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Home My WebLink AboutA003 - Staff Report dated November 14, 2012 r ITEM#: 2 DATE: 11/14/12 CITY OF AMES DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING AND HOUSING REPORT TO THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT DATE PREPARED: November 8, 2012 CASE FILE NO.: ZBA-12-23 MEETING DATE: November 14, 2012 REQUESTED EXCEPTION: To allow a reduction of the side setback from 8 feet to 6 feet on the east side of a single family detached residence. PROPERTY OWNER: Frederick and Lynn Koenig APPLICANT: Frederick and Lynn Koenig LOCATION: 2125 Polk Drive (See Attachment A) ZONING: RL (Residential Low Density) BACKGROUND: On August 8, 2012, the Zoning Board of Adjustment approved an exception for a minor area modification for this property to allow a garage addition that reduces the setback from eight feet to six feet on the east side. This exception allowed a two-foot addition to the garage. (See Site Plan approved August 8, 2012) Since that time, the owner has had the property surveyed; and it has now been determined that the current distance between the property line and the house is ten feet, or two feet greater than previously thought. The applicant now proposes a four-foot addition to the garage and seeks an exception for a minor area modification for this property to allow a garage addition that reduces the setback from eight feet to six feet on the east side. The subject property has a single-family two-story residence with an attached two-car garage on the east side. The property is a wedge shape approximately 70 feet wide on the front and from 129 to 148 feet deep. The front of the existing house is parallel to the front property line and set back 30 feet from the front property line. The garage portion of the house is one story tall and 20 feet wide and 22 feet deep. The garage is 10 feet from the east property line at the front and 12 feet from the east property line at the back corner. Since the house is considered as having two stories above grade, the required minimum side setback is 8 feet. (See attached Site Plan) PROJECT DESCRIPTION: Currently, the garage has a 16-foot wide garage door and the applicant states that the door and garage are very tight for two vehicles when one has large side mirrors. The homeowner wishes to widen the garage by four feet on the east side and install two nine-foot wide garage doors. The addition would extend beyond the 22-foot depth of the garage to include a 10-foot by 24-foot addition on the back of the garage. An exception for minor area modification to allow the garage to extend 2 feet into the minimum required side yard setback of 8 feet is requested. Since the east wall of the garage is not parallel to the east property line, only the front half of the garage addition will encroach into the side setback. (See attached Site Plan) APPLICABLE REQUIREMENTS: Ames Municipal Code Section 29.1506(4)(c)(ii) states the following: (c) Exceptions for minor area modifications. The Board is authorized to grant exceptions from the requirements of the zoning ordinance to allow minor area modifications for single-family attached and detached dwellings that exist in developed areas, but not in cases of new construction. These are authorized for the following situations: (i) reduction of required residential side yard setbacks for principal structures by no more than two feet; BASIS OF REQUEST: See the "Supporting Information" prepared by the applicant and included as part of this packet. FINDINGS OF FACT: Section 29.1506(4)(c) of the Zoning Ordinance describes the criteria that must be met for an Exception for Minor Area Modification. Below are the criteria followed by staff's analysis. 1. Special circumstances or practical difficulties apply to the property such that the terms of the ordinance cannot be satisfied. The house was built less than one foot from the west side setback limit and two feet from the east side setback limit. The existing garage can only be widened two feet without encroaching into the minimum side setback distance. 2. The minor area modification will not be detrimental to the public health, safety, or general welfare. The houses on this block generally have greater distances between them than the minimum side setback distances require and this would still be the case with the two-foot reduction in this side setback, due to the distance between the adjacent house to the east and the property line. 2 3. The minor area modification will not have a substantial negative impact upon neighboring properties. The proposed exception will result in a side setback of six feet for a portion of this side of the house. The house next door to the east has its garage 13 feet from this property line, and thus the distance between the houses will be 19 to 22 feet. However, if an addition to the two-car garage on the neighboring property were to be constructed to the eight-foot required setback, the separation of houses would then be 14 feet, reducing the area available for air circulation and light to two feet less than the typical setback provides in other low density residential neighborhoods. The neighbor to the east has provided information on existing issues regarding drainage and excessive shade. He believes that the proposed reduction of four feet in the separation of the two houses will make these issues worse and require him to take corrective actions. He also expresses his belief that this addition will adversely affect the value of his property. 4. The minor area modification does not exceed the reduction limits established in the listing of minor area modification in Section 29.1506(4)(c)(i), (ii), or (iii) whether the limits are reached by a single exception or serial exceptions. Section 29.1506(4)(c)(i) allows for a reduction of a required side setback by no more than two feet. The requested reduction is two feet of the required eight-foot side setback. 