Saugus Planning Board Clears Two Projects, Flags Unpermitted Pile-Driving at Storage Site

Planning Board · Meeting of May 21, 2026

Saugus Planning Board approved two project modifications and flagged unpermitted construction at a Broadway self-storage site Thursday. The three-member quorum, led by Chair John O'Brien, voted 3-0 to approve an Approval Not Required lot division on Cliff Road, splitting the former Ellen Burns property into two conforming R1 lots for owner Richard LeClaire, represented by attorney David Dwyer. The board then voted 2-1, with Member Robert Long dissenting, to classify utility and drainage changes at 163-167 Hamilton Street — including a 1,000-gallon grease trap and rerouted water service — as a minor modification to a previously approved plan.

A second 2-1 vote accepted a site-work update for Jumbo Capital's self-storage facility at 1753 Broadway, despite developer Sam Weissman's admission that piles were driven on site without a foundation permit: "I take responsibility for my misunderstanding of starting some of the site work." The board required the developer to return with a foundation as-built plan before vertical construction begins.

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Source: the Planning Board meeting of May 21, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.