Zoning Board approves two home expansions

The Zoning Board of Appeals this week approved variances so two homeowners could construct expansions to their existing homes.

Alexandra Clee and Alan Wilhelm, residents of a house on Edwin Street, requested a variance to build a basement-level in-law apartment that would make their house’s floor area larger than the lot would typically permit. The lawyer representing the property, Bret Francis, argued that the lot was unusually small for the area, and this extension would not make it significantly smaller than nearby houses. The board voted unanimously to allow the addition.

Alicia and Ryan Foley, the owners of a house on the corner of Trapelo and Sheffield roads, asked the board for variances to extend their house’s partial second floor. Because the house is already positioned at an angle between the two roads such that it extends closer to the roadway than zoning would permit, the owners required a variance to build out the rest of their second floor. The board voted unanimously to grant the variance.