM, BUT, UM, AND, AND I KNOW THAT THE, THE CITY WILL PROBABLY BE AMENDING ITS ORDINANCE TO REFLECT THE NEW LAW, UH, AS WELL, CORRECT. AS, AS YOU'VE STATED, IT WAS SIGNED AND, AND, YOU KNOW, SHARED THE NEWS WAS SHARED WITH THE PUBLIC ON JULY 9TH, UH, AND IT WAS RETROACTIVE TO JULY 1ST. SO, UM, YEAH, WE HAVE RECEIVED TRAINING, THE BOARD HAS RECEIVED TRAINING ON THIS CHANGE, AND, UH, THAT IS ON OUR LIST, UH, TO KIND OF UPDATE OUR VARIANCE SECTION TO REFLECT IT. SO, YEP. THANK [00:45:01] YOU. GREAT. YEP. YEP. THANK YOU. AND THEN, UM, STEVEN, IF YOU DON'T MIND SHARING THE, UM, THOSE SLIDES, I'LL, I'LL, YEAH, I'LL GO THROUGH THE VISUAL. SO JUST SO YOU CAN SEE WHERE THIS, WHERE THE, WHAT THE LOT LOOKS LIKE AND THE CONSTRUCTION. OKAY, GREAT. SO, UH, TWO PAGES FORWARD, I BELIEVE. UM, THESE ARE EXISTING FLOOR PLANS, WE CAN SKIP TO THE NEXT EXISTING ELEVATIONS. YOU CAN JUST SEE IT'S A TWO STORY, AS YOU SAID, NARROW BUILDING. OKAY. AND THE NEXT ONE, THIS IS, UH, SHOWING THE PROPOSED FLOOR PLAN. SO IF YOU LOOK AT THE, AT THE BASEMENT LEVEL FLOOR PLAN, YOU CAN SEE IN RED, UM, DEMARCATED THE, THE NINE FOOT, UH, PORTION OF THE BUILDING THAT IS LOCATED IN AN AREA WHERE THE BUILDING DIDN'T EXIST BEFORE. SO THAT'S, THAT'S THE FOOTPRINT. IT DOES GO UP ALL THREE FLOORS FROM THE BASEMENT UP. BUT THAT'S THE AREA THAT, UM, IS, UM, IS REQUIRING VARIANCE. AND ACTUALLY, TO BE MORE SPECIFIC, IT'S NOT THE WHOLE ADDITION, IT'S JUST THE PARTS OF THE ADDITION THAT ARE WITHIN FIVE FEET OF THE SIDE SETBACKS. SO WE HAVE PLENTY OF REAR SETBACK AND WE'RE COMPLYING WITH OPEN SPACE AND HEIGHT AND EVERYTHING ELSE. IT'S JUST THE FACT THAT THAT ADDITION EXTENDS OUT TO THE, TO THE SAME, UM, WIDTH AS THE REST OF THE BUILDING. UM, ONE THING THAT I DIDN'T MENTION DURING THE DISCUSSION OF, UM, UH, HOW STRICT ENFORCEMENT WOULD BE, WOULD BE A REAL PROBLEM FOR US IS IF WE EXTENDED OUT AND WE HAD FIVE FOOT SETBACKS ON EACH SIDE, IT'S A 20 FOOT LOT, SO THIS WOULD RESULT WITH A LESS THAN 10 FOOT, UM, SORT OF PROTRUSION AT THE BACK, WHICH WOULD BE PRETTY UNUSABLE SPACE FOR, FOR LIVING SPACE. UM, NEXT SLIDE. UH, NEXT SLIDE. I THINK WE NEED TO SEE THE CROSS SECTION. UH, GOOD ELEVATION. THANK YOU, STEVEN. UM, HERE YOU CAN JUST SEE WHAT THE FRONT VIEW OF, UM, THE, YOU KNOW, WHAT ALL THE DIFFERENT VIEWS OF THE HOME, UH, WOULD BE. UH, UH, BELIEVE AND I, IT, IT'S A LITTLE HARD TO SEE, BUT ON THE PROPOSED LEFT SIDE ELEVATION, YOU CAN SEE THE NINE FOOT EDITION MARKED OUT THERE. SO THAT'S THE AREA. IT'S NOT REALLY AN ADDITION, BUT EXTENSION, THAT'S THE AREA AGAIN, WHERE THE, WHERE THE VARIANCE APPLIES, THE REST OF THE WORK BEING AS OF RIGHT. NEXT PAGE, UH, PERFECT. THIS THE PLOT PLAN. THANKS, STEVEN. SO HERE YOU CAN JUST SEE, UM, IN A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAIL WHERE THE, UM, THE PROPOSED ADDITION, UH, IS IMPACTING THE SIDE SETBACKS. OKAY. NEXT