Somerville ZBA Denies Backyard Cottage Appeal, Approves Four Variances

Zoning Board · Meeting of June 17, 2026

Somerville Zoning Board approves four hardship variances and rejects a backyard cottage appeal in a three-hour session. Chair Orsola Susan Fontano presided over the June 17 remote meeting, where all five voting members approved variances for a shed at 39 Bartlett Street requiring a fire-retardant coating condition, a four-car carport at 92R Orchard Street under case numbers ZP24-000078 and ZP25-000042, a front porch enclosure at 47 Trawl Street under ZP26-000024, and surface parking plus reduced landscaping islands for the 145-room Moxie Hotel proposed at 1 McGrath Highway under ZP26-000034 and ZP26-000052. The board voted 5-0 to deny an administrative appeal by abutter Thomas Higdon of 23 Avon Street, who argued that building permits for a backyard cottage at 24 Berkeley Street were invalid because his rear garage sits within the zoning ordinance's required 10-foot building separation, contending the structure qualifies as a backyard cottage rather than an outbuilding.

Attorney Adam Dash, representing 24 Berkeley Somerville LLC, argued the appeal was filed more than 30 days after the permits issued in December 2025 and that Inspectional Services Department correctly classified Higdon's structure as an accessory outbuilding, a position the ZBA upheld unanimously. The 1 McGrath Highway hotel, which has now received three rounds of ZBA approval dating to 2017, also requires Planning Board site plan and special permit action, which was scheduled for June 18, 2026.

In the full story:

• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 4,218 words

Source: the Zoning Board meeting of June 17, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.