Bellingham Planning Board seats Walsh as chair, approves 40 Grove Street backlot permit

BELLINGHAM — June 11, 2026 — Bellingham Planning Board reorganizes, seats new chair, and approves a contested backlot subdivision special permit. The five-member board elected Marty Walsh as chair on a 3-1 vote Thursday, with member Steven dissenting on grounds that a seniority-based rotation should have given him the seat first, and new member Jasmine abstaining on her first night. Phil Devine, the outgoing chair, was unanimously elected vice chair, and Patrick Sullivan was appointed clerk. The board then voted 4-0 — with Jasmine abstaining for lack of prior hearing attendance — to approve a backlot subdivision special permit for 40 Grove Street, sought by applicants John and Robin McCart. Attorney Scott Ambler presented updated plans incorporating all board conditions, including a 50-foot no-cut buffer easement with deed language approved by town counsel and full removal of a previously flagged gun range from the site plan. Devine addressed abutters directly after the vote, saying a denial unsupported by legal findings "would be overturned in a New York minute" if appealed to land court. Two other hearings — 182-198 Main Street and 316 Oxford Avenue — were continued unanimously to the July 23 meeting at 7 p.m.