Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA)

MEETING RESULTS - ZIONSVILLE BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS JULY 10, 2018 The meeting of the Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals occurred Tuesday, July 10, 2018 at 6:30 p.m. in the Zionsville Town Hall Room 105, 1100 West Oak Street, Zionsville, Indiana. The following items were scheduled for consideration: I. Continued Business Docket Number Name Address of Project Item to be considered Withdrawn by Petitioner Petition for Development Standards variance to: A: Construct a 78 lot Residential Subdivision with: 1) Reduced front yard and building line setbacks 2) Reduced perimeter street buffers 3) Open Space located on an adjacent parcel in the Special Pulte Homes / Use Zoning District (SU-7) 2018-12-DSV Little League 8602 E 500 South in the Urban Residential Single-Family Zoning District (R-SF-2) International B: Construct the Headquarters for the Little League facility, which: 1) Deviates from required development standards 2) Deviates from required Architectural Design of the Urban Office Business Zoning District (B-O), with outdoor operations Continued w/Notice from July 10, 2018 to August 14, 2018 3 in Favor, 0 Opposed Petition for Development Standards Variance in order to 2018-18-DSV S. Batchelor 1886 S 900 East provide for a new single family home on a lot which: 1) Deviates from the required 3:1 lot width to depth ratio in the Rural Low Density Single Family and Two-Family Residential Zoning District (R2). Approved w/ Commitments and exhibits as filed – 4 in Favor, 0 Opposed Petition for Development Standards variance in order to Wildwood Designs, 2018-19-DSV 2720 S 875 East provide for the construction of single family homes for 2 Inc. (two) lots which: 1) Deviate from the minimum road frontage in the (R1) Rural Residential Zoning District July 11, 2018  II. New Business Docket Number Name Address of Project Item to be considered Approved w/exhibits as filed – 4 in Favor, 0 Opposed Petition for Development Standards variance in order to provide for the addition of an existing barn which: 2018-22-DSV M. Applegate 2705 S 975 East 1) Exceeds the allowable roofed accessory square footage in the Rural Low Density Single Family and Two-Family Residential Zoning District (R2). Approved w/exhibits as filed – 4 in Favor, 0 Opposed Petition for Development Standards variance in order to provide for the addition of an existing single family home 2018-23-DSV C. Gregory 505 W Sycamore which: 1) Exceeds the required lot coverage of 35%, to 39% 2) Deviates from the required front yard setback in the Urban Residential Village Zoning District (R-V). Continued from July 10, 2018 to August 14, 2018 4 in Favor, 0 Opposed 2018-24-UV M. Villanueva 7300 Hunt Club Road Petition for Use Variance to allow a former private club facility, to serve as a public Reception Hall/Gathering Place within the Rural Equestrian (RE) Zoning District. Respectfully Submitted: Wayne DeLong AICP Town of Zionsville Director of Planning and Economic Development July 11, 2018 Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 Pledge of Allegiance was said and attendance was taken by the Secretary. Present: Greg Morical, Larry Jones, Steve Mundy. Arriving late is Julia Evinger. Staff attending: Wayne DeLong, Darren Chadd, Attorney. A quorum is present. Morical Good evening and welcome to the July 10, 2018 meeting of the Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals. The first item on our Agenda is the Pledge of Allegiance. All Pledge. Morical The next item on our Agenda is attendance. DeLong Mr. Morical? Morical Present. DeLong Mr. Jones? Jones Present. DeLong Mr. Wolff? DeLong Ms. Evinger? DeLong Mr. Mundy? Mundy Present. Morical The next item on our agenda is the review and approval of the June 5, 2018 meeting minutes that were distributed to the Board in advance of this meeting. Are there any questions or comments on the minutes? Hearing none, I would entertain a motion. Mundy I move to approve the minutes. Morical Thank you. Is there a second? Jones Second. Morical All those in favor, please say aye. All Aye. Morical Any opposed? Motion carries. The next item is continuance requests. Are there any continuance requests tonight? Hearing none, we will move on to continued business and the first docket number is 2018-12-DSV Pulte Homes/Little League International. Please approach the podium and state your name and address for the record. Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 Price Good evening, Mr. Chairman. For the record, my name is Matt Price. I’m here tonight on behalf of Pulte and Little League. I had given prior advance notice to Mr. DeLong that we are going to formally and I hereby am formally requesting the Board's approval of the withdrawal of our application. Morical Thank you, Mr. Price. Any questions or comments for the petitioner's representative? Jones What happens if we don't want to accept his withdrawal? Morical Counsel? Chad You would proceed on the matter on your own. You could proceed and take action on the request. He has asked for withdrawal. That's up to you. Jones I don't have a problem making a motion to approve what's been requested. Morical You mean making a motion to approve the substantive variance requested? Jones Correct. Mundy Does that make sense when they've asked to be withdrawn? Jones That's the question. Mundy (Inaudible) motion, Mr Chairman? Morical Yeah, me, too, but Larry, can be a little contrarian which we appreciate. Okay, so any further questions on the petitioner's request to withdraw? Jones Nope. Morical Okay. Hearing none, I would entertain a motion. Mundy I move that petition 2018-12-DSV be withdrawn? Morical Thank you. Is there a second? Can I second the motion? Chad Yeah, you can. Morical Second. All those in favor, please say aye? Morical Aye. and Mundy Morical Any opposed? Jones I'm opposed. Page 2 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 Morical Okay, thank you, Larry. Thank you, Mr. Price. Your matter is withdrawn. The next docket number is 2018-18-DSV S. Batchelor. Please approach the podium and state your name and address for the record. Wayne, is this one that somebody is going to be prepared to talk tonight or do they need a continuance? DeLong Well, I know that Ms. Batchelor had communicated that she was working on notices. My assumption is that she has not prepared those. What I would suggest the Board do this evening is indicate that you'll, if you're so inclined, is to grant one more continuance with the idea to not clog your docket and remove this matter from your docket at next month's meeting if she is not prepared to go forward. Morical Okay. Well, since generosity is one of our values, I think we can consider that. Any discussion amongst the Board? Hearing none, I would entertain a motion that we move this, continue it to the August, what's the next meeting date? DeLong Handy-dandy electronic phone here. August 14. Morical Okay to the August 14 meeting. I would entertain a motion. Mundy I