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13 POPE STREET - ZBA 13PopeSt. R-2 Charles Brett (petitioner) City of Salem (owner) \ D x i SERAFINI, SERAFINI AND DARLING ATTORNEYS AT LAW 63 FEDERAL STREET SALEM, MASSACHUSETTS 01970 JOHN R. SERAFINI, SR. TELEPHONE JOHN R. SERAFINI.JR. 508-744-0212 JOHN E. DARLING 617-581-2743 - WENDY L.THAYER TELECO PIER JOSEPH P. COLONNA August 17, 1990 508-741-4683 VIA HAND DELIVERY Board of Appeals One Salem. Green Salem, MA 01970 Re: Petition for Special Permit and Variance 13 Pope Street, Salem, Massachusetts Dear Mr. Chairman: In connection with the above-described petition Mr. Charles Brett filed with the Board of Appeals in May of 1985, Mr. Brett respectfully withdraws said petition without prejudice. Sincerely, J hn R. Serafini, Sr. JRS,SR/kel o - 3 a -s - r] v En r.1 N '7 r � cp tP D ry June 14, 1985 15 Pope Street R€0E!vc' Salem, MA 01970 CITY 9F g!EHiHASS, Zoning Board of Appeals One Salem Green Salem, MA 01970 Dear Members: Although we have not been officially notified, it has come to our attention that a Mr. Charles Brett has filed a petition for a variance at 13 Pope Street, Salem, which abuts our land on all sides. At this time we wish to advise you that part of our driveway and rear yard are located on said property and has been actively and continuously used by us in our sixteen years of ownership and by our predecessors for more than fifteen years in the same manner. We previously tried to purchase this land from the City of Salem but because of a moratorium on the sale of city owned property at the times of our requests, we were unable to do so. These hearings and correspondence are a matter of record in the City of Salem. We further attempted to Perfect an "Easement by Prescription", but were advised that it could not be attained while the city owned the land. This letter serves to notify you that if this property is ever conveyed to private ownership, we will immediately institute litigation to perfect said easement and protect our homestead. Respectfully youp;C/e/��"` COPIES TO; Maynard E. Allen Barbara L. Allen Mr. Charles Brett Mayor Anthony Salvo City Planner Gerald Kavanaugh Councillors O'Leary, Grace, Centorino, & Usavvich June 26,m1985 We, -the residents of Pope, Proctor and Langdon Streets, oppose the proposal of Mr. Brett on the basis that his proposal will aggravate an already existing condition. Flooding has long been preyalentpin'.tkis area and could only be alleviated by modifications as sited in Anthony Fletcher' s 1978 survey. We request that this Appeals Board table this action until they have had an opportuntty to locate and reveiw this survey. As proof that such a survey- exist s we submit a copy of Mr. Fletcher' s memo to Frances Grace dated September 25 , 1981 . We further submit a copy of an order to stop all further developement until the flooding conditions are resolved . W protest the actions of non-resident developerstin regards to tie"im acts thil ey may'have on our-hoightiorhood . Othough Mr. Brett isncurrently submitting plans for four units, his initial submission to the planning board shows a potential for ten units. Even four units will show an increase in trafficthat is undesirable. l sa s;u r¢i.,i tY e t,h;e, xi raomA-in._y k sto a-c-al l.ue rof xnu �r , od ,al3qul not be -f.urther..--defaced or destroyed . To allow Mr. Brett to proceed with his proposal could set a precedent for further development in the Proctor/Pope area. 37 JL- M - z � J� �Fv�7> S f 4elwm dM _ ' ' Lt2 81�, fiFi£f €lsyartmenf:af {JaErGic�rka (9ae'! lnn thm+en 6I:THONV V. FLETCHER, P V.F s - n p-- RiEHARl!R. SWENSON C E aR cl weuc se of�c� , �. Gi w EN44.1EE'B _ - - 'As.,tant Civ.l Enq,nee,' 1� , September 2!>, Z481 _ FRAIiCE : GP.k(a X-IC POIK: F. V. 'FLETCHEfi SLI ECT: PROCTOR POPE FLO(YdMG. x Attached map..is prepared to mazke explaining easier., t�. Area inside green circle: represents the area drained by: natural: effects and 3V and ; 24';-pipe. Fit ane time the• eaurse of this pipe'vcas an open,.drairtage braetk.,;,and, 'the .Park• was`partiaTl.y a-swamp that acted as, a ponding area. The sot id h'u'e represents what the Nor>th River normakly; was. - the: green �rea,n�turai1 f drai`ned�.ta the Nbrth River..' As €JI ing, accured everi the gear, the brook was enclased :' !rte lines}, the.; swamp drss:a`peared :and r�tn off. water had less area to flaw:' in.' ca' .ihen t a ,high frequency, storm Occurs Q&'I'Midente with a. 'high tide-,- fEooding occurs', at the low point (fromPooe to �rac`,tor, a-Tong Bridge) as this area, at high tide, is lower -than the ,ort.h, Piv&. i have mane `.q a study or the system and I estimate SI,SEIOQf}0 including the cost of a pumR s at,on woui:d be requgred 'to =rectify the problem Serious and expensivE• TanC"ta.kirrgs wou :� also De :regu.Tred; pr. 1 -1 Z l� A M, / 1 s y. 1j t l 5 —lt�'T— -,, _�.r__�t—_.��.�i:, ui, .w .., .. �-,'•t��l•_�,:�___�tT .:.,:_ at r � � .__ , •"'_�El: i� i ,0 t. rr i t r t / t • el �j 6 11 1 ,'r C y /iii.. yh I �� ;i i 1 I iatl ♦Imx 1 r r ' � —� •j � - 3AON9 ANOWdV � 71'1OH1Y7 "oYt�f�N Y- � I ,, . �� 11' �•1;�a it�I `/I� ti+t1� `�-Jogvi rm 4 'il Ir a t n 1' 1 F 1 6 pot } x tr —, i i 1 a. ai S 1 [:`il �'�.AIS• r �. .. i...... CI'T'Y OF SALEM In City Council,-_ Sept"berl0 1981 ---------------------- Ordered: That no building permits be issued__ for the area of Proctor/Pope Street for any new residential construction until the flooding conditions on Pope Street are solved - to rid the poor drainage which frequently arises.. . Copies of this to be sent to the Director of Public Services, the Board of Appeal, Building Inspector, Planning Board, and Conservation ommission. In City Council September 10, 1981 Adopted Approved by the Mayor on A=ST• JOSEPHINE R FCS C rrY CLERK j i f i - i I BOARD OF APPEALS An 16 3 59 April 159 1985 RECEWED CITY OF SALEM MASS. Or. Gorard Kavanaugh, City Plr_nner City of Salem One Salem Green Salem, IA 0'10 HEs Number 13 Pope Street, Salem - Lot#314 - Fia 1 Dear Mr. Kavanaugh° .We have previously addressed our concerns over the proposed building plans at #13 Pope Street, the site of city owned land that surrounds our homestead on three sides. This past week-•end the Conservation Committee and other City Members visably viewed the property in regard to the culvert, brook and drainage problems. It is our understanding that longer, enclosed portions of culverts were proposed as a possible solution to part of the problems. There seemed to be a consideration that "silt build-up" and. "trash throwing" into the area