Brookside Pizza can't serve on second floor

The Zoning Board of Adjustment (ZBA) last week denied a request by the owners of Brookside Pizza at 279 Lakeside Avenue to use the second floor of their building for dining and drinking.

The board based its decision on the lack of adequate parking, but also expressed concern that Theodore and

Erato Tolios of Bradford, Massachusetts had misrepresented their intentions by claiming that the additional space would be used for storage when they obtained a variance to add the upper story in October, 2004.

Representing the Tolioses, Cindy Lewis asked the ZBA to amend the variance to allow the second floor, which

covers 1,900 square feet and would seat 86 patrons at six tables and stools around the counter, to be used

as a restaurant.

The immediate concern of board members as well as nearby residents and businesses, was that the expansion of the pizzeria would increase demand on limited parking spaces. ZBA member Peter Mason stressed that parking in the neighborhood was “very, very restricted.” He estimated that the Tolioses would need another 15 parking spaces for a total of 30, a figure confirmed by Planning Director Shanna Saunders. Saunders explained that there is a provision for alternative parking plans, which includes public and shared spaces as well as other measures. If the ZBA granted the request to expand the restaurant to the second floor, she said that the parking issue would be referred to a committee of municipal departments, which would determine if the criteria for alternative parking arrangements could be met. If they could not, Saunders said, the Tolioses would have to return to the Planning Board for a conditional use permit or the ZBA for another variance.

Steve Bogert, chairman of the ZBA, commented that two year before the Tolioses told the board that they would suffer a hardship if they were denied the variance to add storage space to the building by

adding the upper floor. Saying that he felt that the board was misled, he said that now the Tolioses were claiming not being allowed to use the space as a restaurant would represent a “hardship.” What, he asked, did they intend to use for storage space?

Erato Tolios indicated that her businesses at The Weirs must make up for the short summer season by serving the optimal number of customers. However, Judy Krahulec, a former City Councilor and past president of the Weirs Action Committee, questioned whether the expansion of the pizzeria was the highest and best use of the building. She said that changes at The Weirs, especially the conversion of vacation rentals to condominium units, was affecting the tourist industry. She said that residents and businesses were developing a “master plan” for The Weirs and “don’t want a walking pub crawl.” Her reservations were echoed by Brian Beaupre, a resident of The Weirs on the ZBA, who said the area did not need another bar.