pf07-005 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

-, -� 4.3 Since the creation of the parcel, the owner has been unsuccessful in selling it because of the inability of several potential buyers to design a suitable home in a manner that achieves all required setbacks. 4.4 At their September 6, 2006 meeting, the Variance Board denied the property owner's request for a general variance to accommodate a more traditionally-designed house on the lot, finding that any "hardship" was created by the applicant. The City Council, acting as the Board of Zoning Adjustments and Appeals at their October 10, 2660 meeting, affirmed the Variance Board's decision to deny the requested variance. 4.5 The current variance application has been prompted by the (new) applicant's desire to build the proposed house; the applicant has a purchase agreement that is contingent on the approval of the requested variances. 5.0 STAFF COMMENT: 5.1 Section 1004.016 (Residential Building Setbacks) requires a minimum front yard principal structure setback of 30 feet. A review of the City's On-Line Mapping technology reveals most homes have been constructed at a parallel to the front property line/street in such a manner to afford greater use, and as such most comply with the 30- foot front yard setback requirement. A few homes in the area, however, were not constructed at the 30-foot setback; examples include 1821 Dale Court (21 feet from the front yard property line), 1810 Alta Vista Drive (15 feet from the front yard property line), and 1827, 1836, and 1844 Alta Vista Drive (approximately 22 feet from the front yard property line). Staff is only aware of one variance, granted to the 1810 Alta Vista property. 5.2 An illustration of the nearby setbacks on the south/west side of Dale Court (Attachment E) shows the extent to which the proposed structure would extend closer to the street than the other buildings along that stretch. While the representation of the proposed residential footprint is not three-dimensional, the illustration seems to suggest that the proposed building would not look out of place compared to the existing homes. 5.3 During previous public hearings related to variances for houses on this lot, the question of how a house with non-conforming setbacks would impact the ability of motorists to see vehicles on Dale Street. Attachment F 1 illustrates this impact; Planning Division staff believes that the impact would not be a meaningful one. 5.4 Concerns have also been raised with respect to how a privacy fence along the Dale Street right-of-way would affect traffic visibility, but there's no difference between the fence that may be built on this new parcel and the fence that could have been built by the property owners prior to the lot division. In either case, Planning Division staff concludes that there would be no significant impact at the intersection if the property is improved as proposed. 5.5 It should be noted that the survey prepared for the original lot split shows the house at 1822 Dale Court to have a 27'/z-foot setback from the rear property line. This fact doesn't compel the Variance Board to approve the requested rear yard variance, but it would reduce the visual impact of the proposed 25-foot setback if the variance is approved. PF07-005 RVBA 020707 Page 2 of 5