Whitman ZBA Approves Storage Building at St. James Cemetery 5-0

WHITMAN -- June 15, 2026, Whitman ZBA unanimously approves a storage building for St. James Cemetery off Harvard Street. The Whitman Zoning Board of Appeals voted 5-0 Monday to grant site plan approval for a roughly 30-by-40-foot, 11-foot-tall storage structure on the property of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Boston, which has owned the cemetery since 1941. Jim Lewis, the cemetery manager, told the board the building will house grounds-keeping equipment and address a recurring mouse problem, and said it would sit at least 33 feet from the nearest property line, well beyond the 10-foot accessory-structure minimum under the town bylaw. Whitman Fire Rescue Deputy Chief Nicholas Grasso submitted a letter of no objection "provided all applicable fire and building codes are met," and the building commissioner on hand raised no concerns. No electrical service is currently planned due to the estimated $10,000-plus cost of connecting to the grid across Harvard Street. The board's written decision must be filed with the Town Clerk, starting a 20-day appeal period before construction can proceed.