move that docket 2018-18-DSV be continued to the August 14 Board of Zoning Appeals meeting. Morical Thank you. Is there a second? Jones Second. Morical All those in favor please say aye? All Aye. Morical Any opposed? [No response.] Ms. Evinger, thank you for joining us. Evinger I'm sorry. I'm tardy. Morical No, that's okay. You missed a teeny bit of excitement but that's okay. The next item on our agenda is docket 2018-19-DSV Wildwood Designs, Inc. Please approach the podium and state your name and address for the record. Jacob Good evening. My name is Jeff Jacob. I'm an attorney with Jacob, Hammerle and Johnson here in town at 1620 W. Oak Street. I'm here on behalf of Wildwood Designs and Prize Properties which are actually the co-developers of this project and both principals are here this evening. The project in front of you was continued from the last meeting but to refresh your memories, it is a 7.16 or, excuse me, 7.6 acre parcel zoned R1 located on the west side of 875 which is the highlighted north/south road just about a mile or so north of County Road 300. As mentioned, this was heard last month and really the ultimate plan with this project is to plat it in three 2-1/2 acre lots. Obviously, this is going to have to be heard in front of the Plan Commission. We've got some platting to do and some additional work. However, the request in front of you this evening is a variance to deviate from the minimum road frontage Page 3 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 requirement which we, as you'll note, Lot C is landlocked. And, we are proposing a common drive off of 875 to access all three lots. As mentioned at the last hearing, you heard a good deal of detail but we were charged with working through some details with the neighbors and some adjoiners. I trust that you received some information this week. We have a letter of support from two adjoiners directly to the north and directly to the south that raise some concerns at the last hearing. In addition, we have a couple other letters that were previously in your files from additional neighbors in support of the project. The result of our meeting with the neighbors has been some pretty extensive, for what we are requesting, set of commitments. I'd like to highlight just a few points with those as discussed and recommended by staff. The commitments, just to take a step back, reflect staff comments as well as some commitments we're making with our platting and zoning processes here this evening, or excuse me, our variance process here this evening. We think we've incorporated those concerns staff has raised as well as our commitments to the neighbors. There is a pretty substantial, approximately 11,000 acre barn, or 11,000 square foot barn which I have heard affectionately referred to as the Barney Barn because it's purple. That will come down before we begin building on Lot C and that's reflected in our commitments. Also in the commitments, we have a number of architectural standards that we have agreed to. We realize that that is not something you would typically hear with a road frontage request but we believe that's consistent with the homes that my clients wish to build on the project and frankly, that wasn't too much of a stretch for them. We have also agreed to some minimum residence square footages that you will see in the commitments. Again, those are minimums. As we go back and look at the common drive, one of our commitments suggested by staff is that we have a common drive maintenance easement agreement. This drive will service, assuming your approval, Lots A, B and C. You'll see the hammerhead on the west side of the drive at the Fire Department's request. We've talked to the Fire Department on a few occasions and are working through details with them on what they would like to see given the nature and size of this project. Our commitment is to build what they want, though. Okay? We have also in the commitments set out the general location of where this drive will be, where the cuts for Lot A will be and some general design of that that's not reflected in this drawing. Our intention is to minimize the impact on the Vosper Lot which is the lot to the south. The drive--our hope is to angle the access cut onto Lot A and we have some setbacks that we've agreed to all the way down to Lot C to mitigate the impact on their residences. We have also agreed to some structure setbacks for the primary residences of Lots A, B and C. There's quite a bit of detail there but that's just from flat-out measurements and spending some time with the neighbors on the site. Our goal is, again, to mitigate the impact on the lot to the south, the Vosper residence. We have also agreed to install and in this exhibit, it's a little hard to see, but during the marketing portion of this project, meaning my clients will install a four board fence on this property. It will not run with the land. They will install it. If a property owner comes in and says, "Hey, I want to take it down," they can and that's spelled Page 4 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 out in the commitments. But, we're not exactly sure that they would want to. This is an example of what the fence is currently on site and we're going to add to that to divide up the lots. We think it's a great, attractive fence and will be a, will be a nice addition. This is just a, a, the lot to the right-hand side of the photo is ours and the left is the adjoiner, just showing a little bit of the character of the area. We have also agreed on Lot A to install a landscape preservation area. And, that is between the common drive and Lot A, again it's to mitigate the house location on Lot A relative to the Vosper residence to the south. Again, these commitments are contingent upon us receiving the variance approval tonight and going through, successfully going through the platting process and generally being able to construct this project. Specific to our variance this evening. As you can tell, Lot C does not have road frontage and is landlocked. We are requested a waiver or variance from that road frontage requirement subject to our commitments. I'm happy to go through the statutory requirements. We believe that we have met those this evening and then given the extensive commitments that we have submitted in relation to the--and as negotiated by the adjoiners. So, I'm happy to answer any questions. Morical Thank you, Mr. Jacob. Yes, I've got a few questions for you. Jacob Please. Morical First of all, we received the revised version of the commitments from the adjoiners. Jacob Yes, sir. Morical Is your client amenable to this redline version? Jacob Those are actually from me and we are agreeable to those. Morical Okay. If you turn to those, Section No. 2, first page, it talks about demolition of the existing barn. Will it commence within 30 days of the issuance of a building permit? Jacob Yes, sir. Morical When will that be complete? I'm more concerned of when it all comes down than when you first hit it with a hammer. Jacob I would