Ouellet v. Board of Appeals of Dover

The plaintiffs own land in Dover and had negotiated with the United States Post Office Department to the end that they might lease to the Department a building which they proposed to construct on their land. The land is located in a residential district under the town’s zoning by-law which, nevertheless, provides that a “municipal use” may be authorized in a residential district upon approval by the town’s board of appeals (Board). The plaintiffs applied for a special permit under the section so providing. The Board ruled that it could not act on the application because the contemplated use…