might be solved by covering the brook and culverts to a further degree in hopes of eliminating some of the blockage. Unfortunately, they seemed to overlook the fact that there are now two thirty--six inch pines at the beginning of the property carrying the water drainage from the Witchcraft Heights area down. These two thirty- six inch pipes pour their overflow into ONE thirty-six inch pipe at the lower end of the brook. All the silt and trash-cleaning in the world - on&twenty-four hour basis - could not possibly engineer two constantly flowing thirty-six inch pipes into one thirty-six inch drain) Eventually, after the water has passed these two points, a new and d.ietinet problem occurs at the lower end of rope Street. Bursts of water virtually throw the manhole cover one to two feet into the air; and the street is completely impassable .to vehicle or pedestrian traffic several times each year, for as long as we have lived here. (We believe +kz, Board of Appeals has seen photographs of the severe flooding problem with cars stranded at the abovelmenti,oned point, in water up to their deols.) Our ovn .base:nent and back yard also flood at these time-T. - 2 - One further issue that has not been addressed seriously enough is the traffic problem, Pope Street is a very short street with it's upper end coming off Proctor Street at an extremely sharp curve, All the traffic that "short- cuts" through from Highland Avenue down Proctor, MUST turn onto Pope at this point because Proctor becomes one-way, Further traffic converges from the Mansell Parkwav area street*. We have seen the entire street solid "standstill" traffic during rush-hours and other heavy traffic times. The entire population of the hundreds of apartments at number 12 Pope Street must enter and exit onto Pope Street also, The Proctor-Pope corner in winter is continuously solid ice - due partially to the run-off from the Salem Heights, It is a very dangerous cornerl Our house is on the left side of the street coming down from this { corner and in the years we have lived here we have hers two _parked. cars tr._ otaled; two other vehicles struck and daged while parkod; and the side of .our house run into, - all separate incidents. The most rec -nt accident occurred just last June (1985) and if our car had not been parked curb-side the offending vehicle would have run speedingly into our front door and living-room. Our car was smashed sideways into the utility pole at the .end of our property. The police had the car towed away - the doors could not even be opened. Ve are submitting these issues to you, in writing, because we fear that each individual problem is being addressed by separate departments each- looking for a single solution, We believe that a total overview must be considered (including the conservation problems) regarding this land, and area, The building proposal is to house twenty families. The buildings alone would be extreme "clustering" in our opinion and we could be expecting up to forty vehicles adding to the traffic and parking problems. This does not even address the personal hardship to our individual homestead of being completely surrounded by such a conn lomeratian. . ',r'e urgently ask your fairness and expertise as our City Planner in co,:sidering the entire picture of this proposed development, andthe very serious effects resulting to the already overloaded very small street of Pope Street in Salem. Thank you very much for your consideration! Sincerely, Mr. & Mrs, Maynard E. A lon Copies tot 15 Pope street, Salem, MA Mayor Salvo Councillor O'Leary CtkYe:i:'cii£ahcr-B�G�?x� 9p1�$�e: e James Hacker r ly i# f ottlem tt�stxtl uQ##s r � c I 3 a .. 1Y ourb of �Vpv l April 7, 1986 Paul Niman Director of Public Services City Of' Salem RE: 13 Pope St. Dear Mr. Niman: Enclosed please find a copy of the letter sent to the Conservation Commission, I believe it is self-expanatory. This,coupled with the fact that Mr. Vallis is calling weekly on behalf of his client, Mr. Brett, and the time that has elapsed since our request, it is my sincere hope that you will try to get this project to the top of your list. Sincerely, James B. Hacker .'.'. Chairman, Board of Appeal JBH:bms ct: Attorney Vallis of '�ttlem, ��tts5arhu!aetts ��OfIOpL 1P'FI' ` oarb of lll... l ! ZA . April 7, 1986 Conservation Commission City of Salem RE: 13 Pope St. 1 Gentlemen: Upon review of your agenda for April, it has come to my attention that you have a petition for Charles Brett, 13 Pope Street, which, in my opinion is substantially different from the petition filed June 26, 1985 with the Board of Appeal. At our meeting the site was determined to have several problems and at that time we petitioned the City Engineer for his opinion on this property. The applicant subsequently has signed _ a time waiver as to allow the City Engineer to study this proposal.. I am enclosing for your consideration the minutes of the meeting of June 26, 1985. This letter is in no way meant to encourage of discourage, only to advise you of the pre-existing conditions. If you have any questions please contact me. Sincerely, as B. Hacker Chairman, Board of Appeal JBH:bms 6nclosured: Minutes, June 26, 1985' of alrrd' ttt uSP##S �� nttrD of �}r�rettl �S April 7, 1986 Conservation Commission City of Salem AE: 13 Pope St. Gentlemen: Upon review of your agenda for April, it has come to my attention that you have a petition for Charles Brett, 13 Pope Street, which, in my opinion is substantially different from the petition filed Jure 26, 1985 with the Board of Appeal. At our meeting the site was determined to have several problems and at that time we petitioned the City Engineer for his opinion on this property. The applicant subsequently has signed a time waiver as to allow the City Engineer to study this proposal. I am enclosing for your consideration the minutes of the meeting of June 26, 1985. This letter is in no way meant to encourage of discourage, only to advise you of the pre-existing conditions. If you have any questions please contact me. Sincerely, /��//c r�•� yys*d1 ames B. Hacker Chairman Board of Appeal JBH:bms Enclosured: Minutes, June 26, 1985' MINUTES - JUNE 26, 1985 page six 7 Crombie St. - Continued Aren' t we going to be in this same position 6 months from now if this Purchase and Sale does fall through and they don' t have another location. Mr. Gauthier: not if we get a commitment from them, they are giving us their word. Mr. Hacker: I think there word is good, they will do as they say, unfortunately last time we gave them