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HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Zoning Board of Adjustment Minutes 02/12/2020MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT AMES, IOWA FEBRUARY 12, 2020 The Ames Zoning Board of Adjustment met, pursuant to law, in regular session at 6:00 p.m. on February 12, 2020, in the Council Chambers of City Hall with the following members present: Leila Ammar, Kyle Perkins, Amelia Schoeneman, Ronald Schappaugh, and Rob Bowers. Also present were Assistant City Attorney Vikki Feilmeyer, and City Planners Benjamin Campbell and Eloise Sahlstrom. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Moved by Perkins, seconded by Ammar, to approve the Minutes of the meeting of January 22, 2020. Vote on Motion: 4-0-1. Voting Aye: Ammar, Perkins, Schoeneman, Bowers. Voting Nay: None. Voting to Abstain: Schappaugh. Motion declared carried. CASE NO. 20-11 SPECIAL USE PERMIT – HARRISON AND MARY GHIM– 428 ASH AVENUE Public Hearing on a Special Use Permit for Guest Lodging to allow a Vacation Lodging use, for the property located at 428 Ash Avenue, located within the “RL” Residential Low Density Zoning District. City Planner Benjamin Campbell stated that the requested Special Use Permit for Guest Lodging is to allow a Vacation Lodging use in a Single Family Detached Home located at 428 Ash Avenue. The site is located within the “RL” Residential Low Density Zoning District. Vacation Lodging is a term that applies to the use of a single-family dwelling as Guest Lodging, which is a short-term lodging use rather than household living. There are currently four legal bedrooms existing in the dwelling unit as indicated by the applicant and the rental housing inspector files. The property has a four-year Letter of Compliance that was issued on May 22, 2019, and will expire on May 22, 2023. The property includes a two-car attached garage with an extended driveway of approximately 45 feet that would allow for additional stacked driveway parking spaces that meet the minimum dimensions of 9’ x 19’. The driveway is paved. The recent Zoning Ordinance revisions allow stacked parking to count toward the minimum parking requirement. This satisfies the Guest Lodging code requirement for Vacation Lodging, which requires one space per bedroom. At this time, there are no licensed Vacation Lodging single-family or two-family properties within 1000 feet of the applicant. The property will qualify for the exemption if the Special Use Permit is approved and if the application for the Guest Lodging License is received within 30 days of the Special Use Permit approval. Notification was made to all owners of property within 200 feet. A notice of public hearing was placed on the property and published in the newspaper. Staff did not receive any emails or letters, but they did receive one phone call. 2 The Zoning Board of Adjustment can approve this request for a Special Use Permit for Guest Lodging at 428 Ash Avenue to allow a Vacation Lodging use in the “RL” Residential Low Density by adopting the Findings and Conclusions noted above with the following stipulations reflective of the AMC guest lodging standards: o Off-Street Paved Parking Spaces required: 4 o Maximum Number of Guest Bedrooms allowed: 4 o Maximum Number of Adult Guests allowed: 4 o One year of disuse will render this Special Use Permit expired and void. o The Special Use Permit is not transferable to any subsequent owner of the property. Additionally, operation of the Vacation Lodging use is subject to the requirements of the Ames Municipal Code, including the Rental Code and Guest Lodging Code. Receipt and annual renewal of a Guest Lodging License is required. Operation of a Guest Lodging use without an active Guest Lodging License is a violation of City code. Moved by Bowers, seconded by Perkins, to adopt ORDER NO. 20-11, thereby approving Alternative One. Roll Call Motion: 5-0. Motion declared carried. CASE NO. 20-12 SPECIAL USE PERMIT – A3T TRCKA, LLC – 2305 FILLMORE AVENUE Public Hearing on application for a Special Use Permit for Guest Lodging to allow a Vacation Lodging use, for the Single Family Property located at 2305 Fillmore Avenue, located within the “RL” Residential Low Density Zoning District. City Planner Eloise Sahlstrom stated that the requested Special Use Permit for Guest Lodging is to allow a Vacation Lodging use in a single-family detached home located at 2305 Fillmore Avenue. The site is located within the “RL” Residential Low Density Zoning District. The applicant is requesting approval of a four-bedroom dwelling with all four bedrooms for Guest Lodging and a maximum occupancy of five adults as guests. The request for five adults is not consistent with the occupancy