believe we would be amenable to prior to the issuance of a C of O. Morical It says, "will commence within 30 days of the issuance of the building permit." Jacob And it would be resolved by the, prior to the issuance of a certificate of occupancy. Morical Okay. Is everybody good with that? I think we just wanted a little bit of clarity there. That's fine. Page 5 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 Jacob Okay. So, If I add that language. ? (Inaudible) Morical Remember, you need to state your name and address for the record. Shane Hi. David Shanebaum, I'm principal of Wildwood Designs, in partnership with Prize Properties. We're developing the subject property. The time--we can establish a timeline if you like. If you're fine with pinning it to the C of O, that's best for us. One has to happen before the other. Morical Got it. Perfect. Okay. Sounds good. Section 7 talks about the work you are doing with Mr. Vosberg to address the septic system and it's going to be relocated. The new system shall be installed and the old system abandoned. Is there a commitment by Mr. Vosberg in writing to abandon the old system and establish the new system on that time table? Jacob There is a verbal commitment from him. So, I don't want to speak for him not being here this evening. I can tell you that I believe there is a septic company that's going to be out on the site tomorrow. That may change a little bit with rain. He was fine with that timeline. Morical Okay. It would be helpful to have a--because you cannot control this, right? This is his septic system? Jacob It is his septic on our property. Morical But him putting in a new system is not something that you can control because it's going to be on his property. Jacob Correct. Morical It would be nice to have a written commitment from him. Jacob I will-- Morical Something in writing that says, Yes, I commit to get this done by this date. Jacob And it may be done as we work through some of these edits. And, we can verify that it's been completed by then. Morical Great, thank you. Not to change the substance of what you guys have agreed to, just to make sure that he's on board with that. Jacob Yeah, I think we would probably be the ones screaming about that just from an enforcement standpoint, we would like it nonoperational. Morical Right. I agree. And then, finally, on your draft findings of fact on the third one about unnecessary hardship, I didn't fully understand that. You noted the current location of Page 6 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 the existing structures on the site due to the prior use that predates the split that created the current lot? Jacob So, I, I will, I will, not having drafted these and having gotten involved in this after the filing of this petition, I will admit that that does read exactly as perhaps I would have drafted. I believe the intent is that these properties were all one at one point and there are some setback issues. There are some septic issues creeping on to other properties. And, I believe, our intention is to say that we're hoping to fix some of those problems by way of this, this finding. If you-- Morical Or, in other words, to make this developable and to not do flag lots which we discourage, this is essentially what you are proposing. Jacob This is essentially what we are requesting. Morical Thank you. I just wanted to make sure we had clarity on that. Jacob Yes, sir. Morical Any other questions for the petitioner? Mundy You said you do not have agreement from the Fire Department but will achieve that agreement, you'll do what they ask in terms of--I think they were concerned about turning around equipment back there, safety equipment in case they needed to get there. Jacob Correct. So, I, I have spoken to the Fire Department. A couple of things that they were looking at. To be clear, this is a common drive. It's not a road. It's not a private road. It's not a public road. And, I think there was a little miscommunication about how that was presented. They initially wanted an 80,000 pound rated road 20 feet wide. Not only did we not want to build that, the neighbors didn't want to see a thoroughfare there. So, our commitment is obviously to work with them. Our design with the hammerhead reflects some of those discussions. We anticipate that this will be a 16-foot drive with potentially some gravel shouldering. And, this turnaround reflects what they would like to see. So, we think that we're part of the way there. The onus will be on us to do that and make sure that some of the setback requirements in our turnaround for them works. Does that answer your question? Mundy Okay. I think so. Jacob Okay. Morical Any further questions for the petitioner? Thank you very much. Are there any remonstrators here tonight? Is there anybody who would like to speak in favor of the petition? Hearing none, may we have the staff report, please? DeLong Thank you. Staff is supportive of the petition as filed and certainly is supportive of the proposed commitments and certainly applauds the petitioners and the interested parties in working through the details here. Certainly, it does not change staff's Page 7 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 support for the petition but certainly the items that have been identified make the petition even, even better. Again, staff is supportive of the petition as filed and also notes that procedurally as indicated by the petitioner, the future plat will be filed to move the rest of the project forward in a time frame of whatever works for them. Staff is not pushing a time frame. But, other than that, staff recommends approval and I would be happy to answer any questions. Morical Thank you. And, so one of the things that you noted in your staff report is that this would need to go in front of the Plan Commission? DeLong That is correct. Morical And, as Mr. Jacob noted, he'd also need to ensure that there was Fire Department approval of whatever the final design of that drive is. Any further questions for staff? Jones Did we modify the completion date for the removal of the barn? Morical They agreed. Yes, the petitioner agreed to make that change. Thank you, Larry. Anything else? I would entertain a motion? Evinger I move that Docket # 2018-19-DSV in order to provide for the construction of single family homes for two lots which deviate from the minimum road frontage as illustrated on the illustration of proposed division attached to this report in the low- density, single-family residential zoning R1 be approved as filed with the revised findings of fact per our discussion with further, a maintenance plan to be established of the contemplated ingress/egress easement and terminus to meet the design requirements of the Zionsville Fire Department and, finally, demolition of the existing 10,800 square foot barn to commence within 30 days of issuance of certificate of occupancy for construction of the new detached garage be completed prior to the certificate of occupancy being issued. Morical Thank you. Is there a