Zoning Board of Adjustments

Meeting Minutes City of League City Zoning Board of Adjustments / Building and Standards Commission Regular Meeting, Thursday, January 6, 2022 City Council Chambers, 200 W. Walker Street, League City, TX 77573 1. Call to Order and Roll Call of Members Mr. Hendershot called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Present: Michael Hendershot, Tamara Gann-Curry**, Katie Benoit, Russell Miller, Paul Lopez, Robert Kline* (Alternate #2) Absent: Russell Miller, Paul Lopez * Mr. Hendershot activated Mr. Kline as an active voting member of the Board. ** Ms. Gann-Curry arrived at 6:02 P.M. City Staff: David Hoover, Executive Director of Development Services; Frankie Legaux, Assistant Director of Planning and Development; Kris Carpenter, Planning Manager; Mark Linenschmidt, Senior Planner, Nghiem Doan, City Attorney 2. Approval of Minutes A. July 1, 2021 Mr. Miller moved to approve the July 1, 2021 minutes as presented. Ms. Benoit seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously 5-0-0. 3. Citizen Communications No citizens spoke. 4. New Business A. Hold a public hearing and take action on a Zoning Board of Adjustments Application, VA-21- 0002 (2922 Massengale Lane), a variance request for a carport to encroach 10 feet into a required 15-foot side yard setback (per Table 3.3.2 of the League City Unified Development Code (UDC)), on a property zoned “RSF-10” (Single-Family Residential with a minimum lot size of 10,000 square feet) on approximately 0.5 acres, legally described as all of Lot 90 of the Replat of Clear Creek Shores, Section 2, an unrecorded subdivision of the 30 Acre James Tract, generally located along the west side of Massengale Lane, south of Grissom Road with the address of 2922 Massengale Lane. Mark Linenschmidt, Senior Planner, gave a presentation on behalf of the City of League City. The recommendation was to deny the variance request to place an accessory structure 10 feet into a 15-foot side yard setback. Mr. Hendershot asked if the Board had any questions for staff. There were none. Mr. Hendershot opened the public hearing at 6:07 p.m. Mr. Hendershot asked if there was anyone present that would like to speak. Dustin Gohmert, Owner/Resident of 2922 Massengale Lane, indicated that he and his wife were petitioning the Board to construct a carport for their RV on the property. Mr. Gohmert indicated the proposed pole barn type structure was designed to match the existing house on the property and to complement the neighborhood. The Applicant also indicated that he spoke with the adjacent neighbors. Mr. Hendershot asked Mr. Gohmert if he was aware of the building setback requirement prior to working with the designer of the structure. Mr. Gohmert indicated that he was aware of the building setbacks. Mr. Hendershot asked if there were any questions. Ms. Benoit asked Mr. Gohmert if he owned the property when the house was built on the property. Mr. Gohmert replied that he did own the property when the house was built. Mr. Hendershot asked if there were any additional questions. There were none. Mr. Hendershot then asked if there were any additional people who would like to speak on this matter. Mr. Hendershot closed the public hearing at 6:20 p.m. Ms. Gann-Curry made a motion to approve the request, VA-21-0002 at 2922 Massengale Lane. Mr. Lopez seconded the motion. Ms. Benoit expressed her concern about the amount of encroachment into the setback. Mr. Kline concurred with Ms. Benoit’s concern. Mr. Nghiem Doan, City Attorney, briefly explained the purpose of a variance and the characteristics or hardships necessary for a variance to be considered and/or granted. Mr. Hendershot expressed concerns over the localized drainage of the property and adjacent properties as well as fire protection. Mr. Lopez ask how many neighbors Mr. Gohmert spoke with, how many were in support of his request and where they are located. Mr. Gohmert responded that he spoke with all of the neighbors immediately to the north, south, and east of the property. He did not speak with any neighbors to the west, within the Autumn Lakes Subdivision. He also briefly explained how the drainage and fire protection were considerations of the proposed design. Mr. Lopez asked Mr. Doan, based on Mr. Doan’s brief variance explanation, what the origination was of his interpretation. Previous precedence? Ordinance? Personal Opinion? Mr. Doan responded that it comes from case law. Mr. Lopez asked then essentially from precedence? Mr. Doan responded in the affirmative. 2 January 6, 2022  Mr. Hendershot asked if there was any further discussion. There was none. Mr. Hendershot called for the vote. Motion failed 2-3-0 with Board members Hendershot, Benoit, and Russel voting in opposition to the motion. 5. Other Business A. Consider and take action on the Zoning Board of Adjustments / Building and Standards Commission meeting dates for 2022. Ms. Benoit made a motion to approve the calendar for 2022. Mr. Russell seconded the motion. The motion passed 5-0-0. B. Consider and elect a Chairperson for the Zoning Board of Adjustments / Building and Standards Commission for 2022 and 2023. Ms. Benoit nominated Mr. Hendershot to continue as Chairperson. Ms. Gann-Curry seconded the motion. There were no other nominations. The motion passed 4-0-1. Mr. Hendershot abstained. C. Consider and elect a Vice-Chairperson for the Zoning Board of Adjustments / Building and Standards Commission for 2022 and 2023. Ms. Benoit nominated Ms. Gann-Curry to continue as Vice-Chairperson. Mr. Russell seconded the motion. There were no other nominations. The motion passed 5-0-0. 6. Staff Comments There were none. 7. Adjournment Mr. Hendershot made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 6:35 p.m. Mr. Benoit seconded the motion. The motion passed by a vote of 5-0-0. _____________________________ ______________________________ Kris Carpenter Michael Hendershot Planning Manager Chair, Zoning Board of Adjustment / Building and Standards Commission 3 January 6, 2022