Weymouth Zoning Board Closes Hearing on Funeral Home Expansion, Delays Decision

WEYMOUTH — October 26, 2022 — Weymouth's zoning board closed the public hearing on McDonnell Cohane Funeral Home's years-long chapel expansion bid and continued it under advisement to November 16. The Board of Zoning Appeals heard a third round of testimony on case 3473 at 809 Main Street, where applicant attorney Jeff Toccio presented a revised plan that cut parking in the abutting R1 residential zone from 31 to 17 spaces, shifted a four-bay garage 198 feet from Cypress Street, eliminated a west-side patio, and reduced lighting fixtures from 24 to 16. Co-president Dennis Cohane argued the 105-space expansion is essential to survival, citing recent closures of funeral homes in Quincy, Pembroke, and Weymouth. Opposing attorney Johanna Schneider of Hemingway and Barnes countered that the proposal "will not materially and detrimentally change the character of this very quiet residential neighborhood" — the standard the board must find in order to deny. In a separate unanimous vote, the board approved converting the first floor of a rebuilt mixed-use building at 254 Washington Street from vacant commercial to residential after the owner failed to attract a commercial tenant since a 2017 fire.