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Meeting report · Board of Appeals
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Board of Appeals — March 31, 2026

While the board was unified in its voting, there was vocal aesthetic dissent from a community member regarding a mural design.

Date Tuesday, March 31, 2026 Duration 0.6h Speakers 1 Decisions 5 Mildly contentious
▶ Video

Public ⁠impact

Issues from this meeting with documented community impact.
01

Commercial Signage and Zoning Compliance

Multiple commercial entities granted specific signage permissions with restrictive conditions regarding lumens and additional sign rights. Affected: Local business owners and residents in commercial corridors (Burlington Mall, Cambridge St, Wheeler Rd)
zoning change

Decisions ⁠logged

Every recorded vote, with timestamps and dissents.
Approval of variance for 18A Hampton A for a front yard setback of 22.3 feet per submitted plans.
Variance approved for a 2.7 ft reduction in setback.
5-0
Approval of sign application for 0 Burlington Mall Road for Rocco's Tacos.
Approved one illuminated wall sign (2'8" x 40'8.5") with conditions: no other signs even if by right, and maximum 90 lumens per square foot.
5-0
Approval of sign application for 34 Cambridge Street for two painted wall signs.
Approved two signs with special conditions: no other signs even if by right, and the words 'Burlington Crossroads' must not exceed 10 feet in length.
5-0
Approval of special sign permit for 1 Wheeler Road for four illuminated wall signs.
Approved four signs (one 3'10.25" x 24' and three 2'6" x 9'8.75") with conditions: no other signs even if by right and maximum 90 lumens per square foot.
5-0
Adjournment of the meeting.
The meeting was adjourned.
5-0

Topics ⁠discussed

Click a topic to expand quotes and full context.
▶ 00:07 Welcome of New Recording Clerk

The board welcomed Eevee Doyle as the new recording clerk.

Speakers: Unidentified speaker
▶ 00:15 Variance Request for 18A Hampton A

The applicant requested a variance for a front yard setback to construct a front entry portico to prevent basement flooding.

Speakers: Unidentified speaker, Andre Leblanc, Marina Garris
▶ 10:27 Sign Application for 0 Burlington Mall Road (Rocco's Tacos)

A proposal for an internally illuminated wall sign for a new tenant in the mall, subject to a previous ZBA decision requiring board approval.

Speakers: Unidentified speaker, Heather Dudco
▶ 17:36 Mural/Sign Application for 34 Cambridge Street (Crossroads Plaza)

Eden's Real Estate Development requested to install a mural that would be classified as a sign, intended to pay homage to a former Polynesian/Chinese restaurant.

Speakers: Unidentified speaker, Ryan Leeing, Mark
▶ 43:18 Sign Application for 1 Wheeler Road (Kuw/Ramen & Ice Cream)

The applicant sought to install several illuminated channel letter signs on the various sides of a building tower.

Speakers: Unidentified speaker, Ricky Zang

Controversy & ⁠dissent

Where the board, the community, or the agenda diverged.

Potentially controversial issues

01

34 Cambridge Street Mural/Sign Application

The design of the mural/sign was met with vocal aesthetic opposition. A community member (Mark) expressed strong dislike for the proposed branding/design elements.
Board position: The board ultimately approved the application but imposed specific restrictions on the text length to mitigate the design concerns.
medium concern

Community vs. board tension

Notable ⁠statements

This is actually something that's been recurring with the board... I was actually looking at how we could remediate that so going forward. — Unidentified speaker · Regarding applicants performing work before receiving a variance. ▶ 05:49
I'm against the Burlington [text]... It looks awful. I don't know where anybody got an idea to put Burlington crossroads across. — Mark · Expressing opposition to the design of the Crossroads Plaza mural before a compromise was reached. ▶ 23:23

Public ⁠comment

What residents said — verbatim, with timestamps.
No public comments were identified in this meeting.
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Report composed by gemma-4-26b, claude-opus-4-7 · analyzed 2026-05-25.