Orange County — Board of Zoning Adjustment

VA-21-02-136 — Winderweedle, Haines, Ward and Woodman, Pa. (Nicole Carolan)

Request: Variances in the R-1A zoning district as follows: 1) To allow an existing 5,949 sq. ft. house to remain at 23.7 ft. from the NHWE in lieu of 50 ft. 2) To allow an existing 1,408 sq. ft. garage to remain with a south side setback of 3.1 ft. in lieu of 7.5 ft. 3) To allow an existing 120 sq. ft. accessory structure (covered wood deck) to remain with a north side setback of 3.5 ft. in lieu of 5 ft. This is the result of Code Enforcement action.

Decision: Approved

Hearing: SYNOPSIS: Staff described the proposal, including the location of the property, the site plan, and photos of the site. Staff provided an analysis of the six (6) criteria and the reasons for a recommendation for approval of variances #1 and #2, and for denial of variance #3. Staff noted that four (4) comments were received in support, including the closest neighbor to the north, and two (2) comments were received in opposition. The applicant stated that he agrees with the staff recommendation for variances #1 and #2. However, regarding variance #3, he noted that the conditions were existing when the owner bought the property in 2016. He also noted that the neighbor is in agreement, and they are requesting the same approach as with the other variances. The BZA inquired as to how difficult it would be to move the covered wood deck. The BZA also noted that the most affected neighbor to the north is in support of the request. The BZA discussed the addition of a sixth condition pertaining to any future replacement of the accessory structure to meet code requirements. There was no one in attendance to speak in opposition to the request. The BZA unanimously recommended approval of the variances, subject to the five (5) conditions in the staff report, and a new Condition #6, which states ¿Approval of variance #3 is for the existing structure only. Any modification or replacement shall comply with minimum setbacks for the zoning district.¿