Archive for Zoning Category
Posted In: Uncategorized, Zoning
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Held McLean Hospital Program Can Operate in Residential Zoning District because it is Primarily Educational
The Supreme Judicial Court has held that a McLean Hospital program focused on developing the emotional and social skills of adolescents who exhibit extreme emotional dysregulation may, under the Dover…
Posted In: Zoning
The Land Court Draws a Fine Line on “Educational Use” under the Dover Amendment
If a proposed activity is more therapeutic than educational, it not protected by the Dover Amendment and therefore may not be conducted in a zoning district where it is not…
Posted In: Zoning
Appeals Court Relaxes Requirement to Notify Town Clerk of Zoning Appeal
In Hickey v. Zoning Board of Appeals of Dennis, a divided panel of the Massachusetts Appeals Court weakened and confused the requirement that a zoning appellant notify the Town Clerk…
Posted In: Zoning
SJC Reaffirms that Chapter 40B does not Supersede Property Rights
General Laws Chapter 40B was enacted nearly 50 years ago to overcome local obstacles to affordable housing. A powerful tool against parochial requirements and regulations, it authorizes the municipal zoning…
Posted In: Zoning
Approval of Structural Modification Does Not Protect Unlawful Use of the Property
The Massachusetts Appeals Court recently held that the addition of a fire escape under a building permit did not start the 6-year limitations period for enforcement regarding the use of…
Posted In: Zoning
Un-Neighborly Conduct: Adjacent Town Lacks Standing to Block Asphalt Plant
In the latest battle in the ongoing dispute over a proposed asphalt plant in Westford abutting the Chelmsford town line, the Superior Court recently held that Chelmsford has no standing…
Posted In: Uncategorized, Zoning
Time to Make the Donuts? Appeals Court Rules Hopkinton Dunkin’ Donuts Could Be a Retail Store
Fast-food coffee shops may look virtually the same from town to town, but as a recent Appeals Court decision reminds planners and local land use boards, what a town’s zoning…
Posted In: Zoning
Fourth Circuit Upholds FCC’s Section 6409(a) Order Preempting State and Local Regulation of Eligible Facilities Requests
Soon after the FCC issued its Order implementing Section 6409(a) of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012, which preempts traditional local zoning authority over eligible…