Tewksbury ZBA Unanimously Approves Deck and Garage Variances at June Hearing

TEWKSBURY — June 25, 2026 — Tewksbury Zoning Board approves two residential variances but flags potential lot-coverage snag on Shawsheen Street garage. The Zoning Board of Appeals voted unanimously at its June 25 meeting to grant a rear-setback variance to Kristi Andrews of 53 Bay State Ave, allowing her to replace a deteriorating deck and screened porch with a new 16-by-8-foot structure sitting five feet from the rear property line — an improvement over the existing three-foot setback on the pre-1963 home. The board also unanimously approved a side-setback variance for a 24-by-36-foot attached garage at 457 Shawsheen St., presented by contractor Andrew Taggart on behalf of owner Tim Armstrong, but noted during deliberation that the proposal would push lot coverage to roughly 20 percent against a 15-percent maximum — a discrepancy not cited in the building commissioner's denial letter and therefore outside the scope of the advertised hearing. "We can absolutely vote on what's in front of us, but if the building commissioner kicks it back, he kicks it back," one member said; the board proceeded and approved, leaving Armstrong potentially facing a second variance application before a permit can issue.