Town of Hingham Massachusetts - Town Government & Services, Departments: Zoning Board of Appeals

210 Central Street
Hingham, MA 02043-2759
Phone 781-741-1494
Fax 781-740-0239
Hours of Operation:
M-W-Th 8:30am - 4:30pm
Tues 8:30am-7:00pm
Fri 8:30am-1:00pm
Contact Us

Important Links :

BOARD OF APPEALS GUIDE to Zoning Terms and the Hearing Process

The Board of Appeals holds public hearings on applications for zoning variances and special permits and decides appeals of administrative decisions of the Town's zoning officials. Zoning hearings are generally held on Thursday evenings in the Central Meeting Room of the Town Hall, 210 Central Street. Staff is available Monday through Thursday to assist you in the application process and to answer zoning questions.

Regular Members	Term Expires
Jospeh W. Freeman	2011
Joseph M. Fisher	2013
W. Tod McGrath	2012
Associate Members	Term Expires
David W. Anderson	2011
Alan M. Kearney	2011
Mario Romania, Jr.	2011
Staff
Suzanne Letizia-Eddy, Zoning Administrator

The Board of Appeals has three regular members, appointed to 3-year terms, and four associate members appointed to 1-year terms. The Board of Selectmen makes all appointments.

In 2010 a total of thirty-one applications were received, resulting in sixty-one hearings being held. The Board of Appeals granted seven Variances. Variances are authorizations to use land or structures in a manner that is otherwise prohibited by the Zoning By-Law where the applicant demonstrates substantial hardship, unique conditions affecting the property and no substantial detriment to the public good. Projects approved included a residential Variance to maintain the existing dwelling during construction of a new dwelling on the same lot, and reconstruction of a retaining wall at Wilder Hall on Main Street. In September, after numerous hearings had been held, the Board allowed the withdrawal of a use Variance application to create a residential lot for a single family dwelling in Business District A on Bank Avenue.

The Board heard applications on eighteen Special Permit requests. Special Permits are authorizations to use land or structures for a specific use which is expressly permitted by the Special Permit, provided general guidelines as detailed in the By-Law and specific conditions arising from the review process itself are met. Special Permits are designed as a flexible tool to assure that the use is in harmony with the intent and purposes of the Zoning By-Law. Among those approved include construction of a Bone and Muscle Center in the Industrial Park, construction of a memory care center at the corner of Beal Street and Sgt. William B. Terry Drive, construction of TD Bank on a portion of the land previously occupied by Weber Dodge on Lincoln Street, to maintain an outdoor seasonal Farmers' Market at the Bathing Beach parking area on Otis Street and to allow Derby Street Shoppes to hold seasonal activities at Hidden Pond on their site; many of these hearings were held jointly with the Planning Board. Also approved after many public hearings and plan changes was the construction of one natural grass athletic field adjacent to the existing lacrosse field known as Margetts Field on Ward Street.

The Board would like to express its thanks for the support, cooperation and assistance we have received from all Town departments during the past year. The Board also would encourage all interested citizens to attend its hearings, which are generally held on selected Thursday evenings at Town Hall.

SUMMARY

Applications: 31
Hearings: 61
Special Permits: 18 (13 granted with conditions,
1 granted, 4 withdrawn)
Variances: 14 (5 granted with conditions,
2 granted, 6 withdrawn,
1 dismissed)
Appeals: 1 (1 denied in part)

Joseph W. Freeman, Chairman
W. Tod McGrath, Vice-Chairman
Joseph M. Fisher, Clerk

Suzanne Letizia-Eddy, Zoning Administrator