permit we thought they were going to correct these problems. Mr. Strout: the next few months are critical for businesses, you might as well forget about their summer, they are going to be haunted by people in the streets, I can' t say I am for this at all. Mr. Charnas made a motion to grant the petition as requested with the same conditions as the previous variance. Mr. Strout seconded. The Board voted unanimously against the motion. UNANIMOUSLY DENIED 13 Pope St. - Charles Brett Petitioner is requesting a Special Permit to construct two buildings, each containing two units and a Variance from density requirements in this R-2 district. Mr. Charnas read the application and a letter from the Fire Department, no objection, however, the building located on the property presently is in violation of the smoke detector law. Letter from the Planning Board asking the Board of Appeal consider the impact upon utilities, traffic, drainage and other neighborhood concerns when making their decision. Letter from Maynard and Barbara Allen, 15 Pope St. , opposed. Attorney George Vallis, Church St. , Salem represented the petitioner. Showed the Board copy of the Purchase and Sale Agreement, this is tax title property, the City obtained this property some years ago for nonpayment of taxes. Mr. Brett will have to go to land court and try to clear the title, he is willing to do this, it is a length procedure and somewhat costly. One of the conditions of the sale is the granting of a Variance to allow construction three buildings, you will see on the plan we are showing only four units, two buildings, one building facing Proctor St. , one facing Pope St. We were supposed to close in May, the application and plans came late and as result we have an extension signed by the Mayor till July 1st. Hopefully, if the Board grants the petition we can get another extension. Submitted pictures of the property, as you can see there is a brook and this creates some problems. It gets flooded, looks like the brook is a disposal for all the junk in the neighborhood. He then displayed renditions of the proposed development. The problem raised by the neighbors (letter from the Allens) comes as a surprise, we can get into that later. Apparently over the course of the years she has used the back property as a yard and I'm sure she'll present a picture or plan showing the part of the land she uses which is partly on the building we are planning to construct. My client is not building on the other side of the Allens, I am sure we can work something out as far as a trade off. Getting back to the renderings, we propose to put fence around, location of fence can be changed to accomodate the Allens. As you can see from the plans we will have eight parking spaces, will be two spaces per unit. I understand there is a traffic problem on Pope St. , it is a one way street, my suggestion and I submit to you that the construction of these two buildings will not exacerbate parking problem of increase traffic, Mr. Charnas: is this under a Purchase and Sale Agreement. Mr. Vallis, yes, copy is there. Originally we were planning of putting six dwelling units, no longer intend to do that. We certainly can do something for the Allens, maybe give them some land over on other sides maybe some of the rear property. This will obviously cut down our total amount of land. Mr. Charnas: I think you will have to show there is a hardship. Mr. Vallis: only one hardship, we are MINUTES - JUNE 26, 1985 page seven 13 Pope St. - Continued seeking variance for one particular reason, we are only 17 feet from property line where you require 30 feet, if you look at the shape of the property, no matter where you put the building you will violate some setback, all we need is density. A single family house is not economically feasible. We do have to go to the Conservation Commission and I'm sure they will ask us to clean the entire brook, which we intend to do. No one appeared in favor. Speaking in opposition: Joyce Bowen, 35 Pope St. , the land was sold for it real value, about $8,200 dollars, perhaps someone would be interested in buying it and living there in single family home. Submitted petition from neighbors opposing, 17 signatures, this variance. (on file). She also read a letter to Councillor Frances Grace, from Anthony Fletcher, City Engineer, dated Sept. 21 , 1981 , on file, also Council Order dated Sept. 10, 1981 ordering the stopping of all building in this area until the flooding conditions are solved. We protest the development of nonresident developers and the impact they have on our neighborhood, although Mr. Brett is currently submitting plans for four units, his original submission to the Planning Board shows a potential for ten units, even four will show increase in traffic, the historical value of our neighborhood should not be further defaced or destroyed, to allow this could set precedent for further development in the Proctor Pope area. Maynard Allen, 15 Pope St. , displayed plot plan, when I bought my property and he told me this way my land, one day I decided to put pool in and I petitioned the City and found out it wasn' t my land, we have been using the land for about 15 years, plus it was used before that. I understand we can go to Land Court and take over the property, no from the city but from private individual, beside that happening I am against it, we have problem with flooding. The last house built there involved blasting and caused damage to my house, I had law suit against blasing company, they went out of business, we got nothing from that. Too many problems in that area more building would just add to them. George Baliotis, Ideal Finishing, 59 Boston St. , we are at the bottom of the hill and receive all the flooding, my only fear is, the brook situation is such that since they put up the apartments up the top, Dibiase Buildings, , several years ago, the situation has gone from bad to worse, the pressure from the brook coming down the hill has actually lifted up the manhole cover, I don' t know what can be done, but hopefully something. This is a serious problem. Barbara Allen, 15 Pope St. , when we were going to put in the pool, it was about four thousand dollars, the price went up to six thousand because of the wetland, said there was no way it could be put in as an ordinary pool. Our cellar is flooded every single year because of the brook. Mrs. Brophy, 25 Proctor St. , concerned with traffic, Rebuttal: Attorney Vallis, the general concensus is the brook, it is there, the situation