Loading...
02-24-98 BZA Minutes 1598 Minutes of a Regular Meeting of the Golden Valley Board of Zoning Appeals . February 24, 1998 The regular meeting of the Golden Valley Board of Zoning Appeals was held Tuesday, February 24, 1998, in the Golden Valley City Hall Council Chambers, 7800 Golden Valley Road, Golden Valley, MN. Chair Robert Shaffer called the meeting to order at 7pm. Those present were: Chair Robert Shaffer; Members Herb Polachek, Mike Sell, Mahlon Swedberg; and Planning Commission Representative Richard Groger. Also present were Staff Liaison Mark Grimes and Recording Secretary Eve Lomaistro. I. Approval of Minutes MOVED by Swedberg, seconded by Sell and motion carried unanimously to approve the January 27, 1998 minutes as submitted. II. The Petitions: 4330 Sussex Road (Map 10) (98-2-2) David Wilkins . Request: Waiver of Section 11.21, Subd. 7(A) Front Yard Setback -- 5.6 feet off the required 35 feet to a distance of 29.4 feet for the deck at the front of the house facing Sussex Road. Purpose: The applicant is constructing a conforming addition onto the rear of his house. David Wilkins, applicant, and Steve Sather, neighbor and builder, were in attendance. Mark Grimes explained that the applicant had approached City staff in early January, 1998, requesting a permit for construction of a conforming 3-season porch onto the rear of his house. Staff requested that he obtain a survey to verify setbacks. The survey showed that the front deck was located within the front setback and required a variance. Grimes said that because the intrusion into the front setback was minor and the proposed construction was conforming, staff requested a "Hold Harmless" letter from the owner of the property. Mr. Wilkins submitted the letter and was told that if the Bo~rd decided not to approve the variance, he would have to remove the deck from the front of the house. David Wilkins stated that he purchased the house in 1992 and the deck was there at that time. Steve Sather, neighbor and builder for the project, stated that he lives across the . street and remembers that deck was there when he was in first grade. I Minutes of the Board of Zoning Appeals February 24, 1998 Page 2 1599 . MOVED by Sell and seconded by Polachek to grant this administrative waiver as requested. Swedberg observed that the City should have required an "as-built" survey that would have shown that the deck was added after the original construction when the house was sited on the property. The motion passed unanimously. 1340 Douglas Drive (Map 11) (98-2-3) W. Robert Strobel Request: Waiver of Section 11.25, Subd. 5(A) Minimum Yard Requirements __ 15 feet off the required 25 feet to a distance of 10 feet for the proposed garage structure to the railroad right-of-way line. Purpose: The applicant is proposing to construct a three-story apartment building on the site and the proposed garages would need a variance. W. Robert Strobel, applicant, and neighbors David and Leigh Comb were. in attendance. . Grimes explained that Mr. Strobel is proposing to construct a conforming 3-story, 55 unit apartment building and detached nonconforming garages; these garages would be located on the east side of the lot and go into the setback 15 feet. To meet code requirement for garage space these detached garage spaces are needed. Grimes said other options to meet code would be to reduce the number of dwelling units or to vary the needed garage parking. He said the site does meet outdoor parking needs. Plans were submitted to the DNR but staff has not yet received a response. Shaffer asked if any thought was given to expanding the underground parking. Grimes replied that underground parking is difficult to do for all 75 spaces. Strobel stated the garage setback is a pretty tight curve from west to east and turning into underground parking could be tight. Sell added that this is the best location on the lot as it is only a 20 foot walk to the building and it would be lighted and protected. Grimes asked how the garages would be rented. Strobel said each unit would have one space underground and no decision has been made how the remaining spaces would be allocated. Grimes stated that security is best with underground parking. Swedberg asked why there were no comments from neighbors. Grimes explained the applicant only needs to try to reach neighbors so many times. He said most of the time neighbors are on vacation or live in another city. Grimes said in this case, not all the neighbors were available for comment. . Grimes commented that the owner to the north did not question the proposed building, but was concerned with drainage. Swedberg asked about the drainage requirement and Grimes answered that the easement to Bassett Creek must be maintained and a drainage plan must be approved by the City. Minutes of the Board of Zoning Appeals February 24, 1998 Page 3 1600 Swedberg asked about the parking requirement. Grimes responded that Golden Valley's requirement is higher than most cities, and in this case, the applicant is meeting the parking requirement with the requested variance for the detached garages. . Sell asked if this was the same request from 10 years ago; Grimes said yes. Sell stated that he and the BZA agreed to this proposal 10 years ago and he hasn't changed his mind. Groger asked if any ponding is required. Grimes said the City Engineer must approve the ponding which would probably go in front or on the side in the flood plain area. Groger asked if staff had experience with other sites that have outside garages. Grimes answered there were others. He said the garages should be restricted to vehicles and not used for storage. Swedberg asked how the owner would fill in the land and Strobel answered with a lot of grading and fill. He said the earth removed from the ponding area may be enough to fill where needed. Groger asked about the exterior of the building. Strobel commented that it would be of a high quality material. Grimes assured the BZA that the Building Board of Review would review the type of construction materials being used for both buildings. He added that the . BZA could pass along its concerns for long-term maintenance and appearance of the garage building. Shaffer asked if anyone else wished to speak and no one came forward. MOVED by Sell, seconded by Swedberg and motion carried unanimously to approve the variance as requested. Swedberg observed that the options are to reduce the number of units, vary the number of parking spaces required, or grant the variance as requested. He stated that 10 feet off the railroad r-o-w is not of any significance. III. Other Business There was no other business. IV. Adjournment Chair Shaffer adjourned the meeting at 7:35pm. -~ Robert Shaffe~ kL Mark Grimes, Staff Liaison .