Lowell ZBA Approves Garage-to-Townhouse Conversion, Stalls Student Housing Over Parking

LOWELL -- April 27, 2026, Lowell Zoning Board approves two residential conversions and sends a zero-parking student housing proposal back for revision. The board voted 5-0 Monday to allow Kazanjian Enterprise, Inc. to convert an eight-bay commercial garage at 297 University Avenue into four owner-occupied townhouse units, conditioned on landscaping screening along the northern property line and final City Engineer approval; three abutters had raised concerns about drainage, privacy, and damage to century-old garages from rear-lot vehicle traffic. In a second unanimous vote, the board approved variances for longtime resident and former board member Dan Tenczar to add a first-floor accessible bedroom and full bath at 69 Baltimore Avenue, conditioned on a corrected site plan reflecting a floor area ratio of 0.71. The board then unanimously continued ZBA-2026-15, a petition by TLGLE, LLC principal Jack Tran to convert the former Pawtucketville Social Club at 123 University Avenue into 12 studio apartments and two ground-floor commercial units, to June 8 after every member said the complete absence of off-street parking, relief from an estimated 28 required spaces, was unsupportable without a documented private parking arrangement; Member Dennis McCarthy also flagged that the proposed studios, at 650 to 800 square feet, are sized more like two-bedroom apartments and could be subdivided.