second? Jones Wait. Shouldn't it say within 30 days of the issuance of building permit and completed prior to issuance of the certificate of occupancy? Morical Yes. Technically, we are supposed to do a second and then we can tweak it but I'm good with us tweaking it midstream. Evinger And I'm amenable to the-- Morical Okay, excellent. So, that tracks the language that's actually in the commitments and as we discussed. Perfect. Okay, is there a second to the amended motion? Jones Second. Morical Great. All those in favor, please say aye? All Aye. Page 8 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 Morical Any opposed? Motion carries. Thank you. Jacob Thank you for your time. Morical The next item on our agenda is new business. The first docket number is 2018-22- DSV M. Applegate. Please approach the podium and state your name and address for the record. Applegate Mark Applegate, 2705 South 975 East. I'm asking for a variance in order to put an addition on my barn. Morical And, we're read your petition. Thank you very much, Mr. Applegate. Did you see the staff report? Applegate Yes, I did. Morical Do you note that they suggested the removal of the shed? What do you think about that? Applegate Yes, yes. I'm fine with that. Morical Okay. Applegate I'd like to get the extension on and then do the demolition after that. Morical Okay. What, if we had to put a time frame on when you would do, complete the demolition, would it be within-- Applegate Within three months of completing the extension, the barn. Morical Okay, got it. That makes sense. Any questions for the petitioner? Any remonstrators here tonight? Anybody who wants to speak in favor? No. Wayne, may we have the staff report, please? DeLong Thank you. Staff is supportive of the petition as filed. As noted, in the staff report, we had actually suggested nine months from the time of the completion to take the barn down. Certainly, we're not opposed to lessening that. Again, staff is supportive of the petition as filed, and I would be happy to answer any questions. Morical Thank you, Wayne. Any questions for staff? Hearing none, I would entertain a motion. Mundy I move that-- Evinger Go ahead, sorry. Mundy I move that Docket # 2018-22-DSV Design Standards Variance in order to provide for the addition of an existing barn which exceeds the allowed roof accessory square Page 9 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 footage providing for 1000 square feet of additional roof area structure in association with a 4580 square foot dwelling while requiring the removal of the 160 square foot utility shed within three months of the occupancy of the proposed accessory building. Morical Thank you. Is there a second? Evinger Second. Morical All those in favor, please say aye? All Aye. Morical Any opposed? [No response.] Morical Thank you very much, Mr. Applegate. Applegate Thank you. Morical The next item on our agenda is docket # 2018-23-DSV C. Gregory. Please approach the podium and state your name and address for the record. Gregory Hi. My name is Christy Gregory. I live at 505 W. Sycamore and I'm here for a variance for an addition on my house. Morical Great. And, we're read through your petition. And really appreciate the fact that you've worked hard to maintain the historic structure and character of the home which is great. Any questions for the petitioner? Thank you. Are there any remonstrators here tonight? Mr. Price, I see you're on the list of neighbors. All right, okay. For the record, Mr. Price says he's for it. Thank you. Wayne, may we have the staff report, please? DeLong Thank you. Staff is supportive of the petition as filed. This is a unique property with multiple front yards which makes it--and it's the only home is its own block which does not allow for the use of tools that are within the zoning ordinance to allow folks to navigate with ease through these types of challenges. So, we do appreciate the petitioner diving in here and working through the issues through the proper process and I'd be happy to answer any questions. Morical A one-house block. Really lonely block parties. Wow. Okay. Any questions for staff? Hearing none, I would entertain a motion. Evinger I move that docket # 2018-23-DSV design standards variance in order to provide for the addition of an existing single-family home which will 1) exceed the required lot coverage of 35% to 39% and will 2) provide for six-foot front yard setback from 5th Street as further described in the exhibits in our reports in the residential village zoning district RV for the property located at 505 W. Sycamore Street be approved as filed. Page 10 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 Morical Thank you. Is there a second? Jones Second. Morical All those in favor, please say aye? All Aye. Morical Opposed? [No response.] Morical Motion carries. Thank you very much. The next item on our agenda is docket # 2018- 24-UV relating to 7300 Hunt Club Road. Mr. Price, please approach the podium and state your name and address for the record? Price Certainly, Mr. Chairman. Again, my name is Matt Price here tonight on behalf of Marvin and Tonya Villanueva. Address of 485 W. Sycamore Street here in Zionsville, Indiana. I have just a few handouts I'd like to give to the Board, and I will kind of take you through our proposal and then we're available to answer any questions that you might have. Again, here tonight on behalf of Tonya and Marvin Villanueva. They are proposing to purchase the Hunt Club clubhouse located here in Zionsville. As the staff report indicates, it's in the residential equestrian district. It's on a parcel that just over 5 acres in total area. Behind Tab 1, we show kind of a general outline of the site itself. It's on the north side of Hunt Club Road, well removed from existing residential structures and has been used as a gathering place, first initially for the club itself in connection with its activities, both ceremonial, recreational and then also for its members to have more as a personal amenity for use with regard to birthday parties, graduation parties, wedding receptions, things of that nature. In more recent years, it's actually been opened to the public by reservation. Various online services make the facility available for, you pay a reservation fee and then you can host an event yourself at that location and independently of an association with the Hunt Club itself. The building is kind of, very well suited for this type of a use. The main room is 55x37 so it's a large kind of open area. One of the central features of that room is a very large stone fireplace. It's still functional today. It's really quite striking making it a very beautiful venue. It has a small kind of self-service bar and then what I would call kind of prep kitchen. You could do cooking there for small numbers of folks although I think the way it's been used in more years is as events are catered, it's a place where you can kind of get the food that's already been prepared ready to be served rather than actually cooking it at that