Published July 15, 2020
By DAN TOMASELLO
LYNNFIELD — The Historical Commission will be holding an outdoor meeting on Wednesday, July 29 to discuss a proposal requesting to demolish a historical home.
Virgil Lynnfield Properties, LLC recently submitted a building permit application seeking to raze the old Joseph Smith house at 163 Lowell St. The home is currently listed as historic and is under the Historical Commission’s jurisdiction. The Historical Commission will be discussing the proposal during an outdoor meeting in front of the Historic Centre, located across the Town Common, on Wednesday, July 29, beginning at 6:30 p.m.
The 163 Lowell St. farmhouse was built in 1850 and is the former home of town father Joseph F. Smith (1881-1963) and his wife Della Rich Smith (1899-1990). Joe’s property on Lowell Street was part of a grant of 640 acres given to the Smith family by King Charles I of England in 1640, which included Pocahontas Spring.
After Joe died in 1963, he left all of his property to Della. The Pocahontas Spring Water Company was then leased to the LeColst family, who ran the business until 2012. After Della’s death, her daughter Marie and her husband Larry Vazzana lived in the house until they relocated to North Carolina in 2006. The couple sold the property to former residents John and Heather Sievers for $713,545 in April 2006.
The Vazzana family sold the Pocahontas Spring Water Company to Anthony Gattineri several years ago, and he changed the company’s name to Boston Clear Water. The water company, located at 165 Lowell St., has been embroiled in controversy since Gattineri took over the operation. BCWC has been involved in a number of disputes with both the Conservation Commission and the Zoning Board of Appeals. Gattineri has also filed a number of lawsuits against the town.
In addition, police respond regularly to the area to check out myriad complaints by neighbors.
In October 2018, the ZBA ruled in favor of Boston Clear Water Company after a group of residents including the Sievers filed a petition requesting the board to overturn retired Building Inspector Jack Roberto’s decision not to enforce three complaints against BCWC. Roberto said in a letter to the petitioners that he was “not convinced of the correctness” of the petitioners’ complaints.
According to The Warren Group, the Sievers sold the 163 Lowell St. home to Boston Clear Water Company for $860,000 on Nov. 25, 2019. Virgil Lynnfield Properties manager Paul Marchionda stated in a letter sent to Building Department administrative assistant Winnie Barrasso he was “unaware” the home was registered as historic.
The Historical Commission held a preliminary discussion about the proposal to raze the home late last month. The commission will need to decide whether the Demolition Delay Bylaw should be utilized in order to delay razing the 163 Lowell St. home.
A Special Town Meeting approved the Demolition Delay Bylaw in October 2008. The general bylaw was “enacted for the purpose of preserving and protecting significant structures within the town which constitute or reflect distinctive features of architectural, cultural, economic, political or social history of the town and to limit the detrimental effect of demolition on the character of the town.”
“Through this bylaw, owners of preferably preserved structures are encouraged to seek out alternative options that will preserve, rehabilitate or restore such structures and residents of the town are alerted to impending demolitions of significant structures,” the bylaw states. “By preserving and protecting significant structures, streetscapes and neighborhoods, this bylaw promotes the public welfare by making the town a more attractive and desirable place in which to live and work. To achieve these purposes, the Lynnfield Historical Commission is empowered to advise the building inspector with respect to the issuance of permits for demolition of significant structures. The issuance of demolition permits for significant structures is regulated as provided in this bylaw.”
Gattineri and Marchionda did not return the Villager’s calls and emails asking them to comment on the proposal to raze the 163 Lowell St. home.