ATHOL – In the ongoing matter of a sober house at 217 Spring St., the Zoning Board of Appeals has denied a request for reasonable accommodation by property owner James Parmenter.
At the board’s Oct. 29 meeting, Parmenter had asked for the accommodation to allow him to house up to five people until a sprinkler system and alarm could be installed. He had planned to house up to 10 people once this work was done.
Christine Tree, the board’s attorney, said it needed to be determined whether the applicant had a disability-based need for the modification and if it was reasonable.
The modification could be found to be unreasonable if it caused undue hardship or a fiscal or administrative burden to the town; or that it undermined the intent of the zoning bylaw that dealt with the definition of the terms “family” and “boarding house.”
When Parmenter began operating the sober house this past January, he did so believing he was abiding by the town’s bylaws, which describe “family” as “Any number of individuals living or cooking together on the premises as a single housekeeping unit.” Using that definition, Parmenter assumed he could establish the facility by right.
However, Building Inspector Bob Legare, who also serves as the town’s zoning enforcement officer, ruled on June 23 that Parmenter’s operation was not simply a single-family home. In a letter to Parmenter, Legare wrote that a sober house is not a specifically defined use under the zoning bylaws.
“Where a use is not specifically defined it is treated as the most similar defined use…In this case, the use most closely resembles a boarding house,” he wrote.
Parmenter appealed this ruling, and at its meeting on Oct. 22, the ZBA agreed with Legare that the house falls under the town’s definition of “boarding house,” and is therefore subject to the regulations governing such a facility, which includes a special permit.
At the Oct. 29 meeting, board members unanimously agreed that there was a disability-based need for Parmenter’s request for accommodation, since the Americans with Disabilities Act recognizes alcoholism and addiction as a disability.
But the board was also unanimous in believing the accommodation would undermine the purpose of the zoning bylaw dealing with the definitions of “family” and “boarding house.”
Attorney Andrew Tine, representing Parmenter, told the Athol Daily News he would be speaking with his client in the coming days to determine how to proceed.
“It’s real simple. They have a definition of ‘family’ and the definition of family in that town allows unrelated people to live together. So the only difference between this group of individuals and another group of unrelated people is they’re disabled,” Tine said. “They’re actually holding it against these individuals the fact that they’re disabled as the reason they should not be allowed to live in this house. You’re supposed to go by the rules you’ve made and the rules this town has made say that a family allows unrelated people to live together if they live in a single housekeeping unit.”
After the meeting, Legare did say Parmenter would still be able to provide a home to the three men currently staying at the sober house. He added that Parmenter and Tine have the right to appeal both the decision upholding his initial determination that the home was being operated as a boarding house, as well as the board’s decision to deny reasonable accommodation.
A Special Town Meeting will be held on Nov. 10, and will include a proposed redefining of the terms “family” and “boarding house” in the town’s zoning bylaws.
“I think the town recognizes I’m correct in this regard,” said Tine, “because they’re taking a vote on November 10 to change the definition of family. You have to ask yourself, why would they do that – why would they think that is necessary – if they’re right.”
Greg Vine can be reached at gvineadn@gmail.com.