Northborough developer sues Town over decision to block apartment development
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129 Maple St. in Northborough
A Northborough developer is suing the Town’s Zoning Board of Appeals after the body rejected a special permit to demolish a fire-damaged, five-unit residential building and replace it with an updated building with the same amount of units.
The lawsuit, filed in Worcester County Superior Court on Tuesday by attorneys representing DJF Realty, claims the ZBA acted in an arbitrary and capricious manner when it voted on Oct. 24 to reject DJF’s attempt to demolish and replace the 2 ½ story building located at 129 Maple St.
The building was constructed around 1849, over a century before the Town would adopt zoning in 1955, according to the lawsuit. DJF seeks to demolish the building, which it says was irreparably damaged in a September 2021 fire, and replace it with a modern structure with the same amount of units.
However, the ZBA voted 3-2 in opposition of the proposal, claiming the proposed structure would be larger than the original building.
DJF claims the ZBA made an error in its decision, saying the proposed structure would comply with all dimensional requirements of the zoning bylaw. While the current structure is a pre-existing, nonconforming use, the lawsuit claims the ZBA is authorized to grant a special permit to extend or alter a nonconforming use if it determines the proposal would not be substantially more detrimental than the existing use.
The lawsuit points out the limited opportunities for multi-family development in Northborough, noting the Town’s zoning bylaw does not permit multi-family structures in any zoning district except for the Downtown Neighborhood Zoning District, which the suit says represents 0.3% of the town’s landmass.
Claiming the decision is based upon legally untenable grounds and exceeds the ZBA’s authority, DJF is asking the court to order the body to approve the special permit and site plan for the proposal.
This lawsuit comes in the midst of increased discussion regarding the state’s housing stock, as elected officials have said that the rate of development is falling well short of demand.
Northborough Planning Director Laurie Connors told WBJ via email the Planning Department has no comment at this time. DJF’s legal representation, Blatman, Bobrowski, Haverty and Silverstein of Concord, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from WBJ.
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