standards of the Ames Municipal Code that states no more than four adult occupants may be permitted for a four-bedroom dwelling unit in a single-family home. Although it is clear that this is a large home, approval of this request requires a stipulation noting the occupancy limitations of the AMC, in this case four adults for a four-bedroom home. A four-bedroom home utilized for Vacation Lodging is required to have one 9’ x 19’ parking space for each bedroom. The property can accommodate the four required parking spaces. The property includes a two-car garage and a paved 19’ wide driveway approximately 25 feet long that will accommodate two additional vehicles in front of each of the garage spaces. The property has a Two-Year Letter of Compliance that was issued on July 3, 2019. It will expire on July 2, 2021. Although the Zoning Ordinance does not include any specific separation requirements, a 1,000’ separation distance requirement will be applied during review of the license application. At this time, there are no licensed Vacation Lodging single-family or two-family property within 1000- feet of this site. In establishing the 1000’ separation requirement, the City Council also 3 established an initial exemption period, which included only applications submitted prior to December 16, 2019. This property will qualify for the exemption if the Special Use Permit is approved and if the application for the Guest Lodging License is received within 30 days of the Special Use Permit approval. Exemption from the separation requirement will terminate if the Guest Lodging license for the unit is suspended, revoked, or lapses. Exemption from the separation requirement is not transferrable to any subsequent owner of the property. The Zoning Board of Adjustment can approve this request for a Special Use Permit for Guest Lodging at 2305 Fillmore Avenue to allow a Vacation Lodging use in the “RL” Residential Low Density Zoning District by adopting the Findings and Conclusions with the following stipulations reflective of the AMC guest lodging standards: o Off-Street Paved Parking Spaces required: 4 o Maximum Number of Guest Bedrooms allowed: 4 o Maximum Number of Adult Guests allowed: 4 o One year of disuse will render this Special Use Permit expired and void. o The Special Use Permit is not transferable to any subsequent owner of the property. Additionally, operation of the Vacation Lodging use is subject to the requirements of the Ames Municipal Code, including the Rental Code and Guest Lodging Code. Receipt and annual renewal of a Guest Lodging License is required. Operation of a Guest Lodging use without an active Guest Lodging License is a violation of City code. Applicant Randy Allel, 2305 Fillmore Ave, Ames, Iowa, was sworn in and testified under oath. Mr. Allel stated that he was okay with Alternative One. He thought five guests was fine with a four-bedroom home, but he would change the number of guests on his listing. David Francis, 2213 Fillmore Avenue, Ames, Iowa, was sworn in and testified under oath. Mr. Francis stated that he found out about this Airbnb when he received the notice from the city. He stated that he did not want to see something like this in his residential neighborhood. Jordan Gillespie, 2308 Fillmore Avenue, Ames, Iowa, was sworn in and testified under oath. Ms. Gillespie stated that she and her husband found out about this Airbnb when they received the public notice from the city. She expressed concern in not knowing who was coming and going. She questioned how the number of guests would be regulated. Mr. Allel stated that Airbnb regulates hosts. If Airbnb receives enough complaints, the host will be kicked off the site. He said that he and his wife visit the house every week. Their family uses the home for holiday gatherings throughout the year Ms. Schoeneman asked staff what happens if the applicant violates the number of occupants. Planner Sahlstrom stated that it depends on what the complaint was about. The complaint might possibly go to the inspections department. If Code is violated, then an applicant could possibly lose their rental license, which would cause them to lose their permit for guest lodging. Ms. Ammar asked staff if the number of occupants refers to adults. Ms. Sahlstrom stated that the occupancy level only counts towards adults. Mr. Schappaugh asked Staff if the only mechanism for regulating the number of adult guests is from complaints. Ms. Sahlstrom stated that the 4 Airbnb advertisements, along with complaints, can be used to regulate the number of guests. She also stated that there is a guest registry that is required to be maintained by the property owner. Moved by Perkins, seconded by Ammar, to approve ORDER NO. 20-12, thereby approving