Marlborough ZBA lets 45 Maple Street six-unit petitioner withdraw before vote

MARLBOROUGH — August 25, 2020 — Marlborough ZBA pushes 45 Maple Street owner to withdraw rather than deny six-unit conversion. Attorney Michelle Barata and trustee Marc Resnick sought variances from Chapter 650-48 parking rules and Chapter 650-17 table of uses to restore the circa-1900 building to its pre-1974 six-family configuration, but Building Commissioner Jeffrey Cook's April 28 denial flagged five separate deficiencies, including eight parking spaces against 12 required, a 16.4-foot maneuvering aisle against a 24-foot standard, and no qualifying landscape area. Chair Ralph Loftin said he was "troubled not by the individual requests, but the aggregate," calling it a "classic case of trying to shoehorn an existing building into today's zoning requirements." Member Tom Pope moved to allow withdrawal without prejudice; the motion passed 5-0. Earlier, the board continued the 188-unit 339 Boston Post Road East floodplain special permit to Sept. 15, pending a Sept. 3 order of conditions from the Conservation Commission.