Board of Zoning Appeals

Morgantown Board of Zoning Appeals MEETING PACKET November 15, 2023 6:30 p.m. Mon County Commission Chambers Board Members: Chris Benison, Chair Heidi Cook, Vice-Chair Logan Shamberger William Plyler Gabe DeWitt Development Services Department Rickie Yeager, Director Intentional Blank Page  EXHIBIT A Pre-Meeting Announcement read by the Chairperson Good evening and welcome to the regular/special meeting of the City of Morgantown Board of Zoning Appeals. Please turn off all cell phones or other devices that may disrupt these proceedings. It is the duty of this Board to consider requests for relief from the requirements of the City’s zoning regulations; to consider conditional use permit requests; and, to hear administrative appeals. The Board conducts business in the following order: • Review, amend, and approve minutes of a previous meeting. • Unfinished Business • New Business • Announcements from Staff Each request is heard in the order that it appears on the agenda. For each Conditional Use and Variance request, the following is done: • I will introduce the agenda item and the Planning Division will present a Staff Report, which may or may not offer a recommendation. • The applicant/agent will be asked to present their justification for their request, which may include questions by members of the Board. • I will then open a PUBLIC HEARING to hear testimony in support of, or in opposition to, the request. Rules regarding public testimony are as follows: ‒ Anyone wishing to testify during the public hearing may do so once recognized by me or may, in lieu of oral testimony, submit written testimony to the Chair. All recognized speakers must approach the podium, state their name and address for the record, and speak clearly into the microphone. ‒ All comments must be addressed to the Board, should be relevant to the application, and may not be of a personal nature or personal attacks. ‒ All speakers will be limited to five (5) minutes. If members of the Board have any questions of the speaker, that time will not be counted toward his/her five (5) minutes. ‒ If there is a large number of speakers, including many who are part of groups or organizations, I may, to avoid repetitive comments, elect to ask for a representative to speak on behalf of the group or organization. ‒ Speakers are notified that irrelevant comments or comments of a personal nature or personal attacks may result in the speaker forfeiting his/her opportunity to participate in the public hearing. ‒ I may elect to recognize the applicant/agent at the end of the public hearing to provide rebuttal or additional comments, which will be limited to five (5) minutes. If members of the Board have any questions of the applicant/agent, that time will not be counted toward his/her five (5) minutes. • After all testimony is heard, I will declare the PUBLIC HEARING CLOSED and no further public comment will be permitted. Excerpt from the Morgantown Board of Zoning Appeals Bylaws Annex 1 Page 1 of 2 January 20, 2016  • Uncivil, unruly, and/or disruptive behavior at any time during this meeting is prohibited and will result in removal from this public meeting. • State law requires the Board to consider findings of fact for each conditional use and variance request. The request cannot be granted unless a majority of the quorum present finds in the positive of ALL of the findings of fact. The Board may elect to continue the hearing to another date if it needs additional information. • Applicants and requesting parties will be notified in writing by the Planning Division of the Board’s findings and conclusions. Regardless of whether a request is approved or denied, decisions of the Board can be appealed to the Circuit Court of Monongalia County within thirty (30) days upon receipt of the written notification. Any work done relating to decisions rendered by this Board during this thirty-day period is at the sole financial risk of the applicant. Thank you for your consideration and respect for these proceedings and the opinions of all meeting participants. Excerpt from the Morgantown Board of Zoning Appeals Bylaws Annex 1 Page 2 of 2 January 20, 2016  MORGANTOWN BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS November 15, 2023 6:30 p.m. Monongalia County Courthouse – 243 High Street, 2nd Floor Board of Zoning Appeals Chris Benison, Chair AGENDA Heidi Cook, Vice-Chair Logan Shamberger I. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL William Plyler Gabe DeWitt II. NEW BUSINESS A. V23-12 / Ashley Jenkins / 936 Southpoint Circle: Request by Ashley Jenkins on behalf of Jaschar Shakuri-Rad for variance relief from Section 1331.09 the City’s Planning and Zoning Code regarding the height and construction material of fences; City Tax District 10, Tax Map 43, Parcel 127; R-1, Single Family Residential District. III. ANNOUNCEMENTS IV. ADJOURNMENT If you need an accommodation, please contact us at 304-284-7431. Development Services Planning Division Rickie Yeager, AICP Development Services Director 389 Spruce Street Morgantown, WV 26505 NOTE: Due to renovations at Morgantown City Hall, this public hearing will 304.284.7431 be held in Monongalia County Commission Chambers, 2nd Floor, 243 High Street, Morgantown, WV. Intentional Blank Page  MORGANTOWN BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS November 15, 2023 6:30 p.m. Monongalia County Commission Chambers – 243 High Street Board