PAGE PLEASE. UM, THERE'S SOMEPLACE WHERE THERE'S A PHOTO. YEAH, IT MIGHT BE AT THE END OF THIS. THERE WE GO. IF YOU DON'T MIND JUST A QUICK VIEW OF THE PHOTO SO PEOPLE CAN SEE WHAT THE AREA LOOKS LIKE. SO THERE'S THE EXISTING, THE, THE HOME BEFORE IT WAS DEMOLISHED, AND HERE IS WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE ESSENTIALLY TODAY. UM, AND IF YOU, IF YOU READ THE APPLICATION, THERE WAS A STORY AS TO HOW THE DEMOLITION, YOU KNOW, OCCURRED ESSENTIALLY SOONER THAN IT WOULD'VE OTHERWISE. BECAUSE WHEN THEY WENT TO DO, UM, PRE DEMOLITION ASBESTOS REMOVAL, THERE WAS SO MUCH ASBESTOS IN THE BUILDING THAT IT LEFT THE STRUCTURE UNSOUND. AND THE, UM, THE CONSTRUCTION TEAM WAS REALLY CONCERNED ABOUT, UM, UH, FAILURE OF THE BUILDING. AND IT'S IN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO ITS NEIGHBOR. SO THEY SPOKE TO ISD AND THE ISD SAID, YES, YOU CAN REMOVE, REMOVE THIS, UH, STRUCTURE 'CAUSE YOU KNOW YOU ARE GONNA BE NEEDING TO DEMOLISH IT. UM, AND STEVEN, IF YOU DON'T MIND GOING BACK TO A PRETTIER PICTURE, , WHAT WE, OR WE CAN, WE CAN END THE PRESENTATION UNLESS, UM, FOLKS HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR, OR POINTS THAT YOU WANTED TO DISCUSS. THANK YOU. THANKS SARAH. UM, I GUESS OUR QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD, IF ANY, UH, HEARING NONE, UH, [00:50:03] I GUESS WE CAN OPEN IT TO, UH, PUBLIC COMMENT. UH, I DON'T BELIEVE THERE'S ANY LETTERS IN THE FILE, RIGHT? I DIDN'T SEE ANY, NOPE, NO CORRESPONDENCE IN THE FILE. UH, ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO WISH TO SPEAK SHOULD NOW CLICK THE ICON AT THE BOTTOM OF YOUR ZOOM SCREEN THAT SAYS RAISE HAND. IF YOU'RE CALLING IN BY PHONE, YOU CAN RAISE YOUR HAND BY PRESSING STAR NINE AND UNMUTE OR MUTE BY PRESSING STAR SIX. I'LL NOW ASK STAFF TO UNMUTE THE SPEAKERS ONE AT A TIME. YOU SHOULD BEGIN BY SAYING YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS, AND STAFF WILL CONFIRM THAT THEY CAN HEAR YOU. AFTER YOU WILL HAVE UP TO TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK BEFORE I ASK YOU TO WRAP UP. PHONE NUMBER EIGHT THREE ONE ONE. HELLO, HEATHER HOFFMAN, TWO 13 HURLEY STREET. UM, I HAVE A QUESTION LESS ABOUT THIS PROPERTY THAN ABOUT THE ADJOINING PROPERTIES. I WILL ASSUME THAT IN ORDER TO EXTEND IT FARTHER BACK, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO DO EXCAVATION. UM, IS THE EXCAVATION GOING TO GO TO THE LOT LINE ON EITHER SIDE? AND IF SO, IS IT GOING TO JEOPARDIZE EITHER STRUCTURES OR TREES ON THE ABUTTING LOTS? THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION, MS. HOFFMAN. UM, UH, SARAH, COULD YOU PROVIDE US, UH, A RESPONSE FOR THAT? UM, YES. UM, SO THE, I BELIEVE THAT, UM, THE PLANS HAVE BEEN REVIEWED. UM, I'M, I'M HESITATING BECAUSE I'M NOT THE ONE WHO, WHO, YOU KNOW, DEALS WITH ESSENTIALLY CONSTRUCTION RELATED ISSUES. UM, I