Whitman Zoning Board Continues Cherry Street Condo Case, Cites Scale and Fire Access

Zoning Board · Meeting of July 20, 2026

Whitman Zoning Board approves South Ave accessory dwelling unit, continues four-unit Cherry Street condo to August. The board voted 5 to 0 to grant site plan approval for property owner Robert Murphy to demolish a deteriorated rear cottage and garage at 138 South Ave and construct a new 768-square-foot, two-bedroom accessory dwelling unit with an attached two-car garage, satisfying conditional approvals from the Planning Board, Fire Department, and Board of Health. In the meeting's main event, Attorney Ron Whitney appeared for E&A Realty LLC seeking a use variance, three dimensional variances, and site plan review for a proposed four-unit, three-bedroom condominium building at 96 Cherry Street, a 15,000-square-foot Residence A2 lot that last housed as many as eight occupants in a drug-troubled household.

Deputy Chief Nicholas Grasso testified the department's 50-foot aerial apparatus could not safely deploy or turn around in the 20-foot-wide proposed driveway. Board members flagged a basement office with a full bathroom and closet as a de facto fourth bedroom, and Chair John Goldrosen said flatly the project was "too much for the lot," suggesting three units would resolve most of the fire access, parking, and scale concerns. Three neighbors spoke in favor of the demolition and rebuilding but two acknowledged the scale might need reduction; one said police had responded to the property at least 250 times since 2016.

The case was continued unanimously to August 24 at 7:30 p.m.

In the full story:

• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 3,103 words

Source: the Zoning Board meeting of July 20, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.