Date to raze $1.1M Marblehead home passes without action

MARBLEHEAD – Marblehead homeowner Wayne Johnson may never forget his 73rd birthday.By a quirk of fate Monday, his birthday, was the Massachusetts Land Court deadline for him to raze or move his $1.1 million home at 74 Bubier Road or face a civil contempt complaint.The fact that his home was still standing as that birthday drew to a close – despite a 15-year fight with his neighbor, Dr. John Schey – may have been the best present Johnson could have hoped for.Reached Monday at work, Johnson, who is an investment adviser, said, “The market?s against me at this point,” noting his work teaches him he?s not the only person with problems.As for the court case, Johnson said, “I have faith that I?m on the right side of the law. The town approved my house and I think they have to take responsibility for their actions. I don?t hold any grudge. They made a mistake (ordering me to remove the house). That?s the way I?m viewing it.”The house violates Marblehead Zoning Bylaws because its subdivision lot has too little frontage. The Board of Appeals voted 3-2 against Johnson?s 1993 pre-construction request for a variance, but could not muster the 4-1 vote required to legally reject it, and he got a building permit.The new house did not win approval from Schey, who said it keeps his house constantly in shadow and blocks his view of the ocean. After a complaint was made in 2000 a different appeals board ruled 4-1 that the house was illegal and must come down or be moved, generating a Land Court case.Building Commissioner Robert Ives ordered Johnson to remove his home earlier this year and Land Court Judge Charles Trombly Jr. gave Johnson until Monday to remove the house or face civil contempt proceedings.Schey?s lawyer, Attorney Frank McElroy, said Monday he will file the paperwork for a civil contempt complaint in Land Court Wednesday and the case could be heard by Oct. 31.?This is not a complicated matter,” McElroy said, noting that the Land Court has authority to issue injunctions, levy fines and even order jail time for Johnson.Town Counsel Lisa Mead declined to say Monday if she has spoken with town officials about the case, other than her previous advice about Johnson?s request for a special Town Meeting.Johnson said Monday he believes his appeal of Judge Trombly?s ruling to the Massachusetts Appeals Court may put the deadline and other aspects of the ruling on hold.Johnson?s lawyer, Attorney Michael Pill of Northampton, noted “the rarity of this situation – ordering a man to destroy the roof over his head and render himself homeless,” – and the nature of the case created uncertainty. Pill has consistently declined to comment on his legal strategy.Johnson is also seeking a special Town Meeting vote to revise the Zoning Bylaws to require only 75 feet of frontage rather than the current 100-foot requirement, a change that would make his house legal.The proposed bylaw change will get a Planning Board hearing Tuesday, Nov. 9, at the Marblehead Community Center.Selectmen rejected petitions requesting a special Town Meeting last month and although Johnson said a second round of petitions has been signed none have been presented to the town clerk?s office for certification.