Session Laws

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. The city of Newton is hereby authorized to adopt an ordinance concerning the Chestnut Hill Historic District which includes within the definition of "exterior architectural features" such portion of the exterior of a building or structure as is open to view from a private way as well as from a public street, public way, public park or public body of water.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Chestnut Hill historic district commission may make only non-binding recommendations regarding changes to the exterior architectural features open to view from a private way of properties located on Essex road and from Nos. 147 through 256 Chestnut Hill road, with the following exceptions where such decisions of the commission shall be fully binding in the ordinary course:

(a) demolition of a building or structure so long as such demolition occurs after such property ceases to be legally or beneficially owned by the owner of record as of the effective date of the ordinance amendment effecting this act;

(b) any lot created by subdivision of such properties where its required frontage lies on a way whose properties are not then subject to such limited commission review;

(c) any property where the legal or beneficial owner of record files with the city clerk a certificate indicating irrevocable consent on behalf of such owner and of successor owners to submit to the jurisdiction of the historic district commission and to be bound by its decisions, subject to any statutory rights of appeal;

(d) all of such properties on Essex road or on the portion of Chestnut Hill road identified above, if at any time not less than seventy-two and one-half percent of the total number of owner-occupied properties on the specific road under consideration have been made the subject of a filing described in clause (c), at which time the limits on commission review established by the above provisions shall lapse and shall not be reestablished for such specific road. It shall also be sufficient for such lapse to occur if the owner-occupants of all but four of the owner-occupied properties on the specific road under consideration have made the filing described in clause (c).

No owner of any property claiming the benefit of this exemption shall have standing as an aggrieved person for the purpose of appealing any decision of the district commission concerning property other than his own, other than a decision relating to changes to architectural features visible from a public way.

The limited commission review herein established shall not affect the district commission's authority to regulate exterior architectural features open to view from a public street, way, park or body of water, even if such features are located on property containing exterior architectural features subject to such limited review, nor shall it affect the commission's authority under sections 22-90 et seq., and 22-44 of the Newton revised ordinances 1989, relating to landmark preservation and the demolition of structures, respectively.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon its passage.