Carver ZBA Seeks Legal Opinion Before Deciding on 2002 ADU Ruling Amendment

CARVER — July 23, 2025 — Carver Zoning Board continues ADU hearing after discovering its own 2002 decision complicates the case. The Zoning Board of Appeals voted unanimously at its July 23 meeting to continue a special permit hearing for David Baston of 15 Pleasant Street to August 6, after board members unearthed a November 2002 ZBA decision granting Baston a special permit for "an accessory apartment for an elderly family member" — a ruling that, because it was never appealed, now stands as the legal status of the existing roughly 680-square-foot in-law addition on the property. Baston has been seeking permission to add a new 1,448-square-foot ADU for approximately 18 months, but Building Commissioner Rod Palmer testified that classifying the existing addition as a first ADU would require a full NFPA sprinkler system for the three-unit property — cost-prohibitive, Palmer said, because the property has no town water and no nearby hydrant. Chair Gray said he will seek a town counsel opinion on whether the board can legally amend its own 2002 decision to re-characterize the existing addition as expanded living space, a move that would clear the way for a single new ADU without triggering three-unit fire code requirements.