692 Millbury Street (ZB-2026-019)

At a glance

Based on auto-generated captions plus the posted agenda; names, figures and vote tallies may be misheard.

• What: Zoning Board of Appeals petition ZB-2026-019 for the right-of-way adjacent to 692 Millbury Street, to convert the south face of a Lamar Advertising billboard to a digital display.
• Where it stands: continued on 2026-07-20 to 2026-08-31 (then continued again to 2026-09-28; constructive grant deadline now 2026-10-20 and listed on the 2026-10-19 agenda).
• Next: see the Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting - October 19, 2026 agenda (constructive grant deadline 11/10/2026).

The proposal

• Petitioner: Lamar Advertising Company.
• Present use: non-accessory freestanding billboard with traditional advertising panels.
• Zone: ML-2.0 (Manufacturing, Limited) and the Blackstone River Parkway Sign Overlay District.
• Purpose: convert the south face of the billboard to a digital display.

Relief sought

• Special Permit: conversion from static to digital display for a non-conforming sign (Art. IV, Sec. 6.L.2).

Hearing on 2026-07-20

• Applicant: Lamar Advertising's real estate manager (captioned Matt Runnings) described a 1998-era billboard beside Route 146 across from a lubricant company, and asked to convert only the south face (facing northbound 146 traffic) to digital. No change in size or height; ads would change every 10 seconds with no flashing or animation, plus approval would still be needed from the MassDOT outdoor advertising board.
• Staff (Michelle M. Smith): the billboard is nonconforming, in a split zone (the north face lies in zones where billboards are barred) and in the Blackstone River Parkway Sign Overlay District, which expressly prohibits billboards; the by-right option is to keep the static face. It is about 255 feet from Blackstone Gateway Park and about 193 feet from the nearest homes. Three waivers were identified but not requested.
• Lamar said about 95% of ads are local and cited emergency alerts and community messages; staff asked for the necessity of digital to be explained.
• Public comment: a resident letter cited wildlife near the Gateway Park, driver distraction (crash rates up 25 to 29% in a study) and energy draw (up to 46 times a static sign, about eight times a house). The applicant called the study from 2014 outdated and offered shorter hours, shielded faces and mitigation.
• Board view: every member spoke to leaning no (energy use, climate, wildlife, traffic safety on a narrow stretch of 146, little citywide benefit); Erik Bartenhagen put the burden on the applicant to show it is environmentally neutral. The chair explained a denial limits refiling, while a withdrawal or continuance does not.
• Lamar asked for a continuance. Vote: 5-0 to continue to August 31, with new material due to staff by August 17. A special permit needs four affirmative votes.

Status and next steps

• Status is ongoing.
• On 2026-07-20 the board signaled opposition and gave Lamar time to answer concerns about energy, glare, wildlife and traffic safety.
• Later continuances are noted in the Log; the October 19 agenda notes testimony on 7/20/2026 and 9/28/2026.

Discussion time

About 36 minutes across 2 meetings (from transcript timestamps; approximate).

Log

• 2026-08-31 - Zoning Board of Appeals - Continued to September 28 and constructive grant deadline extended to October 20 on a 4-0 vote, with no discussion or public comment (per auto-captions).
• 2026-07-20 - Zoning Board of Appeals - Public hearing. Lamar sought a digital face on the billboard's south side; the board signaled opposition (energy use, Blackstone River Parkway overlay and wildlife, driver distraction, limited benefit). At the applicant's request, continued 5-0 to August 31 with new information due August 17. Public hearing deadline was 7/20/2026; constructive grant deadline was 8/11/2026.