Zoning Board of Appeals

Posted in City of Danbury Town Clerk’s office on March 18, 2024 at 2:57 p.m. CITY OF DANBURY 155 DEER HILL AVENUE DANBURY, CONNECTICUT 06810 ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS (203) 797-4525 www.danbury-ct.gov (203) 797-4586 FAX) ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS MINUTES January 25, 2024 7:00 p.m. ROLL CALL: Chairman Joseph Hanna called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Present by roll call were: Juan Rivas, Peter DeLucia, Brandon Botelho, and William Trotta. Chairman Joseph Hanna seated alternate William Trotta for Tony Rebeiro. Absent were Tony Rebeiro and Rick Roos. Staff present were Zoning Enforcement Officer Sean P. Hearty and Secretary Melissa Llera. ACCEPTANCE OF MINUTES: January 11, 2024 Motion to accept the Minutes of January 11, 2024 was made by Peter DeLucia; seconded by Brandon Botelho. All in favor by those eligible to vote: Commissioners Juan Rivas, Peter DeLucia, Brandon Botelho, William Trotta and Joseph Hanna. The next regular meeting is scheduled for February 8, 2024 PUBLIC HEARING: Motion to open Application No. 23-27, 11 Shoreview Lane, for Public Hearing was made by Brandon Botelho; seconded by Peter DeLucia. All in favor with AYES: Juan Rivas, Peter DeLucia, Brandon Botelho, William Trotta and Joseph Hanna. Zoning Board of Appeals Minutes January 25, 2024 Page 2 #23-27: 11 Shoreview Lane, Grossi Sr., Angelo W; (H08118), RA-80 Zone. Sec 4.A.3. Reduce side yard setback from 30’ to 23.5’ for construction of detached pole barn Angelo Grossi Sr., homeowner and resident, was present to represent the application. They are looking to get a variance to construct a 30’x30’ pole barn. They need to reduce the side yard setback by 6.5 ft. Mr. Hanna clarifies that he wants to reduce the side yard setback from 30’ to 23.5’; Mr. Grossi agrees. Mr. Hanna asks what the use of the pole barn would be. Mr. Grossi responds that it would be for dry storage for items such as tools, lawn mowers and motorcycles. Mr. Hanna asks how many garages the home currently has. Mr. Grossi says he has four garages on the home, but needs more storage. Mr. Trotta asks how close the structure would be to the neighbor. Mr. Grossi explains the adjacent property in that area is open space for Shoreview Association. Mr. Trotta asks what the ramifications would be if that open space was ever developed. Mr. Grossi states that the open space serves as a right-of-way for the City of Danbury as a water tracking easement to Candlewood Lake, and the land is wetlands. Mr. Botelho agrees that after a site visit the project wouldn’t be affecting that property. Mr. Hanna shares that the land doesn’t seem to be buildable. Mr. Rivas asks the applicant, Mr. Grossi, what the hardship is. He sees that topography is listed, but if the topography is similar to the surrounding area, then that cannot be used. Mr. Grossi says when they first looked into this project they found the septic was too close to the barn, so the location needed to be moved. The lot was surveyed a few times since the structure was moved two times on the property due to the septic setbacks, trying to save large trees that are present, and the attempt to prevent drilling and blasting of the ledge which is present. With the ledge, they couldn’t move the pole barn farther back without blasting. Mr. Botelho asks if the ledge is located in the front of the garage where the two doors would be; Mr. Grossi says the ledge is in the back section of the garage. Mr. Hanna and Mr. Botelho ask for clarification on how the garage will be accessed in relation to the driveway and location of the garage doors, along with the location of the ledge in relation to the garage. Mr. Grossi said the garage doors will be facing the 30 ft. setback. They will be accessing the garage through an access driveway that will go to the front of the barn where the doors are. The access driveway was established in 1998 and serves as a right-of-way for the City of Danbury driveway easement. In the area of the stone retaining wall on the survey is the gravel access driveway that will be used. Mr. Botelho states that only the main driveway is shown on the survey, and asks to clarify that this access driveway is currently there as well; Mr. Grossi confirms. Mr. Grossi also clarifies the ledge is located on what would be the back side of the pole barn closest to the main driveway which is why they can’t push the building back more. Mr. Rivas asks again for clarification on the hardship. He understands there is ledge, but topography can’t be used as a hardship. He quotes from section 11.B.1. in the Zoning Regulations “the hardship differs in kind from hardships imposed by these Regulations on other properties in the district.” He knows Shoreview has issues with rock ledge, so since it is similar to other properties, it can’t be used. Mr. Grossi states the septic location would be his hardship since that is what initially forced him to relocate the structure. Mr. Rivas asked if making the pole barn smaller so it was more