05-12-81 BZA Minutes ���
MINUTES OF A REGULAR MEETING OF THE
GOLDEN VALLEY BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS
May 12, 1981
The regular meeting of the Golden Valley Board of Zoning Appeals was held
Tuesday, May 12, 1981 , at 7:30 P.M. at the Civie Center, 7800 Golden Va11ey
Road, Golden Ualley, Minnesota.
The following Board members were present:
Art Flannagan, Chairman
Mahlon Swedberg
William Forster
Absent by prior arrangement, alen Christiansen and Mike Sell ,
Alternates were not available for this meeting date due to prior commitments.
The first order of business was approval of the minutes of a meeting held April
14, 1981 , copies of which had previously been distributed to the Board,
ft was moved by Mahlon Swedberg to approve the minutes of the meeting of April
14, 1981 as written and presented, second by LJi1liam Forster and upor► vote carried.
31-5-14 (Map 19) Residential
2500 Xylon Avenue North
Donald Shaffer
The Petition is for waiver of Section
3• 12 (1 ) house to garage separation for 7' off the required
20' separation to a distanee of 13' between the
proposed deck and the existing garage.
Mr. Danald Shaffer was present to explain his petition, The petition was in order
and consent obtained from all adjacent propert'ies,
Mr. Shaffer described the room addition noti-ng it could not be moved fwrther north
on the existing structure beeause it would interfere with the windows of the existing
bathroom and bedrooms which are not being changed. After considerable discussion on
any other construction alternatives, it became apparant that there is no pro6lem of
setback between the actual room addition and the required 20' separation to the garage
and the deck portion that does projeet into this area is at ground level and is not
of a significant structure type to have any impaet on surrounding properties or the
actual intent of the separation between the house and garage. tt was noted that this
20' separation is a common appeal and in the new residential code as now in draft
form this separation is proposed to be reduced to 10' .
Noting all of the above, Mahlon Swedberg stated that this is a non-controversial pro-
posal and not of a structure significance and therefore Swedberg moved to approve
the waiver as requested. Second by William Forster and upon vote carried.
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Board of Zon(ng ApPeals-
Page 2 May 12, 1981
81-5-15 (Ma 15) Residential
900 KnoT1 Street
Bruce Meyer
The Petition is for waiver of Section
3•07 (1) front setback for 7' off the required 35' set6ack
along Jersey Avenue to a distance of 28' 'from the
east lot line to the proposed .addition. (Note�
existing hause .at 25' from east lot line by previous
approval .)
The p�tFtion was in arder and consent obtained from all surrounding properties.
Mr. and Mrs. Meyer were present.
This is a proposed room addition across the rear of the house. The home fronts
on Kno1-1 street and the east side is Jersey Avenue. When this existing home was
built the lots in this Dempsey Addition were repositioned and waivers to 25' setback
from Jersey were approved by City Council action, The proposed addition is 3' further
from Jersey, Avenue at 23' . However, to be admPnistrativeky correct mwst be addressed
by the Board of Zoning Appeals or a waiver from the required 35' .
Mr. Meyers noted that when he purchased his home as one of ths fir�t residents of
this area he was unaware of previous w�ivers and. was surprised tc� learn of this
when applying for his addition.
M.a�1on Swedberg moved to approve. the waivEr as requested noting previous waivers
granted to construct the original house and also noting that to apply the 35' set-
back to any addition as now proposed presented a hardship and would esthetically
be detrimental .
Motion seconded by William-Forster. and upon vote carried,
81-5-16 (Ma 20) Residential
153 Aquila Avenue North
Sandy Selnick
The Petition is for waiver of Section
3.07 (3)b for 5. 1 ' off the required 13.8:'; to a. distanc� of -:
8.7' from the north lot line to the propased
addition.
M'r. Selnick was present. Consent had been obtained from adjacent properties.
The petition was in order.
This reques-t is similar to others that have been addressed by the Board where an
existing single car attached garage exists and is now prpposed to be expanded to
a two-vehicle garage with some storage or mud area within.
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Board of Zoning Appeals
Page 3 May 12, 1981
Mr. Selnick noted that if approved there was ample separation from the adjacent
home. It was also noted that the proposed addition is adjacent to the neighbor's
garage area and not the living quarters.
Mahlon Swedberg moved to approve the waiver as requested, second by William
Forster and upon vote carried.
81-5-17 {Ma ` 23) Residential
55 Hanley Road
Roger H. Johnson
The Petition is for waiver of Section
3,07 (1) front setback for 4' off the required 35' front
setback to a distance of 31 ' from the front tot
line to the proposed addition at its closest point.
Mr. Johnson was present, consent had been obtained from eight adjacent and
surrounding properties.
This lot is a very deep parcel of land 284 feet deep by approximately 120 feet
wide and with a curving and meandering front lot line.
The proposed family room remodeling of a portion of the existing attached garage
and the expansion of a garage as one addition wou1d provide space for three
automobiles or storage area.
Mr, Johnson explained from the lot survey that the proposed addition complies with
setback requirements except in that area where the front' lot line meanders similar
to an S curve. At that closest point, it i's 31 feet.
Mahlon Swedberg said he was pwzzled by the design for three automobiles. Mr.
