Grady v. Zoning Board of Appeals of Peabody, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-122-13)
NOTICE: All slip opinions and orders are subject to formal revision and are superseded by the advance sheets and bound volumes of the Official Reports. If you find a typographical error or other formal error, please notify the Reporter of Decisions, Supreme Judicial Court, John Adams Courthouse, 1 Pemberton Square, Suite 2500, Boston, MA 02108-1750; (617) 557-1030; SJCReporter@sjc.state.ma.us SJC‑11267 MARY E. GRADY[1] vs. ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS OF PEABODY & others.[2] Suffolk. March 5, 2013. ‑ July 10, 2013. Present: Ireland, C.J., Spina, Cordy, Botsford, Gants, Duffly, & Lenk, JJ. Zoning, Variance, Lapse of variance. Civil action commenced in the Land Court Department on December 28, 2009. The case was heard by Keith C. Long, J. The Supreme Judicial Court on its own initiative transferred the case from the Appeals Court. William R. DiMento (Debora T. Newman with him) for the plaintiff. Louis J. Muggeo for Arthur Stefanidis & another. DUFFLY, J. This case presents the question whether a properly-granted zoning variance may be deemed to have “taken effect” pursuant to G. L. c. 40A, § 11, where it was not recorded with the registry of deeds within the one-year lapse period set forth in G. L. c. 40A, § 10, but was recorded eleven days thereafter, and where the holders have substantially relied upon it. The question whether a variance will take effect if the holders have substantially relied upon it was left open in Cornell v. Board of Appeals of Dracut, 453 Mass. 888, 891 n.7 (2009) (Cornell). In the unusual circumstances of this case, we conclude that the variance has taken effect, and has not lapsed. Background. We recite the facts as found by a Land Court judge following a jury-waived trial.[3] Arthur and Irene Stefanidis, trustees of the A & I Trust, owned a single large lot in the city of Peabody (city), on which there was an existing structure. They divided this parcel into Lot A, the front portion of the parcel containing the structure, and Lot B, the undeveloped portion at the rear of the parcel that did not have street frontage. They reserved an easement in favor of Lot B over the driveway and parking area of Lot A. They then deeded the lot to the Central Gardens Condominium Trust and converted the building on Lot A into three condominium units. A & I Trust retained Lot B after the condominium trust declined to purchase it. The Stefanidises subsequently planned to build a two-family house on Lot B, and applied for a variance from the zoning board of appeals of Peabody (board) to allow them to build despite the lack of street frontage. The variance was approved, […]
MIT Officer Collier Laid to Rest in Peabody
More than 30 American flags, veterans from across Massachusetts and Connecticut, Peabody police officers and state troopers solemnly greeted the motorcade bearing the body of Sean Collier as it arrived in Peabody this afternoon. Collier, a 26-year-old MIT police officer who was allegedly shot and killed by the two Boston Marathon bombing suspects on April 18, was laid to rest at Puritan Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery. The motorcade, which included three departments Collier was affiliated with — MIT, Cambridge and Somerville, accompanied Collier’s family from the site of a memorial service at MIT earlier today. That service was attended by thousands of police officers and Vice President Joe Biden. Peabody police were not involved in the graveside service, but provided security for the site, along with state and federal agents. And security was tight — only authorized visitors or members of the burial party were allowed in during the duration of the service. Cambridge, Somerville and MIT police were part of the private burial service with family members. Officers on security and traffic detail said the Secret Service were deployed in Cambridge for Biden’s visit, but not present in Peabody. Due to the heightened state of security in the Boston area, the entire cemetery was swept for any explosives prior to the burial service. Police officers on security detail outside the cemetery said they did not know why Puritan Lawn was chosen as Collier’s burial site. Collier, a Salem State graduate, was a Wilmington native and a Somerville resident at the time of his death. He did work for a time as a security officer at the Northshore Mall, according to local police. Peabody Police Capt. Joe Berardino said all visitors to the cemetery during the day were escorted at all times by officers. At approximately 2:30 p.m., about 20 mintues before the motorcade arrived, visitors were asked to leave for an hour for security reasons. As for the flag-waving civilians standing at attention, they were all members of the Patriot Guard Riders, a nationwide volunteer organization that seeks to support the families of fallen soldiers and officers and help shield them from protesters, specifically those from the Westboro Baptist Church. Kevin Ridley, a military veteran from Medfield, said many of the Guard are Vietnam veterans, who experienced a great deal of animosity when they returned home. They hope to shield today’s veterans from that. “We wanted to make sure what happened to us, doesn’t happen to them,” he said. South End Patch