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City of Arden Hills Planning Commission Meeting for May 6th, 2020 P:\Planning\Planning Cases\2020\20-008 3244 Sandeen Road Variance\Memos Reports Page 3 of 6 Floor Area Ratio – Flexibility Required An informational handout from the Metropolitan Council regarding FAR is included in attachment E. Floor area is defined in City Code Section 1305.04 to mean the sum of the area of all floors of a building measured from the exterior faces of the exterior walls (for habitable spaces). According to our Zoning code, this definition excluding decks, garages, covered porches, attics, crawl spaces and basements that do not meet the minimum ceiling height per Minnesota State Building Code requirement. The FAR is obtained by dividing the sum of a building's floor area by the amount of lot area. The maximum permitted FAR in the R-2 District is 0.3. Without Variance With Variance Proposed Building Area 2,970 Sq. Ft. 3,366 Sq. Ft. Lot Area 9,900 Sq. Ft. 9,900 Sq. Ft. Proposed FAR 0.30 0.34 Renovating an attic, garage, crawl space or basement triggers a zoning review of FAR if the proposal expands the floor area that counts towards the FAR, which is an increase in habitable space. The storage space above the garage as previously proposed doesn’t count towards the FAR because it’s not habitable space and it does not meet the minimum requirements for habitable. However, if the storage area were converted to a therapy room to meet the requirements of the state building code as the Applicants are now proposing, then its floor area would count towards the FAR. According to the Applicants, this request for an increased FAR would have no impact on the neighborhood character because the area proposed for renovation is not visible to anyone in the neighborhood. In their application, they cite the challenges of building on a conforming lot as a practical difficulty and argue that the space will be used in a reasonable manner consistent with the purposed and intent of the City Code. 2. Variance Review The role of the Planning Commission is to determine and consider how the facts presented to them compare with the city’s articulated standards. The Commission should base their decision on the facts presented and then apply those facts to the legal standards contained in city ordinances and relevant state law. Neighborhood opinion alone is not a valid basis for granting or denying a variance request. While the Planning Commission may feel their decision should reflect the overall will of the residents, the task in considering a variance request is limited to evaluating how the variance application meets the statutory practical difficulties factors. Residents can often provide important facts that may help in addressing these factors, however, unsubstantiated opinions and reactions to a request do not form a legitimate basis for a variance decision. The Planning Commission may impose conditions when granting variances as long as the conditions are directly related and bear a rough proportionality to the impact created by the variance. For instance, if a variance is granted to exceed the front setback limit, any conditions attached should presumably relate to mitigating the effect of the encroachment.