The North End / Waterfront Neighborhood Council (NEWNC) voted unanimously to oppose a petition to build a one-story addition and private roof deck at 2 Snelling Place at their March meeting.
Attorney Dan Toscano presented the proposal to extend the living space for the first floor unit at 2 Snelling Place, located just off of Hull Street, into the basement and to add a one-story addition to unit three, creating a duplex apartment for the owner with a private roof deck.
Watch the full presentation in the video above and follow along with this timeline.
(00:48) The violations filed in the application are for floor-area-ratio (would increase to 4.3 due to the added square footage), rear yard setback (preexisting violation), and for a roof structure violation.
The addition would not change the occupancy of the building – it would remain a three-family residence.
Floor plans for the proposed construction are presented at 3:58. Unit one would become two levels with an interior stairwell. The unit would be a 2-bedroom, 2-bath with approximately 800 square feet of living space. Unit two would be remodeled but remain the same – 1 bedroom, 1 bath, 450 square feet. Unit three would become two levels and would be a 3-bedroom, 2-bath, with a fourth-floor patio. The proposed private roof deck would be 160 square feet and set back 9 feet from the edge of the building. The roof would be accessed by an interior stairway in unit three.
In total, the construction would increase the height of the building from between 33 – 35 feet to between 43 – 45 feet. This is within the 55-foot height limit for the North End.
(8:20) The design is meant to mimic an addition to 3 Snelling Place that has already been approved by the Zoning Board of Appeals. This proposal was supported by NEWNC in December 2017.
Renderings of what the new construction would look like are presented at 10:01.
Questions from the Council begin at 10:51.
(11:20) According to a business owner and friend who attended the meeting on building owner Bharat Mirchadini’s behalf, Mirchadini is currently living in Singapore and plans to return to live at the renovated 2 Snelling Place in two – three years.
Council members asked about current leases. They are all expiring this summer. In discussing short-term rentals, one of the tenants did AirBnB their unit for about 6 months. When the owner found out, he immediately evicted them.
(14:00) Council Vice President Brett Roman asked for more clarity around the means of egress. The building will be fully sprinkled and the second means of egress will be a fire escape. There is no fire escape on the fourth floor, which is the second floor of unit three. Attorney Toscano said that an escape is not required there and, if necessary, someone could step over to 3 Snelling Place, as both additions would hypothetically be in alignment.
If approved, construction is estimated to start about one year from now, and would take about five months.
(20:43) One abutter from 3 N. Bennet Court was present to give arguments against the proposed renovations. She expressed concerns about an absentee owner, and an addition that will create shadows, take away ventilation and raise privacy concerns as 3 N. Bennet Court has skylight windows.
The 2 Snelling Place petition will also be presented to the North End / Waterfront Residents’ Association on Thursday, March 14.
Attorney Toscana stated that the fourth floor has no fire escape and in case of emergency tenants can just step over to 3 Snelling place since the buildings are in alignment? M-m-m-m-m-m-