location. It's certainly not a commercial kitchen by any, by any stretch. And, it has restrooms that look very much like more of a public facility type restroom as opposed to a residential type feel to it. The clubhouse itself was built in the 1960s and it comes with--not only did it serve as a clubhouse, but it has some area in front of it that can be used today for parking and has been used today for parking for events so it's a large open area. And, I think they historically even used it for some of their kind of training or exercises if you will, Page 11 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 field movements. It's a big enough area that you could use it for equestrian type uses and functions. The Villanuevas are in the audience this evening. They currently live in Avon, Indiana and they have two high school aged children that the would like to see complete their high school education in Avon. Their intent is to eventually move here and most likely live on site and adapt the structure to include a home as well so that there would be an on-site type manager if you will for the facility. As far as in between now and that time, they would like to make the facility continue to be open for use along the lines as it's used today where a party could reserve it, pay a reservation fee, have an event catered by invitation only so not open to the public type events. But, use it as what we're calling a recreation hall or a public gathering place for events, a venue if you will. They envision using the clubhouse for four to six events per month primarily focusing on weekends, Friday, Saturdays and perhaps a Sunday. Most geared towards wedding receptions with some other uses like wedding receptions, graduation parties, anniversary parties, birthday parties, things of that nature. They haven't foreclosed the possibility of a weekday event but they don't view that as being really what the focus is certainly. There may be one from time to time. It has historically been used for some kind of meeting space, like a corporate type retreat could be staged there, held there, certainly. That might be something that could be done during a weekday. But, again, not their, not their focus. Again, I think I mentioned all events would be done by invitation only and would be catered. So, there wouldn't be, their intention is not to prepare food on site. We included, behind Tab 2, is a depiction of the site plan really as exists today with the long drive extending back from Hunt Club Road to the existing structure and then the parking area that's immediately in front of that structure. And, then, the building, the structures that you see depicted to the west are some potential additions that would include a garage and then a dwelling. Maybe some cross-functional space there meaning that what they'd like to do is make the facility more inviting. Today, it has a fairly modest front door, if you will. What they'd like to do is have more of a canopy type front door and have space to store tables and chairs that could be put in an adjoining garage which they think would make things function better and be laid out in a more purposeful way, in a way that reflects really the predominant use of the building today. And, then a dashed feature that you see on the site plan behind Tab 2, that's the general location of where a future dwelling could be located. Behind Tab #3, we've shown some elevations of what the building could look like. I'll point out just a couple of things. First page, Tab 3, the canopy kind of front door is this triangle shape that I'm pointing to you there. Then, as you, as you move to the, this is looking north front, as you move to the west is where the garage and dwelling would be located and it would have, what's anticipated is a rear entry, perhaps a side entry garage in the back of the building. Then, behind, in subsequent pages, it show some other elevations, one other feature I'll note is that in speaking with staff about the potential addition of some dwelling space, we were advised that that would need to be connected to the existing building. So, what we show is a kind of a passthrough Page 12 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 which is this linkage that's in between the existing building and the proposed additions with the dormer like feature attached to it. We did meet with adjoining property owners. The property is very well removed so there are only a couple. But, we met with those individuals, a couple of whom are here this evening, I see, and kind of talked them through with what we proposed. They had a number of, I would say, very commonsense approaches to kind of keeping each other abreast of functions, you know, meaning that if you're going to have a function on a particular night, there are some things that they would like to see done that are very practical in nature as far as having an appropriate sign to where you drive in to this building as opposed to drive in to the neighbor building. There is a tenant of our closest neighbor who had some special requests about just making her aware of an event coming up so that she could properly take care of her horses so they wouldn't be spooked or frightened by anyone arriving at the party. Those were all very common, we felt like very commonsense, good neighbor type approach to getting along as has been done historically between club and its neighbors. I would also add that, you know, one of the aims and I think one of the reasons why this potential sale has been attractive to the Hunt Club itself is that it's the Villanueva's intent to maintain the history of the building, both preserving some of the photographs, the artwork, certainly the fireplace, the main structure itself and using that structure for what it has been historically used for much of its life over the last 50 years and it's their intent to perpetuate that history into the future which is why we're seeing the use variance here this evening. We're available to answer any questions that you have and we respectfully request approval of our variance. Morical Thank you, Mr. Price. So, as you may know, use variances present a special concern for us so we'll work through some of those issues. When you mentioned that the petitioners are interested in using the building along the lines of how it's been used historically, do you have information as to how frequently it was used to host parties, typical hours for those parties and how that compares to what the petitioners are planning to do? Price I have--I would put it this way. What we did as part of our diligence because, you'll see in the staff report, that at one point, we considered although we abandoned it very quickly consider getting a legally established nonconforming use certificate in lieu of getting a variance. And, I say that really by way of background because what they caused us to do, we interviewed one of the longstanding members of Hunt Club who also today kind of runs the facility for the club, take the reservation, makes sure things are being properly