Danvers ZBA elects new chair, delays wall case

Zoning Board of Appeals · Meeting of August 24, 2026

Danvers Zoning Board of Appeals elected new leadership and continued a contested retaining-wall case after neighbor pushback. The board elected Corinne Doherty as chair and Chris Dembowski as clerk, then heard objections from abutter William Little, who argued an eight-foot wall proposed at 58 Burleigh Street reflected "personal preference, not a legal hardship." Clerk Dembowski warned the two-foot property-line setback could make a neighbor's "backyard a living hell," and three members said they would vote no; the case was continued to September 14. The board also granted a special permit letting a Bremen Street family add a basement kitchen, a use Planning Director Brian Szekely said the town had "never" issued a permit for before, plus several other dimensional findings and variances for home additions and porches.

In the full story:

• Board Reorganization: New Chair and Clerk
• Consent Agenda: Minutes
• 8 Fairview Street: Variance and Appeal Continued
• 50 Independence Way: Signage Variance Withdrawn
• 170 Silvin Street: Off-Premises Sign Variance Continued
• 10 Folly Hill Drive: Second-Story Addition
• 5 Grove Street: Addition After a Permitting Error
• 7 Donegal Lane: ADU Access Stairs Variance
• 8 Chapel Road: Farmer's Porch Setback Finding
• 58 Burleigh Street: Retaining Wall Variance Continued Amid Neighbor Opposition
• 16 Bremen Street: Novel Special Permit for a Second Kitchen
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 2,321 words

Source: the Zoning Board of Appeals meeting of August 24, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript. It was corrected where it differed.