APPRECIATE THE CALLER'S CONCERN AND, AND QUESTION THERE. I WOULD POINT OUT THAT ON THE LEFT SIDE, UM, ACTUALLY, IF I, I'M REALIZING THAT, UM, ALEX HEIDAR, WHO'S ON THE CALL SAID THAT HE CAN ANSWER THAT. SO I'M GONNA HAVE HIM SPEAK. THANK YOU. THANKS ALEX. ALEX, WE CAN'T HEAR YOU IF YOU'RE SPEAKING. OH, OKAY. CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? YEAH, WE HEAR YOU NOW, ALEX. OKAY, GREAT. SO I, I WORKED ON THE OPEN SPACE AND THE GREEN FACTOR, UH, UH, SPREADSHEET, AND I CAN CONFIRM THAT THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO IMPACT ON, UM, THE GREEN SPACE WHATSOEVER. WE ARE ACTUALLY GOING TO BE REPLANTING, UH, A TREE THAT SPECIFICALLY WAS REQUESTED BY THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE. IT'S IN THE MAPLE FAMILY. WE'RE GOING TO BE PUTTING IT IN THE CORNER, AND THE REMAINING LAWN IS GONNA BE MAINTAINED AS A LAWN, AS A GRASSY LAWN. SO, UH, THERE IS NO, YEAH, THAT'S, YEAH. THANK YOU, ALEX. YEAH. RESPECTFULLY, THAT WAS NOT THE QUESTION I ASKED YOU. PLEASE REPEAT THE QUESTION I ASKED ABOUT THE ABUTTERS. THEY ALSO HAVE BUILDINGS. THEY MAY HAVE TREES, AND I CAN SAY THAT, UM, THE URBAN FORESTRY DIVISION OF THE CITY HAS EXPRESSED CONCERN OVER THE EFFECT OF, UM, CONSTRUCTION JUST LIKE THIS ON THE HEALTH OF TREES ON A BUT'S PROPERTY. ABSOLUTELY. BUT WE ARE NOT, YOU KNOW, THE ABUTTERS DIDN'T SIGN UP FOR HAVING THEIR TREES KILLED. YOU TOTALLY UNDERSTAND THAT, I'M SURE. YES. BUT WE ARE NOT TOUCHING ABUT PROPERTY. WE'RE NOT GOING PAST OUR, UM, PROPERTY LINES. SO, UH, WHATEVER IS ON THE ABUTTER SIDE WILL NOT BE TOUCHED. WE, WE DON'T HAVE ANY REASON TO ACCESS THE ABUTTERS PROPERTY UNLESS WE NEED TO BRING LARGE EQUIPMENT. AND AS OF NOW, THAT'S NOT ON THE PLAN AT ALL BECAUSE ALL THE WORK THAT IS, UM, PROPOSED IS GOING TO HAPPEN FROM THE STREET SIDE, NOT FROM THE ABUTTER SIDE. SO THERE'S NO IMPACT ON ANY OF THE ABUTS PROPERTIES. OKAY. LET ME BE MORE EXPLICIT. I'M SORRY, MR. CHAIRMAN, FREE ROOTS DON'T KNOW WHERE [00:55:01] THE, THE LOT LINE IS. THAT'S WHY THE CITY'S URBAN FORESTRY DIVISION HAS SPOKEN IN PUBLIC ABOUT THE NEED TO WORRY ABOUT THIS. AND I, I WILL LET YOU TAKE IT. I KNOW MR. MR. HADAR, IT'S, THANK YOU. ANYWAY, HE'S JUST NOT ANSWERING THE QUESTION. AND I THINK THAT THE BOARD AS WELL, MS. MS. HOFFMAN, I THINK WOULD, WOULD BE INTERESTED IN THE ACTUAL ANSWER TO THE ACTUAL QUESTION. THANKS. SO YOUR QUESTION WAS ABOUT THE IMPACT TO THE ADJACENT NEIGHBOR OR THE RESIDENTS, ABUTTERS AND THE ARCHITECT. THE BUILDING IS NOT ON THE LOT LINE, AND HE HAS TESTIFIED THAT THE WORK WILL OCCUR WITHIN THE SITE BOUNDARY. SO I THINK HE ANSWERED THE QUESTION. AND IF THE URBAN FORESTRY FOLKS, IF THE URBAN FORESTRY DEPARTMENT HAS ANY CONCERNS, I'M SURE WHEN THE BUILDING PERMIT IS FILED THAT THEY WILL CITE THAT JUST AS YOU KNOW, THEY EXPECT THEY DIRECTED THEM TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL TREE ON THEIR OWN PROPERTY. I, I THINK THAT'S PRETTY CLEAR. THE CONCERN HAS BEEN RAISED BY CITY STAFF IN THE URBAN FORESTRY DIVISION CONCERNING THE EFFECT OF EXCAVATION UP TO THE LOT LINE, BECAUSE TREE ROOTS DON'T STOP AT THE LOT. LINE TREE ROOTS GO WHERE THEY GO. AND IF THERE WAS A LAWN THERE, THEN TREE ROOTS IF THERE ARE TREES. I DON'T KNOW. I'M JUST ASKING. AND I HAVE DONE ENOUGH WORK AS A REAL ESTATE LAWYER AND CONVEYANCER FOR MORE THAN 30 YEARS TO KNOW THAT SOMETIMES IF YOU EXCAVATE THE WORK AFFECTS THE FOUNDATION OR OTHER STRUCTURES NEXT DOOR BECAUSE IT, IT UNDERMINES WHAT'S HOLDING IT UP. SO THAT'S WHY I ASKED. I DIDN'T ASK ANYTHING EXCEPT FOR PRESUMABLY THEY'RE GOING TO EXCAVATE TO THE LOT LINE SO THAT THEY CAN BUILD THIS STRUCTURE THAT IS NORMAL, EVEN WITH A FIVE FOOT SETBACK. SO I'M DONE. THANK YOU. OKAY. THANK YOU, MS. HOFFMAN. I, I BELIEVE THAT USUALLY GETS ADDRESSED DURING BUILDING PERMIT TIME. UH, SO I THINK WE'LL BE, UH, AND YOU COULD REACH OUT TO THEM AND, AND, UH, LET THEM KNOW TO CITE THAT. SO I THINK WE'RE GOOD THERE. DOES ANYBODY ELSE ON THE CALL? NOPE. ALL RIGHT. SO, UH, WE'LL CLOSE A PUBLIC COMMENT AND, UM, DISCUSSION WITH THE BOARD. UH, ANYONE HAVE ANY COMMENTS, THOUGHTS ABOUT THE APPLICATION? UH, THIS IS DANIEL ALGO. YEAH. TO ME, THIS MEETS, YOU KNOW, DEFINITELY MEETS THE NEW STANDARD. SO, UM, AND, UH, YEAH, I, WHILE I UNDERSTAND THE CONCERN ABOUT TREES, I FEEL LIKE IT'S OUT OF OUR PURVIEW. IT'S, IT'S UP TO, AND, AND GIVEN THAT THE ABUTS THEMSELVES HAVEN'T EXPRESSED ANY CONCERNS, UM, THIS IS, YEAH, THIS IS A, A NOT, NOT REALLY OUR DOMAIN. YEP. THANKS DANIEL. AGREED. UM, ANYONE ELSE? ALL RIGHT. SO, UH, I'LL MAKE A MOTION. UH, CHAIR MAKES A MOTION TO GRANT RELIEF, UH, FROM THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE ORDINANCE UNDER OUR GRANT OF VARIANCE UNDER SECTIONS, UH, HOLD ON A SECOND. SORRY. SECTIONS 5.31, UH, TABLE OF DIMENSIONAL REQUIREMENTS AND 8.2, 2.3 NON-CONFORMING STRUCTURE. AND ARTICLE 10.3, UH, FOR VARIANCE AND JUST COMPLYING WITH THE NEW STANDARD, UH, GENERAL [01:00:01] LAW SECTION, UH, 40 A, UH, PERMIT GRANTING AUTHORITY SPECIFICALLY FINDS THAT A STRICT ENFORCEMENT OF THE ORDINANCE OR BYLAW SHOULD RE, WOULD RESULT IN A PRACTICAL DIFFICULTY IN MAKING ITS DETERMINATION. THE PERMIT GRANTING AUTHORITY SHALL WEIGH THE BENEFITS TO THE APPELLANT OR PETITIONER AND TO THE PUBLIC INTEREST, INCLUDING THE INTEREST IN SUPPORTING THE PRODUCTION OF HOUSING AGAINST THE DETRIMENT TO THE PUBLIC HEALTH, SAFETY, AND WELFARE OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD. AND MAY ALSO CONSIDER, AND I'LL CONSIDER THIS, I'LL USE THIS AS KIND OF OUR NEW GUIDELINE IN THE FUTURE, UM, THAT ONE, WHETHER THE PRACTICAL DIFFICULTY RELATES TO SOIL CONDITION, SHAPE, OR TOPOGRAPHY AS OF SUCH LAND OR STRUCTURES. AND THAT ITEM IS THE SHAPE