exists. Mr. Brett obviously, if he didn' t have his studies done by the surveyor, would not be interested in building there if he feels he's going to have flooded cellars. He understands and he intends to file Notice of Intent with Conservation Commission and explain to their satisfaction how the brook will be handled and whatever suggestion they might have. At least for the first time in many years there will be a professional engineer making a study and hope to correct some of these problems, right now it is a junk heap. The fact that Mr. Brett is a non-resident builder should have no influence on your decision. However, he does intend to have his daughter live in one of the units and he would not want her living there if it were going to be detrimental. The other problem raised, traffic, is not really a problem, we are providing 8 parking spaces,that should more than take care of the parking for these two buildings. The amount of property to be developed is in keeping with the neighborhood. Biggest problem in this area is Salem Heights. This will enhance the value of property around there, that area right now is a blight. Mr. Hacker: were you aware of that Council Order, I MINUTES - JUNE 26, 1985 page eight 13 Pope St. - Continued dated September 1981? Mr. Vallis: no I wasn' t, after reading it, I'm not sure it deals with this. They are talking about an overall problem which exists in the entire area, North River, Boston St. , everything. I don' t see how a minor develop- ment like this is going to create any kind of a problem. Mr. Charnas: is your client concerned about this easement by prescription business? Mr. Vallis: its the first I've heard about it, I know that we are going to get plan and it will show basically what we have here, you know yourself you can' t have adverse possession against any municipality, I'm willing, and there's plenty of land on other side and I'm sure some arrangement can be made. Mr. Gauthier: would like to ask Mr. Allen how high his house if above the street, the first floor. Mr. Allen: I am at street level. Mr. Gauthier: how deep from first floor to basement floor? Mr. Allen: about six six. Mr. Gauthier: my problem is I have to disagree with Mr. Fletcher when I read the letter, he claims that Pope St. is below the North River, mean high tide is eleven forty six, the grade at the bottom of the brook is twenty eight that means we're sixteen and half feet above the river, the problem is whoever built Mr. Allens house built is so it's going to flood no matter. I could be worked out by decreasing the flow, lower the brook, putting it below the house. We could put condition that the developer drop the brook to Mr. Allens advantage. This has been an eyesore and I agree with the people, the flooding the area is a serious problem, at this point it is a city problem. Mr. Charnas: unlike other petitions of this kind, I haven't heard anything about traffic or noise or anything like that, only thing we've been hearing is the water problem, the question remains whether this would exacerbate it or not, my feeling is we should not vote tonight, should continue and get opinion from the City Engineer. Mr. Hacker: Mr. Vallis, would you have any problem with having this continued until the next meeting: Mr. Vallis: could the Board grant this on condition it meet City Engineer approval. Mr. Gauthier: we could sit with the City Engineer, sometime this week or the first of next week. Mr. Charnas: I would be uncomfortable voting on this now. I was decided the Board would write a letter to the City Engineer to set up a time when Mr. Gauthier, Mr. Vallis and the Allen's could all meet and look at the situation. Mr. Charnas made a motion to continue until the Board receive an opinion from the City Engineer. Mr. Luzinski seconded. UNANIMOUSLY CONTINUED. Mr. Hacker explained to the assemblage that this was continued and will not be advertised again. Anyone interested can call the office and find out when this is on the agenda. Mr. Hacker had to leave, Mr. Luzinski will be the Acting Chairman. Mr. Bencal was appointed a voting member. 50-50'2 Webb St. - Paul & Margaret O'Toole Petitioners are requesting a Special Permit to convert from a two family into a three family in this R-2 district. Mr. Charnas read the application, a letter from the Planning Board, opposed because of overall density, a letter from the Fire Department, no objection. Paul & Margaret O'Toole represented themselves. We are seeking permit to convert from two to three family, main reason is financial. The first of September.we are expecting a baby, our first, after baby is born she is going to stay home, will not be working. We are hoping this conversion will offset, at least partially, the loss of income we will be experiencing. Presently the third floor has front and rear stairwell, we are also to extend our driveway into the back yard to the required parking spaces, showed on the plans where the driveway is and where the parking will be. We will have the required smoke alarms. I have talked to all the neighbors and none of them have objected. Submitted a petition signed by the abutters in favor. He displayed pictures of the property. The q (9itu of Salem, MaoSachusetto . .�3Fy � �uttra of ��ettl r October 23, 1985 George Vallis, Esq. 1 Church St. Salem, MA 01970 Dear Mr. Vallis: Enclosed is a copy of a letter from Paul S. Niman, Director of Public Services, regarding 13 Pope St. , I have also enclosed copies of the Council Order dated September 10, 1981 and a letter from A. V. , ,Fletcher dated September, 25, 1981 . At this point the Board must ask if you wish the Board to hold the petition in continuance or if you might want to Withdraw the petition until such time as an engineering report is submitted to us. Very truly yours, James B. Hacker l Chairman, Board of Appeal JBH:bms Enclosures: (3) f Ci#v of Salem, �ffittssar4usrtts Pepar#men# of Puhlir Works 'JAFOIHMLq tr (One 'Sttlem (Sreen PAUL S.NIMAN DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC SERVICES October 18, 1985 Mr. James B. Hacker, Chairman Board of Appeal One Salem Green Salem, MA. 01970 RE: Drainage - Pope Street Dear Mr. Hacker: I am writting this letter in response to your letter dated October 7, 1985 regarding the proposed development on Pope Street. Myself and my assistant, Thomas Rouleau, met with Bob Gauthier, the developer, and neighbors on July 15, 1985 to discuss the problems in the area and the proposed development. At that time based on the information discussed we agreed to undertake a drainage