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Page 6 of 10 The role of the City Council is to determine and consider how the facts presented to them compare with the city’s articulated standards. The City Council 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 City Council 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 City Council 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. Variance Requirements – Section 1355.04, Subd. 4 The Applicant is requesting a side yard setback for corner lots variance to demolish and reconstruct a single-family dwelling on the property located at 3609 Pascal Avenue North. The City Council will need to make a determination utilizing the following variance findings and criteria on whether there are practical difficulties with complying with the zoning regulations. If the applicants do not meet all the factors of the statutory test, then a variance should not be granted. Variances are only permitted when they are in harmony with the general purposes and intent of the ordinance. 1. Purpose and Intent. The variance request shall comply with the purpose and intent of the provisions of the City’s Zoning Regulations and with the policies of the City’s Comprehensive Plan. The Applicant is proposing to demolish the existing single-family dwelling unit and detached garage and rebuild a 2,704 square foot single-family dwelling with an attached garage on the Subject Property. The Subject Property is zoned R-1, Single Family Residential District and it is designated for Low Density Residential in the 2040 Comprehensive Land Use Plan. The proposed use of the Subject Property and the variance request comply with the purpose and intent of the provisions of the City’s Zoning Regulations and the policies of the City’s Comprehensive Plan. 2. Practical Difficulties. The Applicant for a variance shall establish that there are practical difficulties in complying with the provisions of the Arden Hills Zoning Regulations. The term “Practical Difficulties” as used in the granting of a variance means: a. Reasonable Use. The property owner proposes to use the property in a reasonable manner not permitted by the Zoning Ordinance. According to the Applicant, the property cannot be reasonably used to construct a standard single-family home consistent with others in the area without the requested variance for the side yard setback for corner lots. The Applicant states that the current building envelope and the existing driveway configuration prevent reasonable and effective residential use under the Zoning Ordinance.