CCP 02-27-2006 - Laserfiche WebLink

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~ . I' .. We own the property at 140 I Skiles Lane. We bought the property at the end of November, 2005 and love the neighborhood, the location and the lot. The lot is covered with oak trees and a number of other varieties of trees. We bought the house because of the character of the neighborhood, the proximity to Lake Johanna and because of all of the trees on the lot. The neighborhood is similar to the neighborhoods where we both grew up in the western suburbs. . Minor Subdivision request - The zoning in this area is R-l, with a minimum lot width of95' and a minimum lot area of approximately 14,500 sq. ft. The current lot is 195' x approximately 182' with an existing house that is mostly on the west 100' of the lot. The area of the current lot is 35,527 sq. ft. We would like to subdivide the lot and create one vacant lot (on the east side) that is 95' x 182' (17,280 sq. ft. or .4 acres) and a second lot with the existing house that is 100' x 182 (18,237 sq. ft. or.42 acres) on the west side of the lot. Both of these lots will meet all of the zoning requirements for an R -I zone. Our plans are to rehab the existing house and sell it and build a new 1 Y, story house for our family on the new east lot. Both homes will be designed in a style and character to be consistent with the existing housing in the neighborhood. . Variance request - The easternmost portion of the existing house straddles what will be the new property line. We plan to remove the portion of the existing house (approximately 250 sq. ft.) that straddles what will be the new property line. This will be relatively easy because the part of the house that will be removed is a living room that is a 14' x 18' rectangle that extends out from the main body of the house. To "make up" for the loss of the 250 sq. ft. we will be adding on approximately 600 sq. ft. to the existing house, primarily by finishing off the rear 20' of the existing four-car garage and enclosing an area between the garage and the house. The house currently covers only about 13.7% ofthe 18,237 sq. ft. on which it would sit after the subdivision is complete. Currently, the house is one of the smaller houses on the block (about 1,900 sq. ft. living area) and we would like to make it about 2,250 sq. ft. and finish a portion of the basement to make it habitable. The new east side of the existing house will be approximately 3.9' from the new property line. We are requesting a sideyard setback variance of 6.1' since we do not meet the 10' sideyard setback requirement for the R-l zone. By doing the above, we end up with two legal size lots and will need the one variance for the sideyard setback. We will also be able to preserve all of the trees (of which there are many) on the west side of the property and all but 3 or 4 trees on the east side of the lot. (See prelim. site plan) If the variance request is not approved, we will move the existing house to the east side of the property and build a new house on the western portion of the lot (both of which would be entirely within the required setbacks) so that no variances will be required. Again, we feel that this is not the best option for the lot. The best option for the lot, the neighborhood and for us is to be granted the variance so we can leave the house and most of the trees in place. Page 2 of6 -1401 Skiles Lane