03-21-2016 Planning Commission Packet

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FILE#18-3814 ` March 15,2016 Page 4 of 5 7. The granting of the proposed variances will not in any way impair health, safety, comfort or morals, or in any other respect be contrary to the intent of this chapter. Granting of the average setback variances would not impair health, safety, comfort or morals and would be in keeping with the intent of the zoning code. Granting of a hardcover variance may be justified by resulting in a reduction of hardcover from existing levels and in order to provide for off-street parking. 8. The granting of such variance will not merely serve as a convenience to the applicant, but is necessary to alleviate demonstrable difficulty. In the opinion of staff,granting of the average setback variance is necessary to solve a practical difficulty. Granting the hardcover variance might be construed as merely a convenience to the applicant,since a new home could be developed on the site without a variance, but the variance would assist in providing for off-street parking where on-street parking is lacking. The Commission may recommend and the Council may impose conditions in granting of variances. Any conditions imposed must be directly related to and must bear a rough proportionality to the impact created by the variance. No variance shall be granted or changed beyond the use permitted in this chapter in the district where such land is located. Analysis-Average Lakeshore Setback Variance Because the adjacent property to the south is vacant, the required Average Lakeshore Setback is defined by the setback from the lake of the adjacent home to the north, which is 115' from the lake. That neighboring property as well as most of the properties along the east side of Bohn's Point are much deeper than applicants' property, and as a result the neighboring homes are set back at least 100 feet or more from the lake. Absent a variance to the 115' setback, the applicant's property will have a buildable envelope of 25'-40' in depth and 120' in width, potentially resulting in a long narrow home stretching from side lot line to side lot line, likely not in character with the neighborhood. A critical factor in whether an average setback variance is appropriate is whether granting the variance will negatively impact existing views of the lake enjoyed by neighboring property owners. It appears that a majority of lake views for the adjoining home are directly toward the lake, not across applicants' property, and existing evergreen screening between the two homes provides a visual barrier. Further, the northerly portion of the new proposed residence will be set back from the lake approximately 10 feet further than the existing house, so that any neighbor views that do exist will be opened up further. Analysis-Hardcover Variance Per the highlighted site plan (Exhibit C) and the proposed hardcover calculation worksheet (Exhibit F) proposed hardcover on the property consists primarily of the house and driveway, with sidewalks, steps and patios accounting for the remainder. This is one of the smallest lots on Bohn's Point. The proposed house footprint is right at the 15% structural coverage limit. Proposed hardcover is approximately 600 square feet over the 25% limit. This amount is approximately equal to the area of the portion of driveway north of the garage apron, which provides for the loop access and entry sidewalk. Compared to the existing residence and driveway, the footprint of the proposed home is about 400 s.f. larger and the proposed driveway is about 400 s.f. smaller. The proposed hardcover decrease is accounted for in ancillary hardcover such as decks, sidewalks and stairways. While a reduction from the existing 29.0% to 27.2% is positive, Planning Commission should consider whether additional reductions are appropriate. If the lack of nearby on-street parking and the relatively small (compared to the