There shall be a Board of Appeals consisting of five members who shall be appointed by the Mayor and approved by the City Council. The terms of the appointed members shall be such that one expires on January 31 of each year. Any vacancy on the Board shall be similarly filled for any unexpired term, and such Board shall annually elect a Chairman from its own members.[1]

There shall be five associate members of the Board of Appeals, who shall be appointed by the Mayor and approved by the City Council; and in case of a vacancy, inability to act, or interest on the part of a regular member of the Board, his or her place shall be filled by an associate member, who shall have all powers and duties of the member whose place he or she fills.

Any person whose application has been refused may appeal therefrom within 60 days. Such appeal shall be in writing and shall be filed, together with a fee of $10, with the Building Inspector, who shall transmit the appeal to the Board at once, and deposit the fee with the City Collector. The fee for a special permit or variance application shall be $150; the fee for an administrative appeal shall be $200; or fees as set from time to time by the Board of Appeals.

The cost of advertising of the hearings shall be paid for by the petitioner to the Clerk of the Board of Appeals.

After such notice to the appellant, to the Inspector and to other such parties as the Board may order, and after 14 days' published notice, a hearing shall be had, and the Board may by a four-fifths vote affirm, annul, or modify the proposal in harmony with the intent and purpose of the chapter but not otherwise.

The Board of Appeals shall keep a detailed record of its proceedings. The record shall indicate the vote of each member upon each question, including whether the member was absent or failed to vote; the reason or reasons for the Board's decision; and the official action taken.

The Board of Appeals may authorize the uses set forth in this chapter by special permits, subject to the provisions of this article, except the Planning Board, not the Board of Appeals, will be the special permit granting authority for special permits in the CC, BHD or WDR District (except for bed-and-breakfast establishments), the IR Overlay or WSPOD District, and for special permits concerning floor area ratio (FAR) bonus, pork-chop-shaped lots, deviations from the requirements for off-street parking, congregate elderly housing and inclusionary housing. The City Council, not the Board of Appeals, will be the special permit granting authority for special permits concerning the residential reuse of existing and former public buildings.

Before taking final action on applications for special permit uses, the Board of Appeals and Planning Board shall consider whether the following and other conditions are met:

In granting approval of an application for a special permit use, the special permit granting authority may attach all reasonable and necessary conditions to assure that the uses of surrounding properties are adequately safeguarded and that the intent of the Comprehensive Plan and this chapter are maintained.

Construction or operations under a special permit shall conform to any subsequent amendment of this chapter unless the use or construction is commenced within a period of six months after the issuance of the permit and, in cases involving construction, unless such construction is continued through to completion as continuously and expeditiously as is reasonable.

A special permit shall lapse after two years, and including such time required to pursue or await the determination of an appeal, from the grant thereof, if a substantial use thereof has not sooner commenced except for good cause or, in the case of permit for construction, if construction has not begun by such date except for good cause.

The special permit granting authority shall adopt rule and regulations relative to the issuance of special permits. A copy of the rules and regulations are filed with the City Clerk.

The Board of Appeals may grant variances, including variances for use in any nonresidential district (but no use variance may be granted in any R Districts), to the strict application of any of the requirements of this chapter only for reasons of practical difficulty and demonstrable and substantial hardship, financial or otherwise, to the appellant, and only where the Board finds that:

In acting on any variance, the Board of Appeals shall consider one or more of those factors set forth under § 300-91B as appropriate, and shall prescribe any conditions and safeguards that it deems to be necessary or desirable. These conditions cannot require continued ownership of the land or structure by the application, petitioner, or owner.

The Board of Appeals may grant a special permit for the removal of topsoil, sand, gravel, or other natural materials for commercial purposes as a temporary nonconforming use in an IR or IG District, provided that the following conditions apply:

The Board of Appeals may grant a variance for a nonconforming building, structure, or use incidental to the development of a subdivision or other construction project in any R District, including such accessory uses as a construction office, real estate sales office, and storage of materials and supplies located on the tract or lot to which such use is accessory. A temporary use permit for such use or building shall be issued only upon written agreement of the owner, or his or her agent, to remove such building or structure within 30 days after completion of construction or the issuance of a certificate of occupancy for the last house of a subdivision. Such temporary permit shall be issued for a period not to exceed three years and may be renewed annually at the discretion of the Board.

Procedural requirements for special permits, findings and variances shall be in accordance with Chapter 40A of the Massachusetts General Laws, on file with the City Clerk. Optional procedural requirements of Chapter 40A are not included in this chapter. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall be the authority to grant special permits and variances, except the Planning Board, not the Zoning Board of Appeals, will be the special permit granting authority for special permits in the CC, BHD or WDR District (except for bed-and-breakfast establishments), the IR Overlay or WSPOD District and for special permits concerning floor area ratio (FAR) bonus, pork-chop-shaped lots, deviations from the requirements for off-street parking, Congregate elderly housing and inclusionary housing. The City Council, not the Board of Appeals, will be the special permit granting authority for special permits concerning the residential reuse of existing and former public buildings.

Subsequent to a special permit, finding, or variance granted by the Zoning Board of Appeals, minor modifications to the application and/or plan may be made from time to time in accordance with applicable City ordinances and regulations. The development approved under such special permit, finding, or variance shall otherwise be in accordance with the approved plans and such conditions, as may be included, in the decision of the Zoning Board of Appeals.

The applicant shall notify the Zoning Board of Appeals in writing well in advance of any such modification, which shall not be effective until approved by vote of the Zoning Board of Appeals. The developer shall also submit a plan depicting such modification. Should the Zoning Board of Appeals determine that such revisions are not minor, it shall order that an application for modification of a special permit, finding or variance be filed and a public hearing be held in the same manner as set forth for such applications.