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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/27/2009 MINUTES OF THE WATERLOO BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MEETING HELD ON OCTOBER 27, 2009, IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBERS, CITY HALL Chairperson Anfinson called the regular meeting of the Waterloo Board of Adjustment to order on Tuesday, October 27, 2009, at 4:00 p.m. Board members in attendance were: Holdiman,Goldsberry, Mixdorf and Anfinson. Member not in attendance was Mohr. Staff in attendance was Noel Anderson, Aric Schroeder,Shane Graham,Tim Andera and Adam Poll. There were 17 people from the public in attendance. I. Approval nf the Ag-nda fnr Or•tnher 77, 7(1(19 It was moved by Goldsberry, seconded by Holdiman, to approve the agenda as submitted. Motion carried unanimously. II. Apprnval nf the Minntea nf the Special Meeting nn Oetnher 1 , 7(1(19 It was moved by Mixdorf, seconded by Holdiman, to approve the minutes as submitted. Motion carried unanimously. III. Ilericinn Items 1. Request by Pat's Auto Salvage at 2201 E Mitchell Ave for a special permit to allow for the expansion of the existing salvage yard, and an exemption to the car stacking provisions to allow car bodies to be stacked more than 2' above the fencing. Poll gave the staff report, noting that the use of the former Nelly Garvey School site would allow for the expansion of the existing salvage yard in a manner that would not appear to have a negative impact on the neighborhood as most of the surrounding uses are also salvage yards. The applicant plans to possibly use the existing school building as a main office for his salvage yard if it is found to be structurally sound for this use. Poll indicated that the applicant is also requesting that a stacking exemption be approved with this special permit allowing the applicant to stack car bodies more then two high above the top of the fence. The Zoning Ordinance states that the "Board of Adjustment shall have the power to grant an exemption these stacking provisions so long as said exemption is in accordance with the purpose and intent of the zoning ordinance." This exemption would not appear to be out of character for the area as other salvage yards in the area stack non-car body materials well above the stacking limits placed on car bodies. Poll indicated that the Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously recommended approval of the special permit at their October 6,2009 meeting, and that staff recommends approval of the request as well. It was moved by Holdiman, seconded by Mixdorf, to approve the special permit to allow for the expansion of the existing auto salvage yard, and an exemption to the car stacking provisions to allow car bodies to be stacked more than 2'above the fencing. Motion carried unanimously. SPECIAL PERMIT AND STACKING EXEMPTION REQUEST APPROVED. 2. Request by InVision Architecture on behalf of the Iowa Department of Corrections at the Northeast corner of Lafayette St and Elm St for a special permit to allow for the construction of a new Iowa Department of Correctional Services Women's Facility, and a variance to the front and rear yard setback requirements, and a variance to the 5' parking lot setback requirement. BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT October 27,2009 Minutes to construct a human services campus, which will have several different agencies centrally located to provide services for low-income individuals and families. The building will be 2 stories in height and will be 27,610 SF in size, of which 23,610 SF will be office space, while 4,000 SF will be warehouse space. The office building will house 78 employees, compared to 53 at their previous site. The added employees are needed because of an increase in programming and program budgets resulting from the recent federal stimulus plan. The applicant has indicated a timeline of completion of the building by April of 2010. Graham noted that the Zoning Ordinance requires that the office building be set back a minimum of 2 feet per 1 foot of building height. The applicants have provided a site plan, which shows the building height to be 33'8"; therefore,the setback requirement would be 67'4" from all property lines. The site plan provided shows setbacks from the north property line along Mulberry Street to be 8'6", 11'9" from the east property line, 12'9" from the south property line, and 40' from the west property line. Since the setback would be less than the 67'4" required, the variance will be needed. Since this area has been developed for some time prior to the adoption of the Zoning Ordinance, many structures do not meet the setback requirements. Although this building would not meet the required setback by a significant amount, it would not appear to be that out of character with the surrounding area. Graham indicated that staff recommends approval of the requests. Barb Grant, Director of Operation Threshold, indicated that there is adequate parking for staff and customers for the site. It was moved by Goldsberry, seconded by Mixdorf, to approve the special permit to allow for the construction of a new 27,610 SF building to be used for the new home of Operation Threshold, and a variance to allow a setback of 8'6"at its closest point. Motion carried unanimously. SPECIAL PERMIT AND VARIANCE REQUEST APPROVED. 4. Request by Thomas Adams at 730 W Airline Hwy for a special permit to allow for the construction of a 45' tall personal wind generation tower on the property. Schroeder gave the staff report, noting that the City of Waterloo Zoning Ordinance does not specifically mention wind towers. Staff is proposing an amendment to the Zoning Ordinance to add provisions to specifically apply to wind towers, however said amendment has not yet been adopted. Staff has determined that the regulations for wireless communication towers would apply for wind towers, as they are a comparable use. The wireless communications regulations require that any lattice or guyed designed towers in an Agricultural District shall go through the Planning, Programming&Zoning Commission for a recommendation to the Board of Adjustment, similar to a Special Permit. The tower in question would be a lattice design, and therefore the approval is required. Schroeder noted that the proposed 45' tower would be located near the middle of the 3.4 acre property, over 100' to the closest property line, and over 400' to the nearest home. The tower would be located about 100' northeast of an existing pole building located behind the existing home. The proposed tower would not appear to have a negative impact on surrounding properties and, given the proposed location and distance to surrounding uses,would appear to be compatible with surrounding uses. Schroeder indicated that at their 10/06/09 meeting, the Planning, Programming&Zoning Commission recommended approval of the request, and staff also recommends approval of the request. Anfinson questioned if this would set a precedence, and Schroeder indicated that it would not, as it is in a unique location on a large lot in a rural area. Schroeder noted that staff is proposing to amend the Zoning Ordinance to address wind towers in the city. Thomas Adams noted that 3 HOARD OF ADJUSTMENT October 27,2009 Minutes setback. Engineering stated that they would prefer not to vacate the easement citing the possibility that it may create further difficulty accessing utilities in the future, therefore the applicant is requesting the variance to the side yard setback requirement. The lot is 59.22 ft wide,which would only allow for a maximum of a 39.22 wide house on the property after the 15' easement and 5' setback, are subtracted. If the 15' easement were not in place, the home would only need to meet a 10' setback along that street frontage, since the home will face the narrow dimension street frontage and thus eliminating the need for a variance. The house being proposed is 40' in width, and most if not all, of the homes in the subdivision area at least 40' in width. The adjacent house at 5674 Summerland Drive is a 40' wide home, and the home across the street at 5677 Summerland Drive is 64' wide. Poll indicated that staff recommends approval of the request, as the request would appear to be unique given the unique lot width and due to the 15' sanitary sewer easement that is on the property. Anfinson questioned if someone was living in the home adjacent to the property, and Graham indicated that there was. It was moved by Goldsberry, seconded by Mixdorf, to approve the variance to allow for a side yard setback of 4'. Motion carried unanimously. VARIANCE REQUEST APPROVED. IV. Discussion Items There were no discussion items. V. Adjournment It was moved by Goldsberry, seconded by Holdiman, to adjourn the meeting at 4:44 p.m. Motion carried unanimously. Respectfully submitted, eZ/ Shane M. Graham, Planner II 5