Stoneham Board of Appeals Approves Weiss Farm Design Changes, Demands Pump Data

STONEHAM -- March 27, 2025, Stoneham Board of Appeals unanimously approved design updates at Weiss Farm Apartments and granted zoning variances allowing a land transfer between two neighboring Summit Road-area properties at its March 27 meeting. Alternate member Bill Sullivan used the routine design-change vote for the 170 Franklin Street project to press developer representative Ian Gaskawigan on a stormwater pump he described as a persistent problem, saying he was "sick of listening about the pump house" and questioning why the board should approve new changes while an original site requirement remained in dispute. Chair Tobin Schulman directed the applicant to provide data logs from the pump's chart recorders, a manufacturer's inspection report from a diagnostic visit the following morning, and a written statement from the project engineer confirming the pump is correctly suited to its application, all before the April 24 meeting. The board approved the insubstantial change 5-0. In the public hearing, attorney Stephen Chicatelli successfully argued that topography, specifically a retaining wall separating a 2,022-square-foot triangular parcel from 3 Arthur Street, constituted the hardship justifying variances under Section 5.2.1 of the zoning bylaw, with the board voting 5-0 to allow the parcel to be conveyed to the owners of 28 Summit Road, reducing nonconforming lots in the area from two to one.