Alternative One as recommended by Staff. Roll Call Motion: 4-1. Voting aye: Perkins, Schoeneman, Bowers, Ammar. Voting nay: Schappaugh. Motion declared carried. CASE NO. 20-13 SPECIAL USE PERMIT – JON & PATTI ENGELMAN, 507 WELCH AVE LLC, 2340 STORM STREET Public Hearing on application for a Special Use Permit for Guest Lodging to allow a Vacation Lodging use, for the Single Family Property located at 2340 Storm Street within the “RL” Residential Low Density Zoning District. City Planner Eloise Sahlstrom introduced the request and reviewed the site plan, project description, applicable law, and Findings of Fact and Conclusions. The requested Special Use Permit for Guest Lodging is to allow a Vacation Lodging use in a single-family detached home located at 2340 Storm Street. The site is located within the “RL” Residential Low Density Zoning District. The applicant is requesting approval of a two-bedroom dwelling with all two bedrooms for Guest Lodging and four adults as guests. The request for four adults is not consistent with the occupancy standards of the Ames Municipal Code that states no more than three adult occupants may be permitted for a two-bedroom dwelling unit in a single-family home. Approval of this request requires a stipulation noting the occupancy limitations of the AMC, in this case three adults for a two-bedroom home. Only two parking spaces are required. The applicant indicates that three stacked parking spaces are available. The property includes a one-car garage and paved driveway that is approximately 78 feet long. The driveway can easily accommodate the required two parking spaces without the garage. The property has a Three-Year Letter of Compliance that was initially issued on December 22, 2017. It was renewed on December 6, 2019, and will not expire until December 2, 2022. Although the Zoning Ordinance does not include any specific separation requirements, a 1,000’ separation distance requirement will be applied during review of the license application. This is the first Vacation Lodging request that would be within 1000 feet of another licensed Vacation Lodging use, approximately two blocks to the north. In establishing the 1000’ separation requirement, the City Council also established an initial exemption period, which included only applications submitted prior to December 16, 2019. This property will qualify for the exemption if the Special Use Permit is approved and if the application for the Guest Lodging License is received within 30 days of the SUP approval. Exemption from the separation requirement will terminate if the Guest Lodging license for the unit is suspended, revoked, or lapses. Exemption from the separation requirement is not transferrable to any subsequent owner of the property. The Zoning Board of Adjustment can approve this request for a Special Use Permit for Guest Lodging at 2340 Storm Street to allow a Vacation Lodging use in the “RL” Residential Low 5 Density Zoning District by adopting the Findings and Conclusions with the following stipulations reflective of the AMC guest lodging standards: o Off-Street Paved Parking Spaces required: 2 o Maximum Number of Guest Bedrooms allowed: 2 o Maximum Number of Adult Guests allowed: 3 o One year of disuse will render this Special Use Permit expired and void. o The Special Use Permit is not transferable to any subsequent owner of the property. Additionally, operation of the Vacation Lodging use is subject to the requirements of the Ames Municipal Code, including the Rental Code and Guest Lodging Code. Receipt and annual renewal of a Guest Lodging License is required. Operation of a Guest Lodging use without an active Guest Lodging License is a violation of City code. Mr. Schappaugh asked why there is an odd number of guests allowed for a two-bedroom rental. Ms. Sahlstrom stated that the number of guests is based upon the rental code. Applicant Patti Engelman, 3312 Cedar Lane, Ames, Iowa, was sworn in and testified under oath. Ms. Engelman stated that when advertising on different sites, she has to input the maximum number of guests. She asked staff if she would be allowed to state that the maximum number of guests is 4 with the stipulation noting that no more than three adults can use the Airbnb. Ms. Sahlstrom confirmed that she should state the maximum number of guests and then also note the maximum number of adults. Moved by Bowers, seconded by Perkins, to adopt ORDER NO. 20-13, thereby approving Alternative One as recommended by Staff Roll Call Motion: 5-0. Motion declared carried. ADJOURNMENT: Moved by Perkins, seconded by Ammar, to adjourn the meeting at 6:38 p.m. _____________________________ _____________________________ Jacque Higgins, Recording Secretary Amelia Schoeneman, Chair