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<br />City of Arden Hills <br />City Council Meeting for June 27, 2016 <br />P:\Planning\Planning Cases\2016\PC 16-015 - 1494 Keithson Drive - Variance\Memos_Reports_16-015 <br /> <br />Page 2 of 5 <br />homes in the Fox Ridge subdivision as well as those on Keithson Drive to the north of the <br />subject property are setback approximately 40 feet from the front property line. <br /> <br /> <br />Overview of Request <br /> <br />The applicants have requested a rear yard setback variance in order to construct a 216 square foot <br />three-season porch addition on the rear side of the house. The porch addition would encroach 3 <br />feet – 6 inches into the required 30-foot rear yard setback, creating a setback of 26 feet – 6 inches <br />from the rear property line. The project would also include a 211 square foot deck that would be <br />accessed through the new porch addition. In this case, a variance is only needed for the porch <br />addition as the deck encroachment in the rear yard setback is allowed under the permitted <br />encroachment provisions in Section 1325.03, Subd. 2 of the Zoning Code. <br /> <br />The applicants have submitted a letter addressing the variance criteria along with photographs of <br />the site (Attachment A). A site plan of the property and construction plans for the proposed <br />addition have also been provided (Attachments C and D). <br /> <br /> <br />Plan Evaluation <br /> <br />A full evaluation of the proposal was presented to the Planning Commission at their meeting on <br />June 8, 2016. The staff report to the Planning Commission is included in Attachment G. <br /> <br /> <br />Additional Review <br /> <br />Building Official and City Engineer <br />The Building Official and City Engineer have reviewed the plans and have no additional <br />comments at this time. A building permit will be required prior to any construction taking place. <br /> <br />Rice Creek Watershed District <br />The Rice Creek Watershed District has reviewed the plans and determined that a permit is not <br />required for the project. <br /> <br /> <br />Variance Evaluation Criteria <br /> <br />On May 5, 2011, the Governor signed into law new variance legislation that changed the review <br />criteria cities must use when evaluating variance requests. The new law renames the municipal <br />variance standard from “undue hardship” to “practical difficulties,” but otherwise retains the <br />familiar three-factor test of (1) reasonableness, (2) uniqueness, and (3) essential character. Also <br />included is a sentence new to city variance authority that was already in the county statutes: <br />“Variances shall only be permitted when they are in harmony with the general purposes and