Scituate: Harbor property in business district may convert to residential space

Thursday night, the Scituate Planning Board met with Vin Albanese, the representative for the owners of four separate buildings in Scituate Harbor.

In hopes of selling the property at 165 Front Street, the home of the former Book Shop, Albanese explained to the board that a single-family dwelling in a business district could decrease vehicle congestion rather than a commercial property.

And Town Planner Laura Harbottle also noted that it’s a poor location for a business to thrive, “I think the problem is that if this remains a business, it’s just going to be very hard for a business to make a go of it in that location because it’s so far back from the street that you walk by and you don’t even see it.”

However, neither Harbottle nor the Scituate Planning Board could fit a permit to Albanese’s mixed-use development request, with Vice Chair Dan Monger stating it’s out of their jurisdiction.

Now the next step for the Front Street property owners is to visit the Zoning Board of Appeals.