ZBA Approves Bridge Road Duplex Conversion

Zoning Board · Meeting of August 13, 2026

Northampton's Zoning Board of Appeals approved, 3-0, a special permit letting Michael Pickett demolish a nonconforming single-family house at 604 Bridge Road and build a nonconforming two-family house in its place. Members Elizabeth Silver, Maureen Scanlon and Sherry Taylor found the duplex "not substantially more detrimental" than the existing house despite a triangular, undersized lot that falls short of the city's 40,000-square-foot minimum. Neighbors Amanda Hebert, Anthony Reardon, Debra Leiser and Laurel Lizer raised concerns about shared maintenance of the private Old Quarry Road and sightlines onto Bridge Road, with Leiser asking, "If we're absorbing all that cost and it's a multi-used road, where do we go from here?" The board also appointed Taylor as a regular member to fill a vacant seat and elected Silver chair and Scanlon vice chair.

Both units are planned as rentals.

In the full story:

• Public Comment on Non-Agenda Items
• Special Permit Hearing: 604 Bridge Road
• Minutes of July 23
• Board Operations: Vacancy, Appointment and Leadership Election
• Next Hearing Dates
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 2,076 words

Source: the Zoning Board meeting of August 13, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.