Board of Zoning Appeals

AREA BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS OF TIPPECANOE COUNTY LAFAYETTE DIVISION January 17,2023 The City of Lafayette Board of Zoning Appeals met in regular session on Tuesday, January 17, 2023 at 4:00 PM. Members present were: Jackson Bogan, Dave Williams, Dick Murray, Bob Metzger, and Carlynn Smith. The meeting was called to order by Mr. Began. The first order of business was the election of officers for 2023. Mr. Williams moved to cast a unanimous vote to continue the same officers, Mr. Bogan and Mr. Williams, which was seconded by Mr. Metzger. The motion passed by unanimous voice vote. Mr. Bogan will be President of the Board for 2023 and Mr. Williams will be Vice President of the Board for 2023. Mr. Williams moved to approve the minutes of the previous meeting as distributed; second by Mrs. Smith. The motion passed by unanimous voice vote. NEW BUSINESS 2023-1 ANCHOR SIGN, INC. Variance to increase the total sign area to 211.5 SF instead of the allowed 115 SF. Property located at 2432 TEAL RD. Mr. Williams moved to continue the petition until the Tuesday, February 21, 2023 BZA meeting; second by Mr. Metzger. The petition was continued. 2023-2 SEYED AMIR SADEGHI Variance to reduce the side setback (30th St.) to 5' instead of the required 25'. Property located at 2901 TEAL RD. Mr. Williams moved to hear and approve the petition; second by Mr. Metzger. Seyed Sadeghi, the petitioner, presented the petition. Mr. Sadeghi distributed plans showing the reconditioning center they recently built. He said that they paint vehicles in this reconditioning center and the vehicles need a couple of hours to cure without being exposed to rain or snow. There is a fence around a portion of the property and the proposed carports would be inside this fence. The proposed carports would house the freshly painted vehicles for the curing duration. Mr. Sadeghi said he does not have any other space on his property to place these carports due to fire truck access, fire hydrant access, and the location of his showroom. Mr. Williams asked if the carports would have sides on the carports. Mr. Sadeghi stated that the carports will be completely enclosed except for the entrances. Mr. Bogan asked if these carports will be permanent structures. Mr. Sadeghi said the carports will be anchored into the concrete. Mr. Bogan asked for clarification on the ingress and egress for the property. Mr. Sadeghi stated that the vehicles will exit the reconditioning center and go directly into the carports. Mr. Shively said that Mr. Sadeghi also owns the surrounding property so they would not be using someone else's property for access. Mr. Bogan asked for clarification on the future of this site if they were to grant this variance. He was wondering if another permanent structure would be permitted or if the variance would apply to carports only. Mr. Shively stated that the variance would be approved according to the site plan. Since the site plan shows two carports in their proposed locations, the variance would be bound to that site plan. Moving forward, the variance would only allow carports. The Board voted by ballot: 1) 5 yes 0 no. Petition GRANTED. 2023-3 BRIAN & JENNIFER BALLARD Multiple requests for property located at 1909 GREENBUSH ST. (Lot 3). 1) Variance to decrease the minimum lot area to 5,664 SF instead of the required 7,500 SF 2) Variance to decrease the minimum lot width to 48' instead of the required 60' 3) Variance to decrease the front setback of 35' instead of the required 40' 2023-4 BRIAN & JENNIFER BALLARD Multiple requests for property located at 1909 GREENBUSH ST. (Lot 4). 1) Variance to decrease the minimum lot area to 5,664 SF instead of the required 7,500 SF 2) Variance to decrease the minimum lot width to 48' instead of the required 60' 3) Variance to decrease the front setback of 35' instead of the required 40' Mr. Williams moved to hear and approve both petitions; second by Mr. Metzger. Jennifer Ballard, the petitioner, presented the petition. Mrs. Ballard stated that she would like to build a duplex on each of the properties in question. Both of the lots are existing and they are proposing a single drive to service parking areas in the back of both lots. They are planning on fencing in the entire backyard of both lots to block off alleyway access. Mrs. Ballard stated that she is not a developer and her motivation comes from wanting to provide her children and their friends a place to stay while they attend Purdue. The Board voted by ballot for both 2023-3 and 2023-4: 2023-3 1) 5 yes 0 no. Petition GRANTED. 2) 5 yes 0 no. Petition GRANTED. 3) 5 yes 0 no. Petition GRANTED. 2023-4 1) 5 yes 0 no. Petition GRANTED. 2) 5 yes 0 no. Petition GRANTED. 3) 5 yes 0 no. Petition GRANTED. 2023-5 CHARLEY SCHALLIOL (SITE ENHANCEMENT SERVICES) Variance to increase the total sign area to 440.06 SF instead of the allowed 295 SF. Property located at 100 S. GREASY LN. Mr. Williams moved to hear and approve the petition; second by Mrs. Smith. Charley Schalliol, agent for the petitioner, presented the petition. Mr. Schalliol stated that Academy Sports is going into the former Gordman's space. They are wanting to put signage up where the previous signage for Gordman's was located. The front of the tenant space is far from the Greasy Lane frontage and you can't really see the front of their location from South Street. Mr. Schalliol said that multiple variances have been granted in the past in this area that are similar to what they are requesting. Gordman's was previously granted more square footage than what they are requesting. The supplemental signs on the sides of the primary sign are important because not all Academy Sports locations provide the same services and merchandise. Academy Sports is new in Indiana and the nearest store location is in Terre Haute. Mr. Metzger asked for clarification on the need to request another variance since Gordman's was previously granted more signage than what Academy Sports is asking for. Mr. Shively stated that since the previous use had been abandoned for at least a year, the requirements of the zoning ordinance go back into effect. The Board voted by ballot: 1) 5 yes 0 no. Petition GRANTED. 2023-6 INNOVATIVE ENGINEERINGA INC. Multiple requests for property located at 3211 KOSSUTHST. 1) Variance to decrease the freestanding sign setback to 10.5' instead of the required 24' 2) Variance to increase the freestanding sign area to 124.13 SF instead of the allowed 40 SF Mr. Williams moved to hear and approve the petition; second by Mr. Metzger. Zachary Wilkinson, agent for the petitioner, presented the petition. Mr. Wilkinson stated that BP does not allow any signage on the canopy or convenience store so the freestanding sign they are proposing would be the only sign at this site. The proposed sign would provide the basic information that gas station signage typically provides. Mr. Bogan asked about future signage if another fuel provider moved onto the site. Mr. Shively stated that the proposed variance only applies to the freestanding sign and any potential future signage that may go onsite would need to go through the variance process, as well. The Board voted by ballot: 1) 5 yes 0 no. Petition GRANTED. 2) 5 yes O no. Petition GRANTED. The next meeting of the Lafayette Board of Zoning Appeals will be on Tuesday, February 21 , 2023 at 4:00 PM. There being no further business to come before the Bo^r8 at\this time, the meeting was adjourned at 4:29 PM.