We wanted to share a link to a very recent Suffolk University Law Review article discussing the issue of standing: Beth Lidington, Massachusetts Standing Laws and Zoning Appeals: Standing on Shaky Ground After Kenner v. Zoning Board of Appeals, 46 Suffolk U. L. Rev. 603 (2013). Like most law review articles, this one contains a good synopsis of the law with many useful footnotes and citations throughout. The arc of this particular article is view-based harm as a premise for standing, all in the wake of the SJC’s Kenner decision rendered in 2011. The author’s analysis is thoughtful and worth the read.
Also, we would be remiss if we did not at least mention that there have been some interesting developments taking place on Beacon Hill in the past week with respect to proposed (and potentially sweeping) zoning reform changes found in the newly introduced House Bill 1859. Several other zoning and land use attorneys have already aptly commented on this development, like Don Pinto (Rackemann Sawyer & Brewster) at the Massachusetts Land Use Monitor and Richard Vetstein at the Massachusetts Real Estate Blog. A short piece also ran on Masslive.com. We will, of course, also monitor the bill’s progress as so many zoning attorneys will likely do considering the scope of the potential changes that may result. As a few commentators have already noted, this bill seems to have strong support from multiple corners, more so perhaps than any prior attempts at zoning reform. A few of the proposed changes (and their potential consequences) warrant a deeper look, and we will provide our take on those in the coming weeks.
Written by Kristen M. Ploetz, Esq., of Green Lodestar Communications & Consulting, LLC, on behalf of Jeffrey T. Angley, P.C. Edited by Jeffrey T. Angley, Esq.
Copyright (c) 2011-2013 by Jeffrey T. Angley, P.C. All rights reserved.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this post is general in nature and for educational purposes only. No personal legal advice is being provided. If you have an actual legal issue that needs to be addressed, you should seek the advice of competent legal counsel. This post does not create an attorney-client relationship between the reader and Jeffrey T. Angley, P.C., Phillips & Angley or their attorneys.