insured and that the caterer knows how to get into the building and that kind of thing. In the course of interviewing her, we discussed really the frequency of the use compared to its historic use. And, I would say that we--I was not able to arrive at a specific number of events per month. And, I would say what the Villanuevas are proposing is more than, more times per month than what has been typically associated with the Hunt Club. The use itself though, as far as an event or venue center is best I can tell, identical. I mean, it's graduation parties, it's wedding receptions, it's birthday parties, things of that ilk. The frequency or maybe intensity of those uses is, as best I can tell, greater than what the Hunt Club used it for. I think the staff report notes that well, that that probably was more a function of conflicting with the club's own use of the building as opposed to, you know, certainly as opposed Page 13 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 to the fact that they were hosting events when it didn't conflict. You know, when it was available, they made it available. It was less available than it will be today with the Villanuevas owning it and not having those conflicting club obligations. Morical Right. The club had its own mission that was kind of focused with the other events really being ancillary to that. Price I would say, and this is a ballpark, and there may be others here who can answer this more specifically. The best I could tell is maybe once a month, I mean four times a month, once a weekend, somewhere in that, so four times a month. We think we're going to be four to six. Morical And that was inclusive of the club's meetings as well, the four times a month? Price I would say it is probably inclusive. Morical Okay. But presumably, the club's meetings were not as intense as an event as what you would propose for like a wedding reception. Or, did they really get that happy? Price I talked to some pretty happy folks. Morical Did they dance, did they regularly dance? Was there a DJ? Price I--I--there was. That was one of the fun parts of the interview and actually meeting with the neighbors, too, was that they have even recently, like within the last couple of weeks, been inspected by the Fire Department to determine their, to reaffirm their occupancy level which was around, I think it's 186. And, what I have--it's certainly not a large event center. I mean, it's not a 300 or 400-person event center. But, the best I could tell is that yes, it was used robustly when it was used including DJs, including dancing, all types of things that you would normally associate with a wedding reception or a party that would have around 200 people. So, um. Morical But, less frequently, than what you're contemplating. Price A little less frequently in fairness, yes. Morical Okay. Wayne, if we granted this use variance, is there any limitation on their, absent us imposing a restriction, is there any limitation on their ability to expand the footprint of the building beyond the 186 occupancy to make it a 300-person event center? DeLong Well, what's in front of you this evening is a proposal to expand the structure but only for the residential component that they’re asking for. Morical But, we're really only talking to the use variance. DeLong Correct. Morical Before us isn't the residential piece, right? It's just the use variance. Page 14 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 DeLong Right. What I'm getting at is, you know, the footprint that's in front of you, the site plan that's in front of you can only host a certain amount of people within the structure. Certainly, there, we've yet to talk about, what are the outside activities that could accompany this program. Morical Right. But they're asking for a use variance on this piece of property to allow them to continue to do this particular use and maybe expand it. I'm asking if we granted that, could they physically expand this space? DeLong Not without another variance petition. But, but what we're not touching on is the outdoor operations that could accompany this project where they could expand and have larger than 187 individuals, 186 individuals because they have populated the yard with tents. So, I think that's what you're asking. They could expand it just by default temporarily. Morical By virtue of that. DeLong But how that deals with the septic system and if they bring in, you know, the nicer Port-O-Lets and those types of facilities much like you saw with Keeker. Morical And how many horses does a person count? If we're going to do apples to apples. DeLong I'm not prepared this evening to discuss the rate and volume of that topic. Morical Okay. That sounds good. I noticed in your proposed findings of fact, Mr. Price, you talked about operational restrictions being afforded by a variance of use. Have you given thought to what potential restrictions may allay our concerns that relate to a use variance and uses that are more intense than historically done there but still allow your clients to productively use the property? Price Yes, we have. We think that a way of going about this is to link the use to manner which is catered events, make them invitation-only which has been our, our, the historic use meaning that they're not publicly solicited, come out to this party and you don't know how many people are going to show up. So, they're by invitation only. As far as frequency, we had talked 4-6 events per month. Again, that was based on historic usage and I think being realistic that we weren't going to have the same restrictions as far as the conflicting mission but still within the realm of being close to its historic use. We had not sent limitations on the number of people to attend but I think as Wayne was alluding to, we are limited by the physical structure itself. And, we're not seeking to expand the structure to accommodate more people. We are seeking to make it more attractive with the canopy and we, as part of building a dwelling there, there may be some portion of the dwelling that cross-functional for storage is basically what we're saying, a place to put tables and chairs. Morical Not for hosing the actual events. Price Not to host the actual events. Page 15 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 Morical Okay. So, would your clients be amenable to a restriction on the number of people that would be able to attend? Let me kick around some of these ideas and the Board may have further thoughts. Number of people, the hours of events, the extent of the outside use. At what point, you know, lighting and noise would stop. So, if there's an outside band. We've dealt with this in the context of party barns in the past and other venues where certainly the neighbors today are used to the use that's been there but to consider ways that we can ensure that this is not a problem. Price Certainly, we'd be open to that, absolutely. Our intention is to be good neighbors and to not really deviate from historic practice and I think we've already represented