Planning: Baord of Zoning Appeals Meeting Minuters-October 1, 2007

Baord of Zoning Appeals Meeting Minuters-October 1, 2007

Board of Zoning Appeals
Meeting Minutes
October 1, 2007

Members Present:     John Bradshaw, Kim Cash, Linda Russell, Gifford Childs, Goffrey Miles, and Ron Moyer, Alternate

Staff Present:   Fred M. Boger, Planning Director and Betty Fortune, Secretary

Call to Order:   Mr. Bradshaw called the meeting to order at 7:30 P.M. in the Board of Supervisors meeting room of the County Courthouse.

Approval of Minutes:   Minutes of the August 6, 2007 BZA meeting were reviewed. Ms. Cash made a motion to approve the minutes as presented, Mr. Childs provided the second, and motion passed 5-0, with Mr. Miles abstaining.

Variance #2007-009 – Loretta W. Wilson/Troy & Carolyn Lawhorne (Continued from September meeting.)

Mr. Bradshaw announced that the public hearing on this item had been held in September. Mr. Boger reported that Mr. Wilson and Mrs. Lawhorne brought letters to the office today explaining the hardship that would be incurred by having to remove or move the metal building from Mrs. Wilson’s property. Mrs. Lawhorne brought the original plat of the property, but not the one requested by the Board in September which would show the exact property lines, the location of the building, and the amount of variance needed. Mr. Boger said he agreed that the best place for the shed is the current location, given the topography of the lot, etc.

Ms. Russell reminded the applicant that the Board asked for a new survey to re-establish property line and to indicate the amount of variance required. Mrs. Lawhorne said she didn’t know she needed the actual survey by the meeting date. Acres of Virginia has done the survey, but has not gotten it to the Lawhornes as of this time. Mrs. Lawhorne said that the measurements from property lines were identical to the measurements on Mr. Kramer’s survey. Mrs. Lawhorne was advised that the Board required a copy of the actual survey and that her assurances with respect to measurements and location of the exact setbacks were not sufficient grounds for the Board to take action. Mr. Lawhorne said that Mr. Kramer has stated he has no problem with the location of the shed.

Mr. Bradshaw asked the applicant if he wanted the Board to make a decision at this time or wait until November when the survey will be done. The applicants chose to defer to November.

Mr. Moyer made a motion to defer a decision on this variance to November, Ms. Russell provided the second, and motion passed 5-0.

Special Use Permit #2007-008 – Jesse Tucker

Mr. Boger reported that Mr. Tucker is requesting a Special Use Permit to place a 12’ x 24’ prebuilt shed on his property located in the Horizons Village Subdivision on Mountain Field Trail (Tax Map #20-1-15). Mr. Tucker plans to clear the building site this winter and start construction on his home next spring. Staff suggests the following conditions be placed on the SUP, if approved by the Board:
1)   The shed cannot be located within the required front yard setback, which is 50 feet from the edge of the right-of-way of Mountain Field Trail.
2)   The shed cannot be used for residential purposes, only storage.
3)   Construction of the main dwelling must commence within one year from the date the SUP is approved. If construction has not started within this time period, the shed must be removed from the site unless an extension is granted by the Board.
4)   This permit is for Mr. Tucker only and is non-transferable.

Mr. Tucker presented to the Board a letter of building approval from the Environmental Concerns Committee (ECC) of Horizons Village Property Owners Association Board of Directors. He plans to use the shed to store building materials now and for general storage after the home is built. He is in agreement with the conditions stated in Mr. Boger’s report.

The public hearing was opened, there were no comments, and public hearing was closed.

Mr. Childs made a motion to approve Special Use Permit #2007-008 for Jesse Tucker with the conditions stated above. Ms. Russell provided the second, and motion passed 5-0.

Variance #2007-010 – Robert L. Cabbell

Mr. Boger reported that Mr. Cabbell is appealing a denial of a zoning permit to construct a porch roof over a recently installed concrete slab on the front of the dwelling located at 6247 Patrick Henry Highway, Roseland. The property is zoned Agricultural, A-1 and the required minimum front yard setback is 50’ from the edge of the right-of-way. The porch is 7’ from the right-of-way or 18’ from the edge of the pavement. Mr. Cabbell is requesting a variance from 50’ to 7’ to permit the new porch to remain as constructed. There are possible grounds for hardship due to the location of the existing building which has been there for many years.

Mr. Cabbell said there was previously a smaller existing porch. Siding has been added to the building and the porch was built to protect the windows and the slab increased in size to prevent water from going into the foundation of the house. The porch roof was extended 39” to cover the new concrete slab and porch.

