Arlington Zoning Board Closes Gas Station Hearing, Signals Denial of Third Bay

ARLINGTON — March 10, 2026 — Arlington Zoning Board closes hearing on gas station expansion, appears headed toward denial. The board voted 6-0 to close the public hearing on Docket 3873, a request by 125 Broadway owner Eli Alkohulli to add a third service bay to his Mobil station, with members broadly agreeing that the bylaw's definition of "service bay" refers to an individual vehicle service space rather than a garage door — a reading that leaves the station already at the three-bay limit it cannot exceed. Attorney John Leone argued that 1991 Town Meeting minutes defined a bay as the door-and-area combination, but associate member Nicholas Rosenberg said he was "concerned that there's no limitation" if a bay is defined solely by a door. Chair Christian Klein, who visited the site the morning of the meeting and observed vehicles on all three lifts simultaneously, directed board member Patrick Hanlon to draft a denial. The board separately voted 6-0 to close a far less contentious hearing on a 3,100-square-foot clubhouse addition at the Winchester Country Club, 468 Mystic Street, which received Conservation Commission approval in February and drew no public opposition.