Planning Board drafts by-right accessory apartment rules, approves Oak Meadow deck change

LINCOLN — May 24, 2022 — Lincoln Planning Board drafts by-right accessory apartment rules and approves an Oak Meadow deck rebuild. The board on May 24 unanimously found and approved as minor a deck reconstruction for Julie Button at Oak Meadow, presented by contractor Larry Cohen of Architects of Suburban Boston, that pushes the deck frame two feet closer to the property line within cluster setbacks. Member Margaret Olson then walked colleagues through a draft amending R1 to allow one accessory apartment by right inside an existing single-family home — with design standards including a single curb cut, no more than three garage doors and no exterior demarcation of units — while keeping detached accessory units under special permit review. Olson floated raising the size cap from 35 to 45 percent of the principal dwelling; Co-Chair Gary Taylor warned a hard square-footage ceiling must remain to prevent near-duplex teardowns. Members also debriefed Concord's 45-to-55 defeat of its Thoreau business district rezoning, with Co-Chair Lynn DeLisi citing the Concord Finance Committee's public break from its Planning Board as "a real problem."