5. The minor area modification does not authorize a use or activity not otherwise expressly authorized by the regulations within the zoning district in which the property is located. The use of this portion of the house will continue to be a garage for parking vehicles of the residents of the house and for storage of tools and yard and garden equipment. Other than the reduced side setback, the proposed improvements are consistent with the zoning regulations. 6. The minor area modification is in conformity with the intent and purpose of the zoning ordinance and the general plan of the community. One of the intents of setback requirements is to allow for air circulation and light among buildings in an area or neighborhood. Since the houses will still be at least 19 feet apart with the minor area modification, the garage addition itself would have minimal impact on air circulation and light for neighboring properties. The reduction of the side setback for only one property will not significantly impact the intent and purpose of the zoning ordinance, and has no effect on the general plan of the community for this established neighborhood of single-family structures. 3 7. The minor area modification is the minimum necessary to achieve the desired result. Expanding the garage by four feet provides two feet of space necessary between two nine-foot doors. Expanding the width of the garage by only two feet would accommodate an 18-foot garage door, the next largest size typically available from the existing 16-foot wide door. This two-foot expansion can be accomplished without encroaching into the required side setback distance. 8. The minor area modification does not alter the applicant's obligation to comply with other applicable laws or regulations. The requested Exception for Minor Area Modification for 2125 Polk Drive is for a specific distance and in a specific site location. All other obligations to comply with applicable laws or regulations are not affected by this modification and are not being considered through this application. CONCLUSIONS: The above findings based upon the application as described herein, the Zoning Board of Adjustment may conclude that the application meets five of the eight applicable criteria of Ames Municipal Code. However, the Board must address the following questions to determine if the application meets the other three criteria: • Do special circumstances or practical difficulties apply to the property sufficient to require the exception? If so, it can be concluded that the application meets this criterion. • With the proposed garage addition on the subject property, if an addition to the two-car garage on the neighboring property were to be constructed to the eight-foot required setback, will the light, air circulation and drainage be reduced to a substantial degree? If not, it can be concluded that the application meets this criterion. • Is the four-foot addition to the garage the minimum necessary to widen the garage to accommodate larger vehicles? If so, it can be concluded that the application meets this criterion. 4 ALTERNATIVES: 1. If the Zoning Board of Adjustment determines that the findings of fact support conclusions that the application meets all of the criteria, it can approve this request for an Exception for Minor Area Modification to allow a reduction of the side setback from 8 feet to 6 feet on the east side of a single family detached residence at 2125 Polk Drive. 2. If the Zoning Board of Adjustment determines that the findings of facts do not support conclusions that the application meets all of the criteria, it can deny this request for an Exception for Minor Area Modification to allow a reduction of the side setback from 8 feet to 6 feet on the east side of a single family detached residence at 2125 Polk Drive. 3. The Zoning Board of Adjustment can refer this request back to staff and/or the applicant for further information. DEPARTMENT RECOMMENDATION: The Zoning Board of Adjustment previously concluded that an application to allow a proposed garage addition to extend two feet into the east side setback at this address met all of the criteria for an Exception for a Minor Area Modification in the Ames Municipal Code. Although this application is also for an exception to allow a proposed garage addition to extend two feet into the east side setbacks, several facts have changed since the application was previously considered in August: 1. The previous exception was for a two-foot wide addition to accommodate a single 18-foot garage door; the current application is for a four-foot wide addition to accommodate two nine-foot garage doors. 2. Under the previous exception the distance between the east wall of the garage addition and the existing west wall of the adjacent house would be no less than 21 feet; now that distance will be no less than 19 feet. 3. Previously the neighbor to the east did not comment on this application; now the neighbor has cited issues of drainage and shade. The Zoning Board of Adjustment must now determine whether, with this new information, the findings of facts support conclusions that the application meets all of the criteria for an Exception for a Minor Area Modification. S:APLAN_SHR\Council Boards Commissions\ZBA\Mise\2125 Polk-Garage Exception for Minor Area Modification-revised- 11-14-12.docx 5 Attachment A TAYLOR 'IR . a Q e i h " " �. ;;.BLOOMINGTON RD - ate' 13F 0 � C r+ a Subject f U G,�A�A oR DAl70N�57, F ' 6U p Propel "VIA, " kIN � IVRF I . YORK�et tRE TYOR S�HI E IR °, ° 1�1 �'`' f �. 3 ME N � J cyG q �1 Id STEVENSON DR „m. o.w. �. K1NDR 't e wo � � 'f p�� s �p EISENNO RVVE C , Location Map 2125 Polk Drive 0 12- 250 500 Feet 6 Attachment B 3 +t R s-Al IN, r Nil k a sr � e.Y '• 4 A.k �, .+.L A,� QY r d� 4 7