In the article, “Neighbors Question Oversight of Housing Project, (July 31)” the Town Building Inspector says “no one came last year to the Planning Board… to say how about this, that or the other. No one.” But then in the next paragraph, the minutes show, in fact, there were two people on record at that meeting asking questions. I was one of them (identified as Adam O’Neil). Specifically, my question had been about the difference in size between the property to be demolished and the new property to take its place, to which I had three different answers.
Taking directly from their application, they claimed, “The design features gable-end roofs similar to nearby units. Rooflines are set back from the street to reduce vertical scale, with ridge heights comparable to existing structures…” and instead the building does not align with any of the dormers they included as evidence, is easily the tallest building in the area, and embraces nonconformity, like the continued claim that it is only 2½ stories, when clearly there are multiple areas where anyone clearly sees three full stories. Even given these obvious deviations, they then had the confidence to increase the size on their own submitted plans with no checks.
Neighbors didn’t fail to speak up. The record shows we did. What’s missing isn’t public engagement; it’s an honest accounting of the project numbers, enforcement of the town’s building regulations and bylaws, and a Planning Board willing to check the application and hold builders responsible. Essentially, to uphold the mission taken from their own website: “The primary goal of the Planning Board is to protect and preserve the character and the quality of life that defines Belmont.”
Rose ONeil, Maple Street