that to the neighbors. Morical And, our intent is not to be unduly restrictive but use variances by their very nature, they're inconsistent with everything else around it, right? So, we need to be careful. Any other questions for the petitioners? Mundy I think this may be for Wayne, but, things like noise ordinance, this is part of the rural district, isn't it? DeLong Correct. Mundy And, I'm not certain what the noise ordinance within the rural district, if there is one. DeLong It is an item that has been enforced by the county sheriff being a rural jurisdiction and I can't speak to what the county noise ordinance covers off hand but I do know it's a little bit more open than urban. For example, you can recreationally discharge firearms for purposes of target practice and whatnot so that type of noise is commonly found in parts of the rural area so that's the level of noise is--I don't want to say tolerable but that's, you know, a barometer that you do see. Morical And this is almost rural in name only. DeLong Correct. You are very close to urbanized infrastructure. Mundy And, it's been a few years since I've driven by this, but it's a gravel driveway, I think, isn't it? Is the grassy area used for parking as well? I mean, I'm not sure how much parking accommodation there is on the gravel pad up there. But, is the grass used for parking as well? Price In the front, yes. There's kind of a, my experience was, going there was, there's kind of the circle, the traffic, the turnaround kind of area and people kind of park off of that as they enter and, uh, a lot of that area, it's kind of, it's kind of a mixture of material where over the years, I think gravel has kind of spread out and so it's, it's not like parking at a, you know, like parking to go to the golf tournament where you're parking in a, or a Purdue football game, you know, where you're parking on the golf course, it's not like that but it's not a paved parking lot either. Jones I got a stack of questions. So, the actual building is more 50x70, not 35x--they're not 37x55, correct? Page 16 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 Price Yeah, 3500 square feet, that's correct. Jones You said it was 37x55 feet, which is 2000. Price The great room, the great room, the main room inside the building. Jones Okay, so there's a 2000 square foot room inside of a 3600 square foot facility, building. And then, the 186-person occupancy is by the Fire Department? Price Yes, sir. Jones And, that's based on a non-sprinkled space? Price Yes, it's definitely non-sprinkled, yes. Jones Okay. From the drawings that we're getting, it's looking like you're proposing to add a 2000 square foot patio to the backside of it. Price Yeah, we, there is a, there's an existing shallow-- Jones Well, let me cut to the nut of the whole-what I'm grinding away at. I'm kind of looking at this thing and thinking, there isn't more than 25 or 30 car parking available in the gravel lot. Which no way will it accommodate the current 186-person occupancy and then when you start adding the patio, it blossoms up to a 300 or 400- person event venue. Then, when you add the additional, and I guess what you're asking for in the proposed building is more just storage for the facility, correct? And then, it's also, you're asking for approval of a 4000-foot footprint for a residential addition to this is how it's kind of all scaling out. So, we're kind of moving from something that I'm assuming was privately owned. Use was by donation? Did the Hunt Club actually charge to use the facility? Morical It's essentially their clubhouse plus some ancillary use, probably by members. Jones But, did they charge third-party groups to use the facility? Price Yes. Jones Because I had to read, look up pecuniary, Matt. I was assuming it was something related to a horse. I found out it's basically if you give it away, it's non-pecuniary. I can't even say it. But, anyways, if you're donating the space. So, now we're moving this to a for-profit venture. And, it's a for-profit venture that's currently been used to host events up to 186 people. With the addition of the patio and the other storage, we're getting to something that you could host 300 or 400 people. You've got a parking lot attached to it that's gravel that can take maybe 25 or 30 cars. What's the request? Because to me, what I'm seeing in what is being presented is a 400-person venue out there on Hunt Club Road with no parking, no restrooms. Is that what they want? Page 17 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 Morical Is this property on septic or sewer? Price It's on septic and it does have restrooms. Fully functional restrooms. And, it's hosted events of that level. In fact, there are individuals here tonight that had a wedding reception there with numbers in that range of 200. The patio addition is more to--it's not to add space for more people. It's more of an aesthetic. There is a small patio there now and it doesn't--there's a beautiful view scape right behind the facility. It'd be a great place to just kind of stand and congregate. It's not intended to add, you know, tables or people to the facility. Morical Capacity. Price Not a capacity issue at all. Jones Capacity is driven by what the fire marshall will allow you to do. I've built bars, restaurants, music venues. I've had my clients say, "I have to hit a 400-person number to book the bands I want to have in the venue." So, we are very diligent about how we place the bar, place the restrooms, place everything to hit that 400--for their business, they need to post out there that they can do 400 people. The fire marshall kind of establishes what you can put in the space. So, my concern is that at some point, the fire marshall will come back in and say, yeah, with the outdoor patio, with this and this and this, you can get 400 people. At that point, we have lost control. If we are interested in having control over what's going on out there. Morical Unless we've otherwise exercised control. Jones Something. Morical Which is where when the petitioner made the reference in the finding of fact to operational restrictions, that's kind of what working to engage with them on. Jones Okay. Morical Because I agree. Having a significant venue dropped in the middle of Hunt Club Road is a major change from what is there today. So. Jones Yeah. It sounds like it's currently been used as a kind of a volunteer-- Morical It's a clubhouse plus the occasional event. Jones We ran into this with our farmers' market tent that ended up with a second story. Morical Well, that was supposed to be a farm stand. Jones Stand. I'm sorry, stand. Morical But, you're right. Jones I get my tents and my stands mixed up sometimes. Page 18 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 Morical One's permanent, one's not. Jones Which is which? The tent or the stand? Morical The stand is--oh, no, that's a good point. All right. It turns out we got a permanent one. Jones We digress. Morical Any further questions for the petitioner at the moment? So, I expect