conforming could be an option. Mr. Grossi said it is a possibility, but he did not feel like he was asking for much room. He feels he is not encroaching on any neighbors, and did make the structure smaller from his initial design. He did not want to clear any trees, move the septic, or blast the ledge. Mr. Hanna asks how much ledge was in the area. Mr. Grossi replied about 5-6 ft. of solid ledge. Mr. Hanna said the financial aspect of blasting or moving the septic can’t be a hardship. He feels 24’x24’ is a good size garage, and then Mr. Grossi wouldn’t need a variance. Mr. Trotta asked about the area located between the frame dwelling and pole barn on the survey, and if that would be a possible location. Mr. Grossi said the septic Zoning Board of Appeals Minutes January 25, 2024 Page 3 is in that area. The 100 ft. line for wetlands is depicted on the survey. Above the line is rock basically. Mr. Grossi then shares that he did receive EIC approval for the encroachment in the 100 ft. buffer for the wetlands (of about 4.6’) the night before. No one was present in favor of the application. Steve DiCiacco, board member for Shoreview Association, was present in opposition. He states he wasn’t aware of the EIC approval, and is concerned about setting a precedence on encroaching into the wetlands or 100 ft. area for the wetlands. They would like evergreen trees between the building and driveway (rear of building) to screen the building from the neighbor. Larry Kosilla, board member for Shoreview Association and adjacent neighbor, was also present. He also states his concern about the wetlands approval, and also requests evergreen trees since the structure would be in the line of sight from his home. Alan Ware, board member for Shoreview Association, also stated his concern for setting a precedence on wetland encroachment. Ms. Petcher, resident of Shoreview Association, also expresses concern about the use of the existing driveway to additional traffic given it is in the wetlands. She feels there has been more water since Mr. Grossi extended his driveway, and is concerned there may be more water due to this project in the future. Mr. Hanna asked to clarify when they received EIC approval. Mr. Hearty and Ms. Llera confirmed it was on Wednesday, January 24, 2024. Mr. Hearty then informed the Board that Mr. Grossi has been working with the City for a while on this project. The lot configuration is odd for the RA-80 Zone and bottle necks, so Mr. Grossi was limited to where he could place this structure. He wanted to build something he would find useable. He states Mr. Grossi has been very cooperative with moving the structure around. It has been discussed that the pole barn would need to fit with the neighborhood characteristics and also maintain the 15 ft. height limit. Mr. Trotta feels the neighbors aren’t in agreement with this project given the request for trees. Mr. Trotta then asks if any trees would be taken down; Mr. Grossi said no trees would be removed. Motion to close public hearing for Application No. 23-27, 11 Shoreview Lane, was made by Brandon Botelho; seconded by Juan Rivas. All in favor with AYES: Juan Rivas, Peter DeLucia, Brandon Botelho, William Trotta and Joseph Hanna. Motion to open Application No. 23-27, 11 Shoreview Lane, for voting session was made by Juan Rivas; seconded by Brandon Botelho. All in favor with AYES: Juan Rivas, Peter DeLucia, Brandon Botelho, William Trotta and Joseph Hanna. Motion to Deny without prejudice Application No. 23-27, 11 Shoreview Lane, was made by Brandon Botelho; seconded by William Trotta. Mr. Botelho doesn’t believe a hardship was presented with the application. The motion to deny without prejudice was approved with 4 Ayes from Juan Rivas, Peter DeLucia, Brandon Botelho, and William Trotta; Chairman Hanna voted against the motion. CONTINUED PUBLIC HEARINGS: #23-26: 15 Barnum Rd., Cedar Gables Preschool; (G06021), RA-40 Zone. Sec. 4.A.5.e.(2) eliminate requirement for municipal sewer and water facilities, Sec. 4.A.5.e.(7) and 8.C.1.c.(2) to allow front yard parking for a handicap parking space, Sec.4.A.5.e.(10)(a) Reduce front yard setback from 50’ to 26’, Sec. 4.A.5.e.(10)(b) Reduce side yard setback for daycare center from 50’ to 36.2’ on northside and 27.2’ on southside, and 8.A.2.c.(4) to allow bottom edge of excavation to be within 5’ of adjoining property line *Note: Applicant requested continuance until February 8, 2024 meeting. Zoning Board of Appeals Minutes January 25, 2024 Page 4 Motion to continue Public Hearing No. 23-26, 15 Barnum Rd., until the February 8, 2024 meeting for more information was made by William Trotta; seconded by Peter DeLucia. All in favor with AYES: Juan Rivas, Peter DeLucia, Brandon Botelho, William Trotta and Joseph Hanna. ADJOURNMENT: Motion to adjourn was made by Juan Rivas; seconded by William Trotta. All in favor with AYES from: Juan Rivas, Peter DeLucia, Brandon Botelho, William Trotta and Joseph Hanna. Meeting adjourned at 7:38 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Melissa Llera Recording Secretary