Norwood Planning Board Votes 4-1 to Deny 96-Unit MBTA Housing Project on Lennox Street

NORWOOD — January 5, 2026 — Norwood Planning Board rejects 96-unit MBTA housing project over mechanized parking lifts. The board voted 4-1 Monday to deny site plan approval for 55 Lennox Street, a proposal to build 96 apartment units on 0.85 acres — roughly 112 units per acre — using 38 mechanical car-stacking lifts to meet the town's 1.1-spaces-per-unit parking requirement under its MBTA Community Zoning overlay. Board member Joe Sheehan, who led the case for denial, argued that the lifts are impractical for daily residential use and that the town's bylaw defines tandem parking as cars in a row, not stacked vertically, leaving the mechanized system without clear authorization. The sole dissenting vote came from board member Ernie Carey, who cited written memos from Building Inspector Pelletier and Town Counsel Dave DeLuca concluding that the lifts comply with the bylaw and that the building inspector holds authority to make that determination. The denial triggers a two-year bar on substantially similar resubmission; the board signaled it will pursue a town meeting bylaw amendment defining standards for mechanical parking systems.