OF THE SITE AS WELL AS, UH, THE NON-CONFORMITY AND FLOOD CONDITIONS. UM, SERVE, UH, CREATE, UH, A, A VERY PRAC, UH, THE PRACTICAL DIFFICULTY, UM, TO WHETHER THE STRICT ENFORCEMENT WOULD OF THE ZONING BYLAW WOULD IMPOSE A FINANCIAL HARDSHIP ON THE APPELLANT OR PETITIONER. AND YES, IT WOULD, UH, WITHOUT THIS ADDITIONAL SPACE PROPOSED IN THE APPLICATION, UH, THEY WOULD LOSE, UH, SIGNIFICANT, UH, RENTABLE SQUARE FOOTAGE, UM, AT, IN, IN THE PROJECT. AND THREE, WHETHER THE BENEFIT SOUGHT BY THE APPELLANT OR PETITIONER CAN BE ACHIEVED BY SOME OTHER METHOD FEASIBLE FOR THE APPELLANT OR PETITIONER TO ACHIEVE. AND, UM, YEAH, OTHER POSSIBLE OPTIONS WOULD RESULT IN, UM, RA MAKING A TALLER BUILDING OR, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, I THINK, UM, AN OTHER AND, UH, INCREASE OR IMPACT OF FI UH, SEVERE FINANCIAL CHALLENGE, UH, AND WHETHER THE PRACTICAL DIFFICULTY WAS SELF-CREATED, WHICH IT WAS NOT. UM, SO BY THAT FINDING, UH, THIS MOTION CONFIRMS THEY MEET THE CRITERIA IN THE SECTIONS 10.3 FOR VARIANCE AND ON THE CONDITION THAT THE WORK PROPOSED CONFORMED TO THE DRAWING SET INCLUDED IN THE APPLICATION PACKAGE, WHICH INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING DOCUMENTS, DRAWING SET TITLED TWO, FAMILY STRUCTURE REPLACEMENT WITH THREE FAMILY STRUCTURE AT 1 62 ODER STREET BY GUZMAN ARCHITECTS FRANKLIN MASS, UH, DATED 3 20 26. 2026. UM, EXCUSE ME, MR. CHAIRMAN. YES, I APOLOGIZE. THE REVISED PLAN SET, I BELIEVE HAS A LATER DATE. OH, I'M SORRY ABOUT, LET ME, THE REVISION DATE I BELIEVE IS 6 18 20 26. OH, YEAH, THAT IS, UM, MY APOLOGIES. THANK YOU. UM, WE'LL, WE'LL CORRECT THAT TO BE, UM, THE REVISION DATE ON THE ORIGINAL 3 20 26 SET IS JUNE 18TH, 2026. AND THAT ALSO UNDER CONDITION TWO, I FORGOT TO INCLUDE THAT. UM, THERE IS THE BENEFITS OF THE PETITION TO THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE AND THE COMMUNITY IS TO PRESERVE AN EXISTING HOUSING LOT FOR RESIDENTIAL USE AND PROVIDE THREE UNITS OF HOUSING. SO WE'LL PUT THAT WITH, UM, CONDITION, UH, CRITERIA NUMBER TWO, UM, AND FURTHER THAT WE INCORPORATE THE SUPPORTING DOC STATEMENTS AND DIMENSIONAL FORMS SUBMITTED AS PART OF THE APPLICATION. AND HONOR A VOICE VOTE PLEASE. BOARD MEMBERS, VIRGINIA KEESLER. VIRGINIA KEESLER IN FAVOR. THANK YOU. BRAND SHIM. BRAND SHIM IN FAVOR. THANKS. BRAND. UH, DANIEL HIDALGO. DANIEL HIDALGO, IN FAVOR. THANK YOU, MIRANDA. CECIL. MIRANDA. CECIL IN FAVOR, THANK YOU. AND STEVEN ING IN FAVOR. UH, THE VOTE IS FIVE TO ZERO IN FAVOR, SO THE VARIANCE IS GRANTED. THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. AND THAT ENDS OUR, UH, HEARING THIS EVENING. THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR ATTENDING. AND, UM, DID WE MAKE HISTORY BEING THE FIRST, UH, VARIANCE? OH, NO, NO. WE WILL FIND OUT. . GOODNIGHT EVERYONE. GOOD. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.