study of the area. I indicated that it would be some time before we could undertake such a study due to staff limitations and work priorities. No way did I indicate a report would be forthcoming within a month but rather hopefully within 3-6 months. We did however begin work by reviewing files. To date we have not had the time to develop the study further. We hope to do this during the winter months when our work load permits. A review of our files indicates that Mr. Fletcher had made a study in 1978 which determined that the cost of improvements to eliminate the flooding problems would be $1,500,000 and would include a pumping station and extensive land takings. Furthermore the Council voted that no building permits be issued in this area until the flooding condition was solved. I have attached a copy of the documentation. Unfortunately we have not been able to locate a copy of Mr. Fletcher's study to review. However I feel the intent of the Council Order is clear. Accordingly, I must advise that the Board of Appeal deny the requested action until such time as my office can prepare a study or find a copy of the previous study. Only at that time would it be appropriate to further discuss this matter. I cannot promise when this will be done but hope to have it completed this winter. Very truly yours, Paul S. Niman PSN/cmc Director of Public Services Ti#U of �$ttlem, fflassuchusetts Pourb of (4p— October 7, 1985 Paul Niman Director of Public Services City of Salem Dear Mr. Niman: Enclosed is a copy of a letter the Board of-Appeal received from George Vallis, Esq. regarding Charles Brett, 13 Pope Street. According to our records I believe Mr. Vallis's dates to be correct. We are hoping to clear this matter off our calendar and hope you will give this your consideration and advise us accordingly. Very truly yours, AJamVeHacker Chairman JBH:bms cc: George Vallis, Esq. September 25, 1985 RE: Ciy Land - # 13 Pope Street Gentlemen: I recently came across the following letter and map from former Ciy Engineer, Anthony Fletcher relating to the Pope Street area. Perhaps you already have this in your records, but if not, I thought it might be of interest to you. Sincerely, Barbara Allen 15 Pope Street Copy to: City Engineer's Office City Planner's Office Salem Board of Appeals i N ' I• i 6 _ }4�aalMMl��4 Tug of �%Irtn,:ffittssar4usetts lBepariment of 1hu61ir Worth (One 1�alein (5reen ANTHONY V. FLETCHER,R.P.E. RICHARD P.SWENSON,C.E. DIRECTOR of PUBLIC SERVICES Assistant Civil Engineer CITY ENGINEER September 25, 1981 TO: FRANCES GRACE FROM: A. V. FLETCHER SUBJECT: PROCTOR-POPE FLOODING Attached map is prepared to make explaining easier. Area inside green circle represents the area drained by natural effects and 30" and 24" pipe. At one time the course of this pipe was an open drainage brook, and the Park was partially a swamp that. acted as a ponding area. The solid blue represents what the North River normally was - the green area naturally drained to the North River. As filling occured over the years, the brook was enclosed (red lines) , the swamp dissapeared and run off water had less area to flow in. When a 'high frequency storm occurs coincidental with a high tide, flooding occurs at the low point (from Pope to Proctor, along Bridge) as this area, at high tide, is lower than the North River. I have made (1978) a study of the system and I estimate $1,500,000 including the cost of a pump station, would be required to rectify the problem. Serious and expensive land takings would also be required. r< \♦`` ) C \``` i i L1LU�7fidM4S_�--__�_l.Tu_i S 1� nN, CATHOLIC CEMETERY rt// \ i q �A hi< • L� 3' ARMONY. GROVE ice,/coot s .� 4 CEMETERY :, A �' YITONCiA1T M[NM ' i+ � h 11 yph 9 `1•/ n Y C 'Aft INa �; tf • ] s �T � h V Yn 4 +\ mmc L r0. n O O f Y tt P .. • • _• a �-.-- i 'j r0 1�. ' i i NQ<rpL hU AV[ TL6 t GREENLAWN CEM NILL. j E t ) IF. L LL N h NIt NOL! 1 w 9f - _ LEDGE MILL ,rf PARR a on N[ ILL'a 1 '� P RT� 7�1 '' ; r✓ �:' ' Y. 4iI arLVAN at i t < t' �LN"'y I il' \ r1�9' 1 O � � f ILAv OLAt10th � t h x a i 3s .1 • Lot ., aSAL., � Q o"L'IwI t t ;/,•' 1+ .l (L, n • 4r,: ff ° ,•pf a �... . Lot LL< / l at 1�� * ' . 'l . � .� �. � ar r�: �' �'� � rally'• �, iI sr �' -�.- cl '.11: 1 � MAt<LN JAL� Arl titer} iAsn[ [ {St Lgaou.ul T' t.a�� .ftV C\�♦.VY/ > < r�t�. �� ---^ �-""=a �«.�..«..�_ GEORGE P. VALLIS ATTORNEY AT LAW ONE CHURCH STREET SALEM. MASSACHUSETTS 01970 (617) 745-0500 September 18, 1985 James Hacker, Chairman Board of Appeal One Salem Green Salem, MA 01970 Re: Petition for Special Permit and Variance 13 Pope Street- Charles Brett, Petitioner Dear Mr. Hacker: A public hearing in the above-captioned matter was held before your Board on June 26, 1985. You may recall that the matter was continued until such time as the City Engineer filed a report regarding possible drainage problems in the area. It was my understanding that such a report was to have been filed with your Board within the month. It is almost three months since the date of the hearing and to the best of my knowledge, no report has been prepared. It is closely approaching fall and it is hopeful that this matter can be resolved and a decision rendered while there is still time to pour a foundation. Anything that your office can. do to expedite this would be greatly appreciated. Ve*LrS GE GPV/cac CC: Mr. Charles Brett 16 Bradstreet Avenue Danvers, MA 01923 BQ,ARB Q_.F A" "t6EORGE P. VALLIS ATTORNEY AT LAW ONE CHURCH STREET �� '•j; Z� � MASSACHUSETTS 01970 1 [CEiVEt7 (en) 745.0500 CITY p. SAL EA, July 17, 1985 James Hacker, Chairman Board of Appeal One Salem .Green Salem, MA 01970 Re: Application for Special Permit and Variance of Charles Brett Dear Mr. Hacker: On behalf of my client I respectfully request that the above-captioned matter presently pending before the Board of Appeal be continued until such time as the City Engineer files his report regarding said matter with the Board. Accordingly, on behalf of my client, I hereby waive the time require- ment under M.G.L. Chapter 40A by which the Board must render its decision. Thank you for your consideration in this matte . Ii Ve It ly i u s, �1 GEO GE P ALL Is GPV/cac p Chi# of ttlem � sttrhusett .,�. �.. jjire Peparin eut �Heabquarters 48 '�:afgcffe �treef ROBERT J. CROWLEY ' wchier ttlem, tt. 01970 Date: July 7, 1985 City of Salem Re: 13 Pope Street Board of Appeal Charles Brett One Salem Green Hearing Date: 7/17/85 Salem, MA 01970 Sirs: As a result of the notice received concerning the Board of Appeal hearing for the above listed name and address, the