Johnson s:tated he complied wi:th the width and if he reduced the garage in depth
sufficient to comply with the setback at its closest"point, it would create
insufficient garage depth for an average car.
After considerable discussion of the constract_ion and any alternatives, William
Forster moved to approve the waiver as requested, noting the placement of the
existing house, the topography and the irregular front lot line. 5econd by Swedberg
and upon vote carried.
81-5-T8 (Map 3) Residential
5139 33rd Avenue North
Phyllis Ellingson
The Petition is for waiver of Section
3,07 front setback for 13.5' off the required 35' setback
to a distance of 21 .5' from the front lot line to the
proposed addition.
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Page 4 May 12, 1981
Mrs. Ellingson was present. Consent had been obtained from six adjacent
properties. Mrs. Eltingson explained she has six children and the family
needed the addition for more bedrooms and a larger eating area in the kitchen
as at mealtimes they were extremety crowded.
In this area on 33rd there is actuatly this home and one other and placed so
there is no significant front setback profile estabiished. The topography of
the hill makes it difficult to expand in the rear area and any usuable yard
area would be lost if construction was proposed there.
Art Flannagan described the profile and line of site to other houses and could
see no significant problem wi�h this addition previously because of the location
and the topography. Ftannagan stated he fett there would be no problem of the
house appearing to stick out from the other houses.
William Forster said as he viewed the site the hedge and landscape on the hill
relative to the placement of the addition does not appear to present a problem
and the area proposed for the addition seemed to be the most logicafi. Forster
also noted the street configuration and the appearance of only one house at this
point in the btock.
Mahlon Swedberg expressed his concerns of the appearance this addition toward
the front would have. However, after further discussion and comparison with the
other Board members on their observations when visiting this site, Swedberg stated
the impact may not be as significant as he first surmised.
Wil.liam Forster moved to approve the waiver as requested, second by Mahlon Swedberg
and upon vote carried.
8]-5�19 (Map 11) BPO
5 0-$�0 Dututh Street�
Reinertson � Associates
The Petition is for waiver of Sections
10.052 building setback for 15' off the required 25' building
setback along the east lot line to a distance of 1Q'
- from the lot line to th� -bt�i�ding a� its closest point.
for 15' off the required 25' building setback afiong the
north Tot line to a distance of 10' from this lot line
to the proposed parking structure.
for 7' off the required 25' setback along the north lot
line to a distance af 1�' from this Tot line to the
proposed -office portion of the structure.
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Board of Zoning Appeals
Page 5 May 12, 1g81
10.09A Conditional Use Height for 1 story in height in addition
to the 3 stories allowed. (This requires City Council
approval and is shown for administrative purpose only.)
10.051 front yard setback for 25' off the required 35' front
yard area to a distance of 10' at its closest point.
10.06 lot area for waivec of the 40i buitding and 20� parking
ramp requirements for Tand coverage.
Mr. Reinertson was present. This petition had been before the Board of Zoning
Appeats in February, 1980.
The waivers granted then have lapsed because of lack of completion by the proponent
of requirements conditioned upon previous approval .
The waivers as now requested are from the requirements of the n�w Business and
Professional Zoning Code. ',
Hennepin County has also asked for an additional 17' of right-of-way across most
of Lot "A" of thi.s proposal .
Mahlon Swedberg noted his original opposition to this proposal and stated it has
not changed as he believes it is just too much structure for the site. Swedberg
noted if the building were not of the size proposed, a ramp may not be needed.
Comparisons were made of surrounding properties. Reinertson said this is an
extremely valuable site and is valuable enough to build more stories.
The easement as required by the City was discussed and Mr. Reinertson said he
did not have his eopy he received for signature from the City, that it was at
his attorney' s office. The secretary said he had the original present if Mr.
Reinertson desired to sign it. He declined.
The existing BPO Ordinance was explained to Mr. Reinertson wherein the fourth
story of his proposed office building requires a conditional use permit from
the City Council .
Mr. Reinertson described other projects he has designed and built and stated
this structure would be an attractive and valuable addition to the community.
William Forster stated he liked the proposed building.
Art Flannagan noted his previous approval and while some requirements had changed,
the proposed building was the same.
William Forster moved to approve the waivers as requested, subject to the easement
approved by the Board of Park and Recreation and as drafted by the City of Golden
Valley engineer.
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Page 6 May 12, 1981
Motion seconded by Mahlon Swedberg who noted he was second to the motion oniY
to allow it to be voted on because two other members were absent. The Chairman
called the vote on the motion and it was two ayes and one nay - (Swedberg) .
The Board d.iscussed several administrative items and during th:is discussiorr
Mike Sell arrived having just flown in and coming directly to the meeting.
Witliam Forster described his attendance at a recent planning conference in
Boston as a representative of the City Planning Commission. Forster made
interesting comparisons between functions of Board of Appeals, Ptanning Commissions,
etc. in other areas of the United States. Me deseribed the conference as an
educational and interesting experience.
There being no 'further business to come before the Board, it was upon motion,
second and vote to adjourn this regular meeting at 9:15 P.M.
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Art Flannagan, '° hairman loyd . Becker, Secretary