Board of Zoning Appeals

BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS MINUTES MARCH 13, 2014 The Board of Zoning Appeals met on Thursday, March 13, 2014, at 5:15 p.m. in the Council Chambers, 45 E. Broad Street, Cookeville, Tennessee. MEMBERS PRESENT: Paul Bonner, Sid Gilbreath, and James Dial. MEMBER ABSENT: Kay Detwiler and Jane Flatt. STAFF PRESENT: James Mills, Jayne Barns, and Ken Young. OTHERS PRESENT: Reed Ramsey, John Massa, Masoud Faithi, Billy Huff, Lance Truem, and Laura Militana. CONSIDER FOR APPROVAL THE MINUTES OF FEBRUARY 13, 2014. Paul Bonner made the motion to approve the minutes of February 13, 2014. James Dial seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously. APPROVED. CONSIDER A REQUEST FOR A VARIANCE IN THE PARKING SPACE REQUIREMENTS FROM 14 TO 11 SPACES FOR A TOTAL VARIANCE OF 3 PARKING SPACES ON THE PROPERTY LOCATED AT 820 SOUTH JEFFERSON AVENUE. REQUEST SUBMITTED BY BILL HUFF. James Mills stated that Mr. Bill Huff has submitted a request for a variance to reduce the minimum off-street parking requirement for his property located at 820 South Jefferson Avenue and zoned as CG, General Commercial. The subject property is further identified as Parcel 23.00 on Tax Map 66C, Group A. According to a submitted survey, the parcel is approximately 81 feet wide by 260 feet deep and consists of approximately 21,051 square feet or 0.48 acres. It is contiguous with properties zoned as CG on all sides. Adjacent to the north is a commercial office building and to the north, east and south the property is contiguous with a stockyard. Located on the property is a structure consisting of approximately 3,500 square feet that was previously used as an auto repair establishment. Mr. Huff intends to convert the structure from its previous use to a financial institution. As a part of the conversion, the addition of a 1,500 square feet patio to the front of the building is planned. While the addition of the patio does not create the need for additional parking, it does occupy area where parking could be provided. The minimum off-street parking requirement for the proposed use is one (1) space for every 250 square feet of floor area. With a structure size of 3,500 square feet a minimum of 14 off-street parking spaces would be required. According to the submitted plans, a total of only 11 off-street parking spaces can be provided with the construction of the patio. The requested variance of three (3) spaces represents a reduction of approximately 21 percent. BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS 2 MARCH 13, 2014 A review of the submitted site plan indicates that there is an area available to provide parking to the rear of the structure. Access to the rear could be provided on the north side of the property where there is between 14 and 17 feet between the building and the property line. Section 205.7B(3) of the Zoning Code specifies that the minimum width of any driveway providing the sole access to a parking area containing ten (10) or more parking spaces shall be sixteen (16) feet. While sixteen (16) feet of width cannot not be provided for the entire length of the driveway the minimum width requirement would not be applicable since significantly less than ten (10) spaces would need to be provided to the rear of the building. The provision of an access drive to the north for the creation of parking to the rear of the building would require modification of the proposed patio and wall to the front the building. Unless there are factors the Planning Department is not aware of, there does not appear to be any particular hardship that would justify approval of the requested variance. Staff recommended denial of the request. Masoud Fathi, Civil Engineer for the project, had concerns about safety if they had parking for in the back of the building and if there would there be enough access for a fire truck to drive to the back of the building. James Dial suggested that if patio in the front of the building was reduced that there would be room for the additional 3 parking spaces. Lance Truem, Construction Manager for the project, stated that due to the storm water retention expense and the elevation of the patio, that it would be hard to put the 3 parking spaces in that location. Reed Ramsey & John Mason, joint owners of the building north of 820 South Jefferson Avenue, was concerned that the survey for this project was incorrect and they wanted the surveyor to review the north property boundary. Sid Gilbreath suggested that the project be reevaluated to see if there are other options for parking. Paul Bonner made the motion to deny the Variance request. James Dial seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously. VARIANCE DENIED. ADJOURNMENT: 5:40 P.M. SUBMITTED FOR APPROVAL SUBMITTED FOR RECORDING _____________________________ ______________________________ JAYNE BARNS CPS SID GILBREATH PLANNING ASSISTANT ACTING CHAIRMAN BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS