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HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Zoning Board of Adjustment Minutes 9-24-2008MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT AMES, IOWA SEPTEMBER 24, 2008 The Ames Zoning Board of Adjustment (ZBA) met, pursuant to law, in regular session at 7:00 p.m. on September 24, 2008, in the Council Chambers of City Hall with the following members present: Bruce Calhoun, Denise Link, Lucy Martin, Bradley Miller and Thomas Weber. Staff Planners Jeff Benson and Sam Perry and Assistant City Attorney Judy Parks were also present. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Moved by Link, seconded by Weber, to approve the minutes of the meeting of September 10, 2008. Vote on Motion: 5-0. Motion carried unanimously. CASE NO. 08-17 SPECIAL HOME OCCUPATION PERMIT - CHRISTOPHER COVELL, PROPERTY OWNER; PAMELA COVELL, APPLICANT, 715 GRAND AVENUE Public Hearing on Application for a Special Home Occupation Permit to allow a musical instrument rental and service business at 715 Grand Avenue City Planner Sam Perry stated that this application is for a musical instrument rental and service business at 715 Grand Avenue. He said this type of business is not specifically listed in the code as either a “permitted” or “special” home occupation, but since customer visits could potentially affect the neighborhood, staff asked the applicant to apply to the Zoning Board for a Home Occupation Permit. For the most part, the applicant will rent instruments to students who will use them in educational settings. Some instruments will be delivered by parcel service and the students will go to the applicant’s home to pick them up. The primary rental season will run from August through October, during which time the business will be open from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. During the slow period, the hours will be between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., by appointment only. There are no employees other than the applicant. Mr. Perry said no more than five customer visits to the home per day are anticipated. He also noted that the applicant was formerly engaged in similar work in a downtown establishment. That business has closed but she continues to serve the clientele. Mr. Perry said the applicant’s property is bounded by an alley on the south and Grand Avenue on the east. There is a concrete driveway on the west side of the home. All business will be conducted inside the home, and the space used will be approximately 20 square feet, less than two percent of the total square footage. Mr. Perry said one flush-mounted sign is allowed, but the applicant does not intend to have one. While increased traffic is often of concern to staff, Mr. Perry said that is not the case this time. There are four parking spaces on the applicant’s driveway and there should be no problem with access because relatively few visits are anticipated and the driveway is off the alley. 2 Planner Perry stated that no classes or lessons will be and there are no other home occupations at this location. Based on the findings, Mr. Perry said staff recommended approval with certain restrictions based on requirements in the Municipal Code and the proposal described in the application. Board member Martin wondered why staff was recommending no more than five visits per day, rather than limiting the number of visitors at one time as a means of avoiding congestion. Board member Miller also wondered why an off-street parking requirement was not included. Mr. Perry said both ideas could be supported by staff. Stipulations on parking were not included because staff didn’t think the home occupation would generate enough traffic to cause a problem. Board member Calhoun inquired about the list of “prohibited” home occupations and asked how it was determined when a use is really a commercial venture rather than a home occupation. Mr. Perry said that the amount of space being used is limited in a home occupation. While the nature of the instrument rental business may be somewhat commercial, the limited size, infrequency of operation, and the limited hours make it similar to home occupations. He said many occupations included in the prohibited list (including dance studios, private clubs, or restaurants) are those that generate high traffic or involve group assembly. Pamela Covell, 715 Grand Avenue, stated that Mr. Perry accurately summarized her request and explained that she would be taking over only a portion of the business that had been downtown. The commercial location offered sales and service of a full line of instruments, but her business will only be for rental of band instruments. She said they don’t take much physical floor space, as they will be stacked on shelves in a four-foot by five-foot area in her front room, and her only office equipment will be a file and a laptop. Also, from October through midsummer there won’t be any instruments in the home because they will be rented out and the students have them in their own homes. Mrs. Covell said her total number of clients is roughly 50. She added that visits to the home are short because the students only come to pick up the instruments; they try them out at school before they place rental orders with her. Keith Kutz, 621 7th Street, stated that he basically supports the applicant’s proposal and, as a musician himself, knows there is a need for this service in the Ames community. He inquired, however, whether approval of the home occupation permit would set any precedent of further requests, eventually causing the zoning to change from Urban Core Residential to some other designation, such as Neighborhood Commercial. Planner Perry assured Mr. Kutz that each application is looked as separately and that an application such as this is not a precursor to rezoning. He acknowledged that there is a possibility, at some point in the future, that the zoning in the area could change, but it would not happen without a process. Mr. Perry stated