Salem Fire Department requests the following items to be placed on record: The Salem Fire Department has no objection to the granting of a Variance to construct two buildings, each containing two units, at #13. Pope Street, provided that plans are provided to this office showing the locations of automatic smoke detectors. Compliance with the provisions of Chapter 148, Section 26E, of the Massachusetts General Laws, relative to the installation of automatic smoke detectors shall be obtained prior to the issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy. Respectfully, ..wt.Ytw Robert W. Turner, a 1 + Fire Marshal cc: Appellant Building Inspector File Form #105 z� �s C nse V atim Co l lmissim Salem. Massachusetts 01970 AS July 3 , 1985 Mr. James Hacker, Chairman Board of Appeal One Salem Green Salem, MA. 01970 RE: Petition of Charles Brett for a Special Permit to construct two buildings each containing two units and a Variance from density requirements at 13 Pope Street, R-2. Dear Mr. Hacker: The Conservation Commission has been informed that the Board of Appeal will be reviewing the above-referenced petition at its next meeting. The Conservation Commission would respectfully request that any granting of Special Permit or Variance be contingent upon review and approval by the Commission. There is some question of the existence of wetlands on the site and any construction within 100' of a wetland is subject to Conservation Commission approval. Thank you for your consideration in this matter. Sincerely, Philip D. Moran (AT"j Chairman U cc: Barbara Allen, Pope St. Bill Munroe (1Lit of 'ttlem, Attssac4use##s �ottlb of � E22I h'cUmS.� July 2, 1985 Gerard Kavanaugh Planning Director City of Salem Dear Gerry: At the Board of Appeal hearing on June 26, 1985 the petition of Charles Brett for a Special Permit and Variances to construct two buildings at 13 Pope St. was continued. The Board continued this case to allow us to contact you and the City Engineer regarding i possible drainage problems in this area. We would appreciate and input you could give us concerning this matter. Very truly yours, �-4 ames B. Hacker Chairman, Board of Appeal JBH:bms h �!� f1li# of �$ttlem, ttssttclluse##s ` f Paurb of AupEttl June 28, 1985 Paul Niman Director of Public Services City of Salem Dear Paul: At the June 26, 1985 Board of Appeal meeting the Board continued the petition of Charles Brett for a Special Permit to cosntruct two buildings at 13 Pope St. This was done to allow time to set up a meeting between your office and Mr. Robert Gauthier, who will be acting as liaison for the Board. We would like you to go over the plans with Mr. Gauthier and give us your input regarding the drainage problems in this area. If you would please contact Mr. Gauthier at 745-7847 to set up a time for the meeting that would be mutually convenient. When the date and time of the meeting has been set would you please notify Brenda Sumrall, Clerk of the Board, so she can get in touch with Mr. & Mrs. Allen, direct abutters, who have expressed a desire to attend this meeting. If you have any questions please contact Ms. Sumrall. Thank you. Very truly yours, � ��.?) ✓ James B. Hacker Chairman, Board of Appeal JBH:bms CO�U(K ��rTT ��11 of M�Pltt �7RZTS5Mt LISPttS � k a1 3 June 28, 1985 Paul Niman Director of Public Services City of Salem Dear Paul• At the June 26, 1985 Board of Appeal meeting the Board continued the petition of Charles Brett for a Special Permit to cosntruct two buildings at 13 Pope St. This was done to allow time to set up a meeting between your office and Mr. Robert Gauthier, who will be acting as liaison for the Board. We would like you to go over the plans with Mr. Gauthier and give us your input regarding the drainage problems in this area. If you would please contact Mr. Gauthier at 745-7847 to set up a time for the meeting that would be mutually convenient. When the date and time of the meeting has been set would you please notify Brenda Sumrall, Clerk of the Board, so she can get in touch with Mr. & Mrs. Allen, direct abutters, who have expressed a desire to attend this meeting. If you have any questions please contact Ms. Sumrall. Thank you. Very truly yours, James B. Hacker Chairman, Board of Appeal JBH:bms i x Cit# oftt1em, C �� ttchu�e## Afire Ui eppaaartf nt �6abquarfers ROBERT J. CROWLEY 48 ` fg0te "iitrect A/Chief - *alrm, gVa. 01970 Date: June 26 1985 City of Salem Re: 13 Pope Street Board of Appeal Charles Brett One Salem Green Salem, MA 01970 Sirs: As a result of the notice received concerning the Board of Appeal hearing for the above listed name and address, the Salem Fire Department requests the following items to be placed on record: The Salem Fire Department has no objection to the granting of a Special Permit to construct two buildings at the above address. The owner is hereby notified that his building now located on the same parcel of land is in violation of the automatic smoke detector law relative to all residence in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Therefore, prior to the approval of any changes or additions to this property it will be required that a Certificate of Compliance be issued to this building. s ctfully, Norman P. LaPointe Fire Inspector cc: Appellant Building Inspector File Form #105 ofStt1Pm, Httssttr�use##s AVL{A44n'.L'y� �uttra �CL�£ Planning Au Oreen June 24, 1985 Mr. James Hacker, Chairman Board of Appeal One Salem Green Salem, MA. 01970 RE: Petition of Charles Brett for a Special Permit to construct two buildings, each containing two units and a variance from density requirements at 1 3 Pope Street (R-2) . Dear Mr. Hacker: The Planning Board has reviewed the above-referenced petition and respectfully requests the Board of Appeal to take into consideration the site planning aspects of this development, particularly its impact upon utilities, traffic, drainage, and other neighborhood concerns. In addition, it is the Planning Board' s understanding that an abutting parcel is also being considered for development. This development and its impact must also be considered in cooperation with the petition before you. Thank you for the opportunity to comment upon this petition. Very truly yours, Walter B. Power, III Chairman 9 MINUTES - JUNE 26, 1985 page six 7 Crombie St. - Continued Aren' t we going to be in this same position 6 months from now if this Purchase and Sale does fall through and they don' t have another location. Mr. Gauthier: not if we get a commitment from them, they are giving us their word. Mr. Hacker: I think there word is good, they will do as they say, unfortunately last time we gave them permit we thought they were going to correct these problems. Mr. Strout: the next few months are critical for businesses, you might as well forget about their summer, they are going to be haunted by people in the streets, I can't say I am for this at all. Mr. Charnas made a motion to grant the petition as requested with the same conditions as the previous variance. Mr. Strout seconded. The Board voted unanimously against the motion. UNANIMOUSLY DENIED 13 Pope St. - Charles Brett Petitioner is requesting a Special Permit to construct two buildings, each containing two units and a Variance from density requirements in this R-2 district. Mr. Charnas read the application and a letter from the Fire Department, no objection, however, the building located on the property presently is in violation of the smoke detector law. Letter from the Planning Board asking the Board of Appeal consider the impact upon utilities, traffic, drainage and other neighborhood concerns when making their decision. Letter from Maynard and Barbara Allen, 15 Pope St. , opposed. Attorney George Vallis, Church St. , Salem represented the petitioner. Showed the Board copy of the Purchase and Sale Agreement, this is tax title property, the City obtained this property some years ago for nonpayment of taxes. Mr. Brett will have to go to land court and try to clear the title, he is willing to do this, it is a length procedure and somewhat costly. One of the conditions of the sale is the granting of a Variance to allow construction three buildings, you will see on the plan we are showing only four units, two buildings, one building facing Proctor St. , one facing Pope St. We were supposed to close in May, the application and plans came late and as result we have an extension signed by the Mayor till July 1st. Hopefully, if the Board grants the petition we can get another extension. Submitted pictures of the property, as you can see there is a brook and this creates some problems. It gets flooded, looks like the brook is a disposal for all the junk in the neighborhood. .He then displayed renditions of the proposed development. The problem raised by the neighbors (letter from the Allens) comes as a surprise, we can get into that later. Apparently over the course of the years she has used the back property as a yard and I'm sure she' ll present a picture or plan showing the part of the land she uses which is partly on the building we are planning to construct. My client is not building on the other side of the Allens, I am sure we can work something out as far as a trade off. Getting back to the renderings, we propose to put fence around, location of fence can be changed to accomodate the Allens. As you can see from the plans we will have eight parking spaces, will be two spaces per unit. I understand there is a traffic problem on Pope St. , it is a one way street, my suggestion and I submit to you that the construction of these two buildings will not exacerbate parking problem of increase traffic, Mr. Charnas: is this under a Purchase and Sale Agreement. Mr. Vallis, yes, copy is there. Originally we were planning of putting six dwelling units, no longer intend to do that. We certainly can do something for the Allens, maybe give them some land over on other sides maybe some of the rear property. This will obviously cut down our total amount of land. Mr. Charnas: I think you will have to show there is a hardship. Mr. Vallis: only one hardship, we are V/ MINUTES - JUNE 26, 1985 page seven 13 Pope St. - Continued seeking variance for one particular reason, we are only 17 feet from property line where you require 30 feet, if you look at the shape of the property, no matter where you put the building you will violate some setback, all we need is density. A single family house is not economically feasible. We do have to go to the Conservation Commission and I'm sure they will ask us to clean the entire brook, which we intend to do. No one appeared in favor. Speaking in opposition: Joyce Bowen, 35 Pope St. , the land was sold for it real value, about $8,200 dollars, perhaps someone would be interested in buying it and living there in single family home. Submitted petition from neighbors opposing, 17 signatures, this variance. (on file) . She also read a letter to Councillor Frances Grace, from Anthony Fletcher, City Engineer, dated Sept. 21 , 1981 , on file, also Council Order dated Sept. 10, 1981 ordering the stopping of all building in this area until the flooding conditions are solved. We protest the development of nonresident developers and the impact they have on our neighborhood, although Mr. Brett is currently submitting plans for four units, his original submission to the Planning Board shows a potential for ten units, even four will show increase in traffic, the historical value of our neighborhood should not be further defaced or destroyed, to allow this could set precedent for further development in the Proctor Pope area. Maynard Allen, 15 Pope St. , displayed plot plan, when I bought my property and he told me this way my land, one day I decided to put pool in and I petitioned the City and found out it wasn' t my land, we have been using the land for about 15 years, plus it was used before that. I understand we can go to Land Court and take over the property, no from the city but from private individual, beside that happening I am against it, we have problem with flooding. The last house built there involved blasting and caused damage to my house, I had law suit against blasing company, they went out of business, we got nothing from that. Too many problems in that area more building would just add to them. George Baliotis, Ideal Finishing, 59 Boston St. , we are at the bottom of the hill and receive all the flooding, my only fear is, the brook situation is such that since they put up the apartments up the top, Dibiase Buildings, , several years ago, the situation has gone from bad to worse, the pressure from the brook coming down the hill has actually lifted up the manhole cover, I don' t know what can be done, but hopefully something. This is a serious problem. Barbara Allen, 15 Pope St. , when we were going to put in the pool, it was about four thousand dollars, the price went up to six thousand because of the wetland, said there was no way it could be put in as an ordinary pool. Our cellar is flooded every single year because of the brook. Mrs. Brophy, 25 Proctor St. , concerned with traffic, Rebuttal: