City discussing settlements in zoning board case about assistive disability housing

The City of Waltham is negotiating a settlement in litigation brought by a local nonprofit that provides housing and support to people with intellectual disabilities.

Last July, Walnut Street Center filed a complaint against Waltham’s Zoning Board of Appeals. The complaint referred to a ZBA decision a month prior that denied the WHC a building permit for 131 Pond End Rd. where it intended to build a house for five adults with disabilities. This complaint appealed the ZBA’s decision up to the Massachusetts land court.

According to public court documents, the WHC and ZBA had initial meetings and began the discovery process over the fall and winter. They were moving toward a summary judgement hearing initially scheduled for next week when, in March, the city and the WSC requested a stay of the hearing, reporting in court documents that they are talking productively and expect to come to a settlement agreement.

The parties are currently exploring settlement options that may involve the city purchasing the land in question. They are expected to update the court on their progress at the end of June.

Background

The wedge-shaped lot at 131 Pond End Rd. sits at the very end of the street, and was initially parcelled together with a neighbor lot that borders the parallel Lincoln Street. 

The WSC purchased only the one lot, intending to build a full-time residence for five people who would receive 24/7 medical and behavioral health care and skillbuilding support. The proposed plans depict a single-story residence near the middle of the lot, at the end of a long driveway leading to Pond End Road.

The WSC first filed a request for the ZBA to approve its building permits in September 2023. The Building Inspector did not grant the permits because the lot had insufficient frontage, stating that its border with Pond End Road was too short. WSC appealed the decision to the ZBA.

The WSC first appeared in front of the ZBA over two months later, on November 21, 2023. The discussion continued into a total of six sessions, the last one occurring in June 2024. 

The organization claimed that its permit had been denied on invalid grounds, and that the lot had sufficient frontage along its border at the end of the road. Although the current zoning code requires almost 20 feet of frontage over what this border would provide, the WSC maintained the lot was grandfathered in to earlier, more permissive requirements.

The ZBA, however, contended that the lot had no frontage against Pond End Road — because it’s located at the end of the street, its border is “perpendicular,” and not “along” the street. This was backed up in a letter by Waltham’s legal department in April 2024.

The board voted 4–1 not to grant the permit.

The WSC is appealing the case up the chain to the Land Court. In its filings, it named the Zoning Board of Appeals and all nine current full and associate members of the board as defendants.

In its complaint, the WSC wrote that it’s appealing on the grounds that the board’s decision based on its definition of frontage is “unreasonable, arbitrary, capricious, not based upon evidence, and in excess of its authority.” 

It also argues that the proposed group home, because it will provide skills training services, should count as an educational institution, and therefore should have additional protection against unreasonable regulation under the state’s Dover Amendment.

In October, a status update indicated that “it does not appear that settlement talks are likely at this point.” The case appeared likely to go to trial.

If the case were to proceed to trial, the court’s schedule mandates the date be set by 16 months from the date of initial filing, by November 2025.

As of this week, however, all parties reported settlement discussions are proceeding well. According to a status update filed on Wednesday, the mayor, city council, and the city solicitor have talked over purchasing the land as a part of the settlement with the city’s legal counsel. The city wrote to the court that it intended to conduct an environmental review of the property before moving further.

Representatives of the ZBA, the City of Waltham, and the WSC told the Waltham Times that they had no further comment about the case while this litigation is in process.