Board of Zoning Appeals Agendas and Minutes

AT A REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS OF THE CITY OF HAMPTON, VIRGINIA, HELD IN THE HARDY CASH CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL, 22 LINCOLN STREET, AT 5:00 P.M. ON MONDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2012. Present: Chairman Thomas Savage, Vice Chair Burnett Peters, Board Members Linda Ellis, John Pope, and Rodney Gentry. Also present were Zoning Administrator Steve Shapiro, Senior Deputy City Attorney Vanessa Valldejuli, and Recording Secretary Victoria Byrd. The Chairman called the meeting to order and asked that the minutes be considered. A motion was made by Vice Chair Peters and seconded by Board Member Pope that the minutes of the October 15, 2012 meeting be approved as written. A roll call vote on the motion resulted as follows: AYES: Ellis, Gentry, Pope, Peters, Savage NAYS: None ABSTAIN: None ABSENT: None The Zoning Administrator, Steven Shapiro, advised that Variance Requests 12- 00050 and 12-00051 would not be heard at this meeting. Hampton University requested a continuance to the December 17, 2012 meeting due to their attorney being on Federal jury duty and unable to attend. A motion was made by Board Member Pope and seconded by Vice Chair Peters to continue Variance Requests 12-00050 and 12-00051 to December 17, 2012. A roll call vote on the motion resulted as follows: AYES: Ellis, Gentry, Pope, Peters, Savage NAYS: None ABSTAIN: None ABSENT: None Variance Request No. 12-00046: Rodney & Ernestine Dozier, 1414 Hardy Cash Drive, LRSN: 7001976, to reduce the required rear yard setback from 28.33’ to 12’ to allow a 16’ by 30’ addition to an existing single-family home. The owner’s representative, Lawrence Blizzard, presented the variance request to the Board. After discussion, it was determined that there was adequate area to construct the addition in place of the sunroom, therefore, a motion was made by Board Page 1 of 5 Member Gentry and seconded by Board Member Pope that the variance request does not meet the criteria and therefore the variance should be denied because: 1. There has been no evidence produced that the strict application of the ordinance would produce undue hardships; 2. The hardship is shared generally by other properties in the same zoning district and the same vicinity; 3. Authorization of the variance will be of substantial detriment to adjacent property and the character of the district will be changed by the granting of the variance; and 4. Granting of the variance is not in harmony with the intended spirit of the ordinance. A roll call vote on the motion resulted as follows: AYES: Ellis, Gentry, Pope, Peters, Savage NAYS: None ABSTAIN: None ABSENT: None Subsequent to the meeting, the applicant’s representative was informed by mail on November 6, 2012 and by phone on November 9, 2012, that he has 30 days from November 5, 2012 to appeal the Board’s decision to the Circuit Court for the City of Hampton. Variance Request No. 12-00047: Ann L. Phillips, 4034 Chesapeake Avenue, LRSN: 2002445, to reduce the required front yard setback from 47’ to 40’ to allow a 23’ by 30’ addition to an existing single-family home. The applicant’s husband, Robert L. Phillips, presented the variance request to the Board. After discussion, a motion was made by Board Member Pope and seconded by Vice Chair Peters that the request meets all criteria due to the fact that the entire lot is in the Chesapeake Bay Preservation District and additions are discouraged on the waterfront side, the variance should be granted because: 1. The strict application of the ordinance would produce undue hardship; 2. The hardship is not shared generally by other properties in the same zoning district and the same vicinity; 3. The authorization of the variance will not be of substantial detriment to adjacent property and the character of the district will not be changed by the granting of the variance; and 4. The granting of the variance is in harmony with the intended spirit and purpose of the ordinance. Page 2 of 5 A roll call vote on the motion resulted as follows: AYES: Ellis, Gentry, Pope, Peters, Savage NAYS: None ABSTAIN: None ABSENT: None Variance Request No. 12-00048: Allen D. Condon, 1809 Lafayette Drive, LRSN: 11002666, to reduce the total side yard setback from 48.25’ to 32.8’ and to reduce one side yard setback from 20.45’ to 5’ to allow a 32’ by 36’ detached garage accessory to an existing single-family home. The applicant, Allen D. Condon, presented the variance request to the Board. Also signed up to speak on the applicant’s behalf were Willie J. Simpson, neighbor, and Stacey L. Berland and Marty Russell from H.W. Enterprises. After discussion, it was determined that there were other locations on the lot for the garage, therefore, a motion was made by Board Member Pope and seconded by Board Member Gentry that the variance request does not meet the criteria and therefore the variance should be denied because: 1. There has been no evidence produced that the strict application of the ordinance would produce undue hardships; 2. The hardship is shared generally by other properties in the same zoning district and the same vicinity; 3. Authorization of the variance will be of substantial detriment to adjacent property and the character of the district will be changed by the granting of the variance; and 4. Granting of the variance is not in harmony with the intended spirit of the ordinance. A roll call vote on the motion resulted as follows: AYES: Ellis, Gentry, Pope, Peters, Savage NAYS: None ABSTAIN: None ABSENT: None The applicant was informed that he has 30 days from November 5, 2012 to appeal the Board’s decision to the Circuit Court for the City of Hampton. Page 3 of 5 Variance Request No. 12-00049: Nichole Friedenberg & Jon Garland, 109 Janet Drive, LRSN: 3005483, a special exception to allow a Day Care 2 for up to 8 children in an existing single-family home. The applicants and current residents, Tiffany and James Breedlove, presented the Variance Request for Special Exception to the Board. After discussion, a motion was made by Board Member Gentry and seconded by Vice Chair Peters that the special exception should be granted subject to the following 10 conditions: 1. Outdoor play area(s) shall be limited to the rear yard and shall be enclosed with a fence at least four (4) feet in height 2. No signs shall be allowed 3. Records shall be kept on a daily basis of enrollment with the names, addresses and ages of children and be open for inspection by authorized personnel 4. Hours of operation shall be limited to 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Monday through Friday 5. Employees must reside on premises 6. The day care shall be licensed by the Virginia Department of Social Services 7. In each kitchen there shall be installed and maintained at least one approved type-ABC portable fire extinguisher with a minimum rating of 2A10BC 8. The facility shall provide and maintain at least one approved battery- operated properly-installed smoke detector as a minimum (i) outside each sleeping area in the vicinity of bedrooms and bedroom hallway and (ii) on each additional floor 9. The total number of children enrolled shall not exceed eight (8) 10. A certificate of occupancy must be obtained from the Community Development Department prior to beginning operation of the day care A roll call vote on the motion resulted as follows: AYES: Ellis, Gentry, Pope, Peters, Savage NAYS: None ABSTAIN: None ABSENT: None Page 4 of 5 There being no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:35 pm. __________________________ Thomas Savage, Chairman Page 5 of 5