Mr. Boger said that the house is non-conforming due to the closeness to the road, but has been at this location for decades.

The public hearing was opened, there were no comments, and public hearing was closed.

Mr. Childs said he would have preferred that the porch size not be increased since the enlargement moved it closer to Rt. 151. Ms. Russell expressed concern about the closeness to the road; however, a larger porch could prevent an out-of-control vehicle from crashing into the house. Ms. Cash said she was not thrilled about the large variance, but felt the porch was needed. Mr. Miles said he had no problem with the 39” increase in the porch size.

Ms. Russell made a motion to grant approval of a 43’ front yard setback variance (#2007-010) for Robert Cabbell. Mr. Miles provided the second and motion passed 5-0.

Mr. Boger recommended that a fence be placed in the front yard for protection of children who may live on the property.

Variance #2007-011 – June Lawhorne and Wendy Goff

Mr. Boger reported that he has been working with Mrs. Goff for some time in her attempt to place a doublewide manufactured home on a lot owned by her parents who reside at 644 Coxs Creek Lane, Tyro. A variance to reduce the required front yard setback from 75 feet from the center of the road to 39 feet is being requested due to the septic tank needing to be 50 feet from Coxs Creek which requires the dwelling to be located closer to the road. It appears a hardship does exist which can be grounds for granting a variance.

Mr. Boger added that when he began working with Mrs. Goff, the location of the dwelling was not in the floodplain, according to the 1978 FEMA flood maps; however, new preliminary maps were received in early July for authorized use as of August 31, 2007 and these maps show that the location is in the floodplain. Mr. David Odegard, FEMA representative, met with Mr. Boger on August 30 and stated that the new preliminary maps should be used even though they had not been adopted by the County. Staff, however, recommends that the previous FEMA maps be used in this case.

Ms. Russell noted that the Health Department schematic seems to indicate that there are two lots – one on which the dwelling will be located and another where the drainfield will be located – although this information is not clear. Mr. Boger could only say that the Health Department allows the septic system to be on a separate lot when an easement is granted.

Ms. Russell asked whether the County will be in violation with FEMA if this variance is granted, thus jeopardizing the flood insurance program. Mr. Boger said the maps have not been adopted by the County at this time.

The public hearing was opened, there were no comments, and public hearing was closed.

Ms. Russell said she was very concerned about using the 1978 FEMA maps in direct conflict with the FEMA representative’s recommendations. She would like to have a legal opinion on this issue. She also feels that Engineer Dickerson’s schematic is insufficient in that both lots need to be shown.

Mr. Childs made a motion to approve Variance #2007-011 for June Lawhorne and Wendy Goff to reduce the required front yard setback from 75’ to 39’. Mr. Miles provided the second.

Ms. Cash said that the floodplain issue could not be separated from the variance request and that she had no problem with the requested variance and believed a case could be made legally to use the previous FEMA flood maps because application was dated prior to August 31, 2007; however, she would recommend that the case be sent to the County Attorney and to FEMA to get their agreement before proceeding. If the variance is approved and FEMA determines the dwelling is in the floodplain, the County will have jeopardized the flood insurance program. Mrs. Lawhorne objected to this being done. Mr. Bradshaw asked if she and Mrs. Goff would agree to defer the case to the November meeting to allow time to consult with the County Attorney, and Mrs. Lawhorne replied emphatically, “No!” Ms. Russell explained to Mrs. Lawhorne that the granting of the variance for building in the floodplain has wide-reaching consequences and Ms. Cash added that if the BZA approves a dwelling in the floodplain, FEMA could cancel flood insurance for all the residents in the County. Mrs. Lawhorne continued to object, but stated that she guessed they had no choice in the matter. Mr. Bradshaw asked again if Mrs. Lawhorne would agree for Staff to refer the matter to the County Attorney. She said she didn’t agree, but didn’t have a choice.

Mr. Childs withdrew the previous motion and Mr. Miles withdrew his second.

Ms. Cash made a motion to table Variance #2007-011 for June Lawhorne and Wendy Goff until the November meeting, with Staff being directed to consult with the County Attorney and/or FEMA to establish whether, due to this application being in process so long, Staff can use existing FEMA maps rather than the preliminary FIRM (Flood Insurance Rate Map) to determine the presence of floodplain on this property. Ms. Russell provided the second and motion passed 5-0.

Other Business

Mr. Boger presented to the Board for their review and comments a draft of revised BZA regulations and application.

Adjournment
At 8:50 o’clock P. M., Mr. Bradshaw declared the meeting adjourned.

Respectfully submitted,

Betty M. Fortune
Planning Secretary