Full Text
TOWN OF STERLING ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS May 11, 2017 A meeting of the Town of Sterling Zoning Board of Appeals was held on Thursday, May 11, 2017 at the Sterling Town Hall at 7:01 pm with the following members present: Laurence Lemon ~ Chairman Charles Itzin ~Member Richard Palmieri ~ Acting Chairman Excused: Members Darrell Uetz and Brad Dates Also Present : William Snook and George Hanford. The meeting was called to order at 7:01 PM by Acting Chairman Rich Palmieri. PUBLIC HEARINGS John Prentice Acting Chairman Palmieri read the legal notice aloud; the Public Hearing was opened at 7:02 PM Notice is hereby given that the Zoning Board of Appeals for the Town of Sterling will hold a Public Hearing on Thursday, May 11, 2017 at 7:00 PM at the Sterling Town Hall, 1290 State Route 104A, Sterling, NY 13156 to hear an Area Variance request by John & Emily Prentice. A request for relief of the Town of Sterling Land Use Regulations Article VII, Section 1, Table 1 – Minimum front yard setback requirement in regards to proposed wheelchair ramp on property located at 13853 Craine Road, Sterling, NY 13156; Tax Map #14.00-1-5. All those wishing to be heard in favor of or in opposition of said application may appear in person or by other representation at said time and place. By order of the Zoning Board of Appeals Lisa Somers, Clerk John Prentice’s Contractor, George Hanford, approached the Board as the representative for the applicant. He explained that the proposed project is a THOMA funded job to build a wheelchair ramp on property located at 13853 Craine Road. The ramp is designed to exit a new 10’x12’ deck attached to the front corner of the existing house. A ramp to a landing area extends 6’ from the side of the house to the edge of the existing driveway which then extends an additional 16’ towards the roadway, terminating 60’ from the center of Craine Road. The LUR requires a setback of 105’ which makes the request substantial at 45’. Some discussion of the property layout resulted in a conclusion that the ramp wouldn’t be beneficial at any other location. Member Palmieri asked why the ramp couldn’t start 8’ closer to the house on the new 10’x12’ deck. Mr. Hanford replied that the roof pitch and the steel material allows for snow and rain to fall along the back of the deck close to the house; the size of the deck was designed to eliminate the possibility of snow or rain falling onto the residents. Chairman Lemon and Acting Chairman Palmieri questioned whether the ramp was ADA compliant. Mr. Hanford stated that he was compliant with the THOMA specs which are for residential use and not public or commercial use which is subject to the requirements of ADA. The height of the deck was also questioned which Mr. Hanford stated was at 24” in order to meet the required fall of the ramp in the maximum run length of 16’. Without any further public or Board comments, the Hearing was closed at 7:11 PM by Acting Chairman Palmieri. A motion was moved by Member Itzin to grant the requested front setback relief of 50’for proposed wheelchair ramp. The motion was seconded by Acting Chairman Palmieri, all were in favor and the motion carried. Resolution 2017-03 BE IT RESOLVED, by the Zoning Board of Appeals for the Town of Sterling, upon the facts presented and the determination made, that the application for the requested variance of 50’ relief for front setback requirement for proposed wheelchair ramp for property located at 13853 Craine Road, Sterling, NY 13156; Tax Map # 14.00-1-5 is hereby GRANTED. Roll call vote was taken: Lawrence Lemon, Chairman Aye Richard Palmieri, Member Aye Darrell Uetz, Member Absent Charles Itzin, Member Aye Brad Dates, Member Absent 3 AYES 0 NAYES 0 ABSTENTIONS – REQUEST APPROVED ---PAGE BREAK--- William Snook Acting Chairman Palmieri stated that the Public Hearing was still open from previous meetings, and invited William Snook to approach the Board. The Board Members explained that the site plan drawing previously submitted needed accurate dimensions and to locate everything on the property, as well as a new propsed garage location that will require smaller variances. The side setback requirement of 20’ could be mitigated to 10’ as previously discussed to maintain the Fair Haven setback and aesthetic. If the garage has a 1’ overhang then locate the building at 11’ from the side property line on the site plan. The applicant, Bill Snook, stated that he had been incorrect about the fire separation being 20’ and that he could move the garage 8’ closer to the house and comply with the12’ fire separation requirement. Acting Chairman Palmieri stated that the accessory structure setback requirement is 20’ according to the LUR, therefore the garage still is an issue because it’s too close to the roadway. Member Palmieri proposed that the garage be moved to the other side of the house where the side setback could be maintained at the 20’ which is required and would eliminate one of the variances needed making the overall request less substantial. He also suggested attaching the garage to the house which is located 53’ from the property line and wouldn’t require as substantial a variance as is being requested for the front setback. More discussion yielded that Fair Haven requires a 30’ setback from the front property line, so there is room to mitigate the difference if the applicant can move the garage 10’ or more closer to the house. Chairman Lemon asked Mr. Snook what he considered the front of his house to be, which Mr. Snook replied that the front of his house faces the water – it contains many windows and architectural details that house fronts normally contain. Chairman Lemon stated that most people that build on the Bay considers the Bay side the front side, therefore if Fair Haven requires only 30’ then the applicant has a good argument to apply through the Village for an attached garage and he wouldn’t need a variance. The applicant stated that he didn’t want to build on the north side of the property as Acting Chairman Palmieri suggested because of the massive draining that occurs there every spring. He would need a tremendous amount of fill which he also had to do when building the house, if he builds in his proposed area he wouldn’t have that added expense. A discussion ensued of want defines attached – a definition missing from the LUR. Mr. Snook stated that he would consult his builder on a design that would attach the garage to the house which would make the request much smaller, but that because of the house design with setbacks of its own he wasn’t sure he could find a design that would work and look good too. He was also skeptical of going through Fair Haven because the house was built with CEO jurisdiction in Sterling. A motion was made by Acting Chairman Palmieri to table the application once again and leave the Public Hearing open until a later date when applicant can supply a new design. The motion was seconded Member Itzin, all were in favor and the motion carried. Notification and advertisement will be required when a new date is scheduled. MINUTES Approval of meeting minutes for April 17, 2017 and April 27, 2017 waived until next meeting by Acting Chairman Palmieri. ADJOURN On a motion by Member Itzin and seconded by Chairman Lemon the meeting was adjourned at 8:09 PM. Approved Minutes, Respectfully submitted, Lisa Somers ZBA Clerk