we're going to need to engage with you and your client on potential operational restrictions and then we can come to ones that we can get comfortable with. So, we'll have to work through that. Well, why don't we--are there any remonstrators here tonight? Anybody have any concerns other than us? Anybody who wants to speak in favor of the petition? This is the last item on the agenda. Okay. You need to approach the--we record all this stuff. So, if you could approach the podium and state your name and address for the record, please? Lamberjack My name is Cindy Lamberjack. And, I do want to speak in favor of it. Actually, I'm a Traders Point Hunt member, have been for a long time. My mom has been for a really long time also. We've been to a number of parties out there. That building's very special to us. Has been for a long time. And, from the time we met the buyers, we just really, really connected. I think they share our love of this facility, the area and um, so I would, I would highly recommend them. Morical Great. Thank you very much. Lamberjack Thank you. Morical So, that brings up another point. I know you think they're great, which is great. But, we have to be mindful of how long we allow use variances to exist. But, also be mindful if your client is making an investment in the property that they'd be able to have certainty of that investment. But, it would be unfortunate if your terrific clients from the Traders Point perspective, not the club's perspective, were to then sell in a few years to somebody that they weren't as enthusiastic. And, the situation changed. Hence, the importance again of the operational restriction piece and considering even if a duration makes sense. Historically, we've done that. This may be more of an intense investment than we have addressed in the past. Would anyone else care to speak tonight? Please state your name and address for the record. Godby Thank you, Mr. Chairman. My name is Tom Godby. This isn't probably pertinent to the zoning board but the Hunt Club has chosen to take proceeds from this property and donate it to three 503 C corps. One of them is the Indianapolis Police mounted horse patrol. And, we would greatly appreciate your consideration. Morical Sounds good. Well, Mr. Price, why don't you come back up? So, what I'm thinking is, Mr. Price, you work with the Town on potential restrictions that may make sense Page 19 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 and that we then, and Wayne we can hear your staff report, too, because I'd love to hear it--and then we would engage further in August. DeLong Certainly, at the August, I think we said it once this evening at the August 14 meeting. Morical But, let's first hear your staff report and what you think, Wayne. DeLong Certainly, staff, staff is supportive of the petition. There's a number of things that have been mentioned this evening that tie directly into, into the complexity of the discussions and certainly it doesn't change staff's support. The infrastructure of the area are self-limiting. Certainly, the interests of all parties are to create a facility that works for the area and that's ultimately what the Board of Zoning Appeals is focused on first and foremost is, you know, what are the neighbors thinking and, you know, looking out when it comes to these types of projects. You know, ultimately, you're also looking at, you know the law and the other features that have been discussed this evening. The two things that jump out at staff beyond the other discussion points here is the future, the covered entrance which is a great feature. Staff would encourage a concrete pad to be installed underneath that future covered entrance simply to allow for a smooth discharge area, entry area to comply with ADA. Certainly, that's a great feature and certainly future patrons would also, I think, utilize that smooth, smooth dry level surface. The other item is the expansion of the facility in terms of the single family dwelling. Staff, as we indicate in the staff report is supportive of the residential component side, caretaker's side if you will of the structure. We do know from experience that the homes have pressures to serve as host structures for the bridal parties and other folks that need a little bit more accommodation to maybe get ready or something has caused that to be necessary for that group. The complexity much that Larry Jones has touched on with the building code is when you start bringing the use into the single family structure. It now takes that single family structure into the occupancy count and into the septic count and into all the other counts that take, you know, that take the single family home into the commercial building code. And, so, that's just something that, you know the parties, all parties might want to just steer clear from unless they want to bring the home into commercial code and deal with all the other features that run with that. And, certainly, in this time that is going to be taken until the August meeting, I would definitely encourage a, you know, follow-up conversation with Josh Ross, the Fire Marshal, just to, you know, learn more about the expansion of the facility even though it is for single family, what exactly that entails. I mean, we do have our fire protection ordinance and other ordinances that come into play and I just want to make sure that everybody is on the same page as to, as to the requirements that may or may not be in play in an area that's served by well and septic. But, again, staff is supportive of the petition and certainly is supportive of, it sounds like a continuance is going to be suggested to allow for some additional dialogue. Morical Thank you, Wayne. So, you would be amenable to working with the petitioner and the petitioner's representative on proposed operational restrictions that would make sense? Page 20 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 DeLong Certainly. Morical So, for example, I've got a concern feeding off of Larry's point about the patio. If they are going to put a band on the patio, if they're going to play outdoor music. This is fundamentally a residential area. There are animals. We call it the rural equestrian district for a reason, right? And, Hunt Club has a special place in the Zionsville reality, right? So, I wanted to make sure we're conscious of that, too. Evinger I think you mentioned earlier, too, lighting. Just, again if there's any night events, how much lighting. Morical Lighting, hours, there's a big difference from having an event inside and having an event outside in terms of the impact on other people. It is a little road that's not lighted at all. So, we have to be conscious of that, too. So, don't be shy, Wayne. Okay, any further questions or comments for Wayne? Mr. Price, are you amenable to working with Wayne to see if we can come up with something that makes sense? Price I'm definitely amenable. Um, we are, we are going to have to seek outside relief to extend our purchase agreement to that length. So, we were hopeful we could