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ZBA begins deliberation over trophy home proposal
Marilyn Miller
Banner Staff
WELLFLEET — It won’t be until June 26 that the Wellfleet Zoning Board of Appeals will meet again to consider appeals of a permit given by Building Inspector Paul Murphy to Mark and Barbara Blasch to demolish the existing “Billboard” house at 1440 Chequesset Neck Road and replace it with a new home that is more than twice its current size, and twelve times the size of the original structure that was on that land when the Cape Cod National Seashore was created in 1962.
For two nights last week, during well-attended public hearings, the board heard from Ben Zehnder, the lawyer who represents the Blasches, who told them they had no choice but to affirm the building permit as issued by Murphy.
They heard from Murphy the second night of the hearings, who said that there was never any question in his mind that the Blasches were entitled “by right” to the permit, and that to this day he still believes they have that right.
But they also heard from John Williams, a lawyer representing the Bound Brook Property Owners’ Association, who joined the selectmen and the Cape Cod National Seashore in appealing the issuance of this permit. Williams pointed out that Murphy admitted to selectmen that he did not take into consideration section 3.2 of the town’s zoning bylaws, which defines the district in which they plan to build and states that structures should be compatible with the goals of the park.
“I don't understand why Section 3.2 has been downgraded to some kind of school essay,” Williams said, noting that it is clear that this proposed structure “is not consistent with the park.”
Williams told the board it had the right to send the permit back to Murphy to consider whether it conflicted with Seashore’s goals of preserving the scenic view and natural resources.
Elizabeth Lane, the town counsel who represented the ZBA last Thursday, also told the board that when a permit is appealed, the board can step into the shoes of the building inspector and decide whether to affirm, revoke or modify the permit.
The Blasches attended the first night of the hearing, along with Zehnder, their architect, Fred Schmitt, and Emily Beebe, the town’s former health and conservation agent, who is now a septic system consultant and who shepherded the project through the conservation commission and the board of health.
They listened as citizens spoke of their concerns about the project, of their love for the Seashore district, and their fears that the proposed house, if built, will alter forever the landscape that they love.
Board members grappled with the issue before them, wondering if they had any choice but to deny the appeals since the permit, as issued, complies with all zoning requirements.
Roger Putnam, Jr., while admitting that Murphy complied with the law in issuing the permit, wondered if he should have taken into consideration more than just the issues of whether the project met the required setbacks and height restrictions.
“I’m sure the building inspector adhered strictly to the quantitative requirements, lot size and setbacks, but there is a qualitative implication in our zoning bylaw, and I think we need to consider the qualitative aspects of this as well,” Putnam said.
ZBA member Robert Hankey agreed with him. “I think we have the right to make our own decision as to if the building inspector addressed the qualitative issues,” he said.
But William Nickerson said he thought that asking the building inspector to go into “qualitative” issues in considering a permit would put the inspector on dangerous ground, and would be inviting “subjective decisions” that are dangerous.
Bruce Drucker, acting chair of the ZBA and a retired lawyer, said if the board “makes an exception to the written law to stop one house, we’ll end up penalizing a lot of people in Wellfleet” who are counting on being able to expand their homes, as the Blasches propose to do, without getting a special permit, provided they stay within the setback.
Drucker said his thought was that the permit was issued by right, and they could not revoke it. “The Billboard house was a billboard to all of us almost a quarter of a century ago to do something, and we ignored it,” he said.
mmiller@cnc.com
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May 8th, 2008