(Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect corrections made on February 28.)
By Alice Waugh
The First Parish Church is going before the Planning Board tonight in hopes of getting a final go-ahead for the controversial Stearns Room replacement, but some are worried that the process could drag on even longer.
Discussion among church officials about expanding the Stearns Room, which dates from 1963, began in 2001 when the Flint family donated a parcel of abutting land to the church. The current proposal calls for a covered, handicapped-accessible entranceway from the sanctuary as well as handicapped restrooms, a sitting area with a fireplace, and a space on the south side of the addition for robing, private phone conversation, and gatherings at various times including after Sunday services when the Stearns Room is full. The room would open to a small patio and a view of the field to the west.
To carry out its plan, the church needed several zoning exemptions, and the process of trying to obtain town approvals began about two years ago. At several hearings, residents objected to how the proposed addition would look and argued that the church should not be exempted from zoning regulations. In response, the church has argued that, given the constraints of the property, it cannot fulfill the goals of a Stearns Room expansion without the exemptions.
In a victory for the church, Planning Board approved most of the site plan in February 2014 and granted relief from zoning limits on lot size, lot width and parking—but it denied the requested four-foot setback on the north side of the property. Based on that decision, building commissioner Daniel Walsh denied a building permit in March 2014.
The church subsequently appealed to the Zoning Board of Appeals, saying applying the setback requirement to the property’s north side was not reasonable in this circumstance, pursuant to the Dover Amendment, and should not be enforced, according to minutes of the ZBA’s meeting on June 19, 2014. The Dover Amendment is a state statute that exempts agricultural, religious and educational corporations from certain zoning restrictions.
At that June meeting, the ZBA granted permission for the north side setback by a 4-0 vote (member Megan Stride abstained). However, the board noted that the church would have to go back to the Planning Board to finish the site plan review process. Tonight the Planning Board will consider those elements of the site plan it hasn’t already reviewed, such as landscaping, lighting and drainage—”things they didn’t get around to before,” said Director of Planning and Land Use Chris Reilly. The Planning Board can’t revisit the building itself, which has already won the necessary approvals; “they have to be disciplined and look just at the remainder of the site plan review process, unless someone brings forth new information,” he said.
But Lincoln resident Ken Hurd, an architect who has been working for the church, was not reassured. “There have been hints that they want to look at more things,” he said. “They have changed their minds before, so we just don’t know.” Asked for specifics, Hurd said the board approved minutes of a September 2013 meeting in November of that year but later rewrote them shortly before its vote in February 2014.
“There’s a little lack of trust about what they say and what gets posted,” Hurd said on Tuesday afternoon.
On behalf of the First Parish Building Committee, Hurd this week wrote a letter to the Planning Commission to reiterate the benefits of the new addition, saying it would “affirm the dignity of everyone who might be part of this community institution… It is not our intent to simply build real estate, but to create an experience that is spiritually uplifting and satisfying to the soul as well as true to the values of Lincoln and an entire spiritual community.”
Meanwhile, the church also needed approvals from the Historic District Commission to demolish the old Stearns Room and build a new one. After a contentious hearing in November 2014, the commission voted to grant a certificate of appropriateness for the new construction by a vote of 5-2, with members Ruth Wales and Bryce Wolf voting no. The commission also voted 6-0 (with Wolf abstaining) to grant a demolition permit.
Previous coverage in the Lincoln Squirrel:
- Letter to the editor: First Parish design elements not appropriate (November 12, 2014)
- Letter to the editor: Uphold First Parish decision (June 18, 2014)
- First Parish Church goes before ZBA tonight (May 15, 2014)
- Letter to the editor: First Parish vote “a matter of principle and integrity” (February 26, 2014)
- Letter to the editor: Flint responds to First Parish letter (February 10, 2014)
- Letter to the editor: First Parish expansion (February 6, 2014)