Weymouth zoning board approves office conversion for vacant Columbian Square bank

WEYMOUTH — April 22, 2020 — Weymouth's Board of Zoning Appeals approved a special permit to convert a vacant 9,904-square-foot bank building at 88 Pleasant Street into office space and continued a contested ledge-removal application at 71 Beale Street. The board voted unanimously to grant the 88 Pleasant Street permit under Section 12040, governing changes to nonconforming lots, with conditions including restricting building access to Fog Road only, screening a dumpster, and submitting a final landscape and lighting plan for departmental approval — the site's 28 parking spaces remain below the 50 required by zoning but represent an improvement over the prior bank use. Town Planner Bob Luongo noted that the parking nonconformity is actually reduced by the office conversion, saying the applicant "is making it less nonconforming." At 71 Beale Street, the board continued the earth-removal application to May 13 after abutters raised flooding and vibration concerns and board members questioned whether an eight-inch to one-foot topsoil layer over exposed bedrock would adequately manage stormwater; the applicant, Patrick McLaughlin, was directed to meet with the Department of Public Works before the next hearing.