Attorney Vallis, the general concensus is the brook, it is there, the situation exists. Mr. Brett obviously, if he didn't have his studies done by the surveyor, would not be interested in building there if he feels he's going to have flooded cellars. He understands and he intends to file Notice of Intent with Conservation Commission and explain to their satisfaction how the brook will be handled and whatever suggestion they might have. At least for the first time in many years there will be a professional engineer making a study and hope to correct some of these problems, right now it is a junk heap. The fact that Mr. Brett is a non-resident builder should have no influence on your decision. However, he does intend to have his daughter live in one of the units and he would not want her living there if it were going to be detrimental. The other problem raised, traffic, is not really a problem, we are providing 8 parking spaces,that should more than take care of the parking for these two buildings. The amount of property to be developed is in keeping with the neighborhood. Biggest problem in this area is Salem Heights. This will enhance the value of property around there, that area right now is a blight. Mr. Hacker: were you aware of that Council Order, MINUTES - JUNE 26, 1985 page eight 13 Pope St. - Continued dated September 1981? Mr. Vallis: no I wasn' t, after reading it, I'm not sure it deals with this. They are talking about an overall problem which exists in the entire area, North River, Boston St. , everything. I don' t see how a minor develop- ment like this is going to create any kind of a problem. Mr. Charnas: is your client concerned about this easement by prescription business? Mr. Vallis: its the first I've heard about it, I know that we are going to get plan and it will show basically what we have here, you know yourself you can't have adverse possession against any municipality, I'm willing, and there's plenty of land on other side and I'm sure some arrangement can be made. Mr. Gauthier: would like to ask Mr. Allen how high his house if above the street, the first floor. Mr. Allen: I am at street level. Mr. Gauthier: how deep from first floor to basement floor? Mr. Allen: about six six. Mr. Gauthier: my problem is I have to disagree with Mr. Fletcher when I read the letter, he claims that Pope St. is below the North River, mean high tide is eleven forty six, the grade at the bottom of the brook is twenty eight that means we're sixteen and half feet above the river, the problem is whoever built Mr. Allens house built is so it's going to flood no matter. I could be worked out by decreasing the flow, lower the brook, putting it below the house. We could put condition that the developer drop the brook to Mr. Allens advantage. This has been an eyesore and I agree with the people, the flooding the area is a serious problem, at this point it is a city problem. Mr. Charnas: unlike other petitions of this kind, I haven' t heard anything about traffic or noise or anything like that, only thing we've been hearing is the water problem, the question remains whether this would exacerbate it or not, my feeling is we should not vote tonight, should continue and get opinion from the City Engineer. Mr. Hacker: Mr. Vallis, would you have any problem with having this continued until the next meeting: Mr. Vallis: could the Board grant this on condition it meet City Engineer approval. Mr. Gauthier: we could sit with the City Engineer, sometime this week or the first of next week. Mr. Charnas: I would be uncomfortable voting on this now. I was decided the Board would write a letter to the City Engineer to set up a time when Mr. Gauthier, Mr. Vallis and the Allen's could all meet and look at the situation. Mr. Charnas made a motion to continue until the Board receive an opinion from the City Engineer. Mr. Luzinski seconded. UNANIMOUSLY CONTINUED. Mr. Hacker explained to the assemblage that this was continued and will not be advertised again. Anyone interested can call the office and find out when this is on the agenda. Mr. Hacker had to leave, Mr. Luzinski will be the Acting Chairman. Mr. Bencal was appointed a voting member. 50-509 Webb St. - Paul & Margaret O'Toole Petitioners are requesting a Special Permit to convert from a two family into a three family in this R-2 district. Mr. Charnas read the application, a letter from the Planning Board, opposed because of overall density, a letter from the Fire Department, no objection. Paul & Margaret O'Toole represented themselves. We are seeking permit to convert from two to three family, main reason is financial. The first of September.we are expecting a baby, our first, after baby is born she is going to stay home, will not be working. We are hoping this conversion will offset, at least partially, the loss of income we will be experiencing. Presently the third floor has front and rear stairwell, we are also to extend our driveway into the back yard to the required parking spaces, showed on the plans where the driveway is and where the parking will be. We will have the required smoke alarms. I have talked to all the neighbors and none of them have objected. Submitted a petition signed by the abutters in favor. He displayed pictures of the property. The �t 2 (�iig of �ttleln,�ittssttrf�usefts Uppartuirat of jJublir Morks (jnP 1.5haletn (5reen ANTHONY V. FLETCHER,R.P.E. RICHARD P.SWENSON,C.E. DIRECTOR of PUBLIC SERVICES Assistant Civil Engineer CITY ENGINEER September 25, 1981 TO: FRANCES GRACE FROM: A. V. FLETCHER SUBJECT: PROCTOR-POPE FLOODING Attached map is prepared to make explaining easier. Area inside green circle represents the area drained by natural effects and 30" and 24" pipe. At one time the course of this pipe was an open drainage brook, and the Park was partially a swamp that acted as a ponding area. The solid blue represents what the North River normally was - the green area naturally drained to the North River. As filling occured over the years, the brook was enclosed (red lines) , the swamp dissapeared and run off water had less area to flow in. When a 'high frequency storm occurs coincidental with a high tide, flooding occurs at the low point (from Pope to Proctor, along Bridge) as this area, at high tide, is lower than the North River. I have made (1978) a study of the system and I estimate $1,500,000 including the cost of a pump station, would be required to rectify the problem. Serious and expensive land takings would also be required. 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