Town Meeting Approves ADU Update, Front Porch Relief, and Zoning Enforcement, but Pushes the "Structure" Definition and Animal Use Rules to January

Town Meeting passed 11 of the 15 articles that required a vote at its Sept. 28 meeting, withdrawing two and postponing two until January. A total of 103 of 126 members (82%) attended the one-night meeting.

At the outset of Town Meeting, an effort to limit Town Meeting Member speaking time to three minutes was considered and voted down by the body.

Reports and General Business

The meeting began with updates from around town:

• Burlington Government Review Committee chair Betsey Hughes outlined the committee’s progress toward developing a charter for the town (think: a town constitution) and said it will hold informational precinct meetings for Town Meeting Members on Oct. 13, 14 and 16 ahead of an anticipated vote at January Town Meeting.
• Ways and Means chair Ed Parsons said Shawsheen Tech has made substantial progress on its budget problems, including a revised budget, a permanent business manager and an outside accounting firm.
• Town Counsel Lisa Mead outlined some zoning changes at the state level, including the authority for the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) to grant use variances for residential projects.

The date of Burlington's annual town election was officially set for April 3, 2027.

Money and Property

In financial articles, no new tax dollars were appropriated. Town Meeting accepted $78,132.71 from the will of Marshall Simonds for treehouse amenities, bathroom renovations, and programming at Simonds Park. It also approved $681,550 for the first two years of the firefighters' newly negotiated union contract (already in the Negotiated Settlements line of the town's budget), and approved the use of $271,861.53 in earned interest to improve the town's sewer infrastructure.

The body also approved an article that would allow the town to retain abandoned funds rather than remitting them to the state. Treasurer/Collector Ana DeRosa said this happens every year in the form of uncashed checks to residents or vendors.

A land lease for the cell tower at 27 Blanchard Road was approved despite concerns that a 20-year window is too long (Rich DiBona, Precinct 3) and the 2.5% escalator is too low (Brenda Rappaport, Planning Board Chair). Town Meeting Members also expressed concern about the appearance of the property, which Assistant Town Administrator Patrick Lawlor said can be addressed via the bidding process and the contract. The property currently earns the town $73,560 annually.

Zoning Changes

The inspector of buildings now has a clearer mechanism to enforce zoning violations. Town Meeting passed an article, presented by Mead, that lets the inspector serve written notice, go to court to stop or correct violations, and issue fines of $300 per day. Rich DiBona (Precinct 3) asked whether anonymous complaints are allowed and Jami Weber (Precinct 7) asked who investigates them. Mead said they are allowed and the inspector must judge whether a complaint is credible.

Also passed: a bylaw amendment to bring Burlington's accessory dwelling unit (ADU, such as in-law apartments) bylaws in line with the state rules and regulations. Major changes: "one family" and "single family" become "principal dwelling," and the town can no longer require an off-street parking space when an ADU is within a half-mile of a regional bus stop. (Homeowners can still choose to add a parking space; the town just can't require it.) Concerns among the body centered on language around the "character of the neighborhood," as some members of the body said it was ambiguous and would invite disputes. Affordability was also a question, as these accessory units are not required to be deed-restricted affordable.

Covered front entries will now be allowed in a home's 25-foot front setback, provided they sit 20 feet off the property line. Proponent Jeff DiBona (Town Meeting Member, Precinct 3) said steps are allowed already, but once they have a roof they're not allowed. Town Meeting Members cited real examples of themselves or neighbors wishing to add a porch and not being able to because of the prohibitive cost of a variance. This article passed with minor amendments to the wording. Note: Jeff DiBona also chairs the ZBA, though he was not presenting in that capacity, and proposed the temporary sign and "structure" definition articles mentioned below.

Businesses with pending special sign permits before the ZBA will be able to have a temporary 8-by-2-foot banner sign from the date a complete application is filed until 40 days after the ZBA decides. An extension provision was considered, but Mead said such a provision was outside what was advertised. Rather than risking postponement, the article proceeded without the amendment.

The parcel at 49 Middlesex Tpk. where Ned's Towing is located has been rezoned to general business from general industrial at the property owner's request, matching surrounding properties. Ned's Towing plans to move on, and a retail jewelry store is intended to replace it. When asked about soil contamination after years as an auto repair facility, the proponent said Phase II testing indicates no contamination.

Withdrawn or Postponed

The zoning bylaw article on the control of animals was postponed until January. Its companion general bylaw article was withdrawn.

Likewise withdrawn was an article proposed by Town Meeting Member Bob Young that would have removed the non-emergency lift-assist fee instituted by Town Meeting in September 2025.

Finally, a zoning bylaw amendment that would refer the definition of "structure" back to the state building code was postponed. While the Planning Board supported it 6-1, the Land Use Committee and Zoning Bylaw Review Committee opposed it, citing unintended consequences from redefining a term that, according to Precinct 6 representative John Iler, appears more than 300 times in the zoning bylaws. Advocates of postponement said the proponent should work with the relevant land use boards to create a solution, such as a specific shed bylaw, that fits into the town's bylaws without potential unexpected downstream effects. Jeff DiBona said the issue has come before him as ZBA Chair where applicants have spent more than $4,000 to go through the variance process to install a shed in their property setback when, said DiBona, the variance wasn't necessary in the first place.

Any changes to the bylaws will take effect after the Massachusetts Attorney General's office approves them. Town Meeting will convene again in January with an expected vote on the BGRC's proposed town charter and possible articles on sheds, animal control, and more.