that the City Council would look first at the Land Use Policy Plan and consult with the Planning and Zoning Commission, and then take a series of very public steps. He noted that there are currently no other home occupations in the immediate neighborhood, although there are one or two daycare homes located about three blocks away. 3 Calhoun asked at what point a business such as this would become a commercial use that would require rezoning and how the Zoning Board would know that it had reached that point. Mr. Perry said the definition of a home occupation in the Municipal Code, as well as stipulations the Board places on its Decision and Order, keeps a business within the parameters of a home occupation. If the number of trips or visits to the home were to exceed ten per day or if there were complaints from other citizens, there could be cause for reevaluation of the home occupation permit. Assistant City Attorney Parks added that only a certain percentage of the space within the home can be used for the business. Home occupations tend to be self-limiting, she explained, because they start to take up too much space as they grow. Once they expand to the point that the owner cannot accommodate the business in the residence, he will seek a commercial location. Moved by Miller, seconded by Link, to ADOPT ORDER NO. 08-17, granting a Special Home Occupation Permit to allow a musical instrument rental and service business at 715 Grand Avenue, subject to the following stipulations: 1. that the hours of operation be limited to 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. during the peak activity season of August through October, and by appointment only during other times of the year; 2. that visits by customers to the premises be limited to a maximum of five per day during the peak activity season; 3. that there are no classes on the premises; and 4. that customer parking be restricted to the driveway only. Roll Call Vote: 5-0. Motion declared approved unanimously. CASE NO. 08-18 EXCEPTION - MINOR AREA MODIFICATION - BARBARA KASHIAN-SNOW, PROPERTY OWNER; BOB FRIEDRICH, JR., REPRESENTATIVE, 2842 BUCKINGHAM COURT Public hearing on application for a Minor Area Modification Exception to allow the construction of an addition to the home within the required rear yard setback at 2842 Buckingham Court City Planner Jeff Benson stated that this residence is located at the west edge of the Somerset Subdivision. He said that the Board is authorized to grant Exceptions from the requirements of the zoning ordinance to allow minor area modifications for existing single-family dwellings. The residence in question is one unit of a one-story, two-unit town home that has a dividing wall down the middle. The lot is set on a cul-de-sac and Mr. Benson pointed out that the rear property line is curved and the building setback area is curved, but the building is not curved. The owner is proposing to remove a deck and construct a 12-foot by 16-foot sun room on the southwest corner of the house. It would project slightly less than four feet into the rear setback. In addition to creating a room, the sunroom would provide a second means of egress from the residence via stairs down to the ground. The new wall would line up with the existing exterior of the residence and square off that corner of the house. Mr. Benson said that, from the side, it would be difficult 4 even to see the new room, but it will be visible from the open space, the multi-use path, and George Washington Carver Blvd. Planner Benson stated that staff believed this request met all the criteria for approval of the Exception, as noted in the written report, but he highlighted several points: · The practical difficulty in meeting the terms of the ordinance is that it would be difficult to build an addition with enough room to make it worthwhile without cutting into the setback. · There will be little or no impact on neighboring properties. The windows in the neighboring unit are high so they probably won’t even see the new room and there will be no impact on the Somerset Plan or the community at large. · The Minor Area Modification will not be detrimental to the public health, safety or general welfare. · The code provides for a reduction of the required rear yard setback of up to five feet, and this proposal within that limit. Bob Friedrich, Jr., Friedrich Construction, 619 E. Lincoln Way, stated that he represented the property owner, Barbara Kashian-Snow, who approached him about building an addition to create an art studio with a lot of light. He looked over the subdivision plans and was aware that the deck could encroach into the setback because there was no roof over it, but for an addition, with a roof, the setback requirement was an issue. Mr. Friedrich said that the Somerset Neighborhood Association, the developer group, and the village architect, Bill Dreyer, has all indicated support of this request and he was not aware of any objections. Board member Link asked if the Board needed to be concerned about neighborhood associations’ rules. Attorney Parks replied in the negative; it is the property owner’s responsibility to make sure neighborhood covenants are met; they are not enforceable by the City. Moved by Link, seconded by Martin, to ADOPT ORDER NO. 08-17, granting an Exception for a Minor Area Modification to the rear setback of the Major Site Development Plan/Preliminary Plat (Master Plan) for Somerset Subdivision and the Final Plat for the Somerset Ninth Addition from the required 19 feet to 15 feet on the west side of the two-family dwelling at 2842 Buckingham Court. Roll Call Vote: 5-0. Motion declared approved unanimously COMMENTS: None. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 7:40 p.m. Karen C. Thompson, Recording Secretary Bradley Miller, Chair The next meeting of the Zoning Board of Adjustment will be a Regular Meeting at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, October 22, 2008, in the Council Chambers of the Ames City Hall at 515 Clark Avenue.