Members: STAFF REPORT Chris Benison, Chair Heidi Cook, Vice-Chair CASE NO: V23-12 / Ashley Jenkins / 936 Southpoint Circle Logan Shamberger William Plyler REQUEST and LOCATION: Gabe DeWitt Request by Ashley Jenkins on behalf of Jaschar Shakuri-Rad for variance relief from Section 1331.09 the City’s Planning and Zoning Code regarding the height and construction material of fences. TAX MAP NUMBER(s) and ZONING DESCRIPTION: City Tax District 10, Tax Map 43, Parcel 127; R-1, Single Family Residential District. SURROUNDING ZONING: North, South and West: R-1, Single Family Residential District East: Unincorporated Monongalia County BACKGROUND: The petitioner seeks to install a new basketball court (concrete slab) in the rear yard of the principal structure. In doing so, the petitioner also plans to install a 12-foot-tall chain- link fence to prevent balls and other equipment from going outside the court area. Please see Addendum A for the location of the subject site, and the site plan below for the proposed improvements. According to Article 1331.09 of the City’s Planning and Zoning Code fences on a residentially zoned parcel of land cannot exceed six and one-half feet in height at any point unless the entire fence or that portion of the fence above six and one-half feet is open 50 percent Development Services or more. As such, the petitioner is Planning Division requesting a 5.5’-foot tall variance for the fence height requirement of 6.5’ Rickie Yeager, AICP feet. Director After reviewing the site plan provided, 389 Spruce Street Morgantown, WV 26505 the proposed basketball court and 304.284.7431 chain-link fence appear to be in compliance with the side and rear yard setback requirements for accessory structures per Section 1331.08 of the City’s Planning and Zoning Code. Page 1 of 2  MORGANTOWN BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS November 15, 2023 6:30 p.m. Monongalia County Commission Chambers – 243 High Street Board Members: STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Chris Benison, Chair It is the duty of the Board of Zoning Appeals to determine whether the proposed request Heidi Cook, Vice-Chair meets the standard criteria for a variance by reaching a positive determination for each of Logan Shamberger the “Findings of Fact” submitted by the petitioner. If the Board disagrees with the William Plyler petitioner’s “Findings of Fact” and determines the proposed request does not meet the standard criteria for a variance, then the Board must state findings of fact and conclusions Gabe DeWitt of law on which it bases its decision to deny the subject variance petition. [See WV State Code 8A-8-11(e) and 8A-7-11(b)]. Staff made no additions, corrections or modifications to the Findings of Fact presented in the application (attached hereto). Additionally, staff did not provide any recommendation. Enclosures: Addendum A and the Application. Development Services Planning Division Rickie Yeager, AICP Director 389 Spruce Street Morgantown, WV 26505 304.284.7431 Page 2 of 2  ADDENDUM A V23-12 / Ashley Jenkins / 936 Southpoint Circle Location Map Source: Monongalia County Parcel Viewer Map Zoning Map Source: Monongalia County Parcel Viewer Map B-4 Google Streetview (looking east from Southpoint Circle) B-5 Source: Google Maps Intentional Blank Page Intentional Blank Page From: Barbara McDonald To: Tony Christini Subject: RE: Fwd: Date: Monday, November 6, 2023 8:20:00 AM Thank you for reaching out with questions. Yes, the variance is for an increased fence height of 12.5 feet around a basketball court. This variance would apply ONLY to the basketball court. If you need any other information just let me know. Thank you. From: Tony Christini <tcchristini@gmail.com> Sent: Friday, November 3, 2023 4:40 PM To: Barbara McDonald <bmcdonald@morgantownwv.gov> Subject: Fwd: I received the attached notification for nearby variance relief: a 6.5-foot variance from the maximum fence height of 6.5 feet. However, there is no description of the project(s) that this relief concerns, or would allow. Can you tell me: Is this a variance request to build a fence around a tennis court? If so, that's fine by me. And if so, would city approval of this variance allow any other high fence construction on the property, or would it apply only to the requested project - tennis court fence or otherwise? Thanks, -- Tony Christini 681.441.2065 From: Rickie Yeager To: Ashley Jenkins Cc: Barbara McDonald Subject: RE: Morgantown Variance Application Date: Monday, November 6, 2023 6:39:14 AM Attachments: image001.png Hi Ashley, Thanks for the update.   We’ll be sure to keep you updated on the variance request. Best, Rickie Yeager, AICP, EDFP Director of Development Services Phone: 304-284-7413 Address: 430 Spruce St. Morgantown, WV 26505 Office Hours: Monday-Thursday – 7a.m. to 5:30 p.m. From: Ashley Jenkins <goplatinum@hotmail.com> Sent: Sunday, November 5, 2023 12:26 PM To: Rickie Yeager <ryeager@morgantownwv.gov> Subject: Re: Morgantown Variance Application Hi Mr. Yeager. I spoke with you on the phone the other day regarding the fence variance for 936 South Point Circle. As I stated the homeowner nor myself can be at the meeting on the 15th. We both agreed to give you permission to represent us at that meeting. Thank you so much.   Ashley Jenkins Morgantown Decks and Outdoor Living LLC 304-376-2588 Sent via the Samsung Galaxy S23 5G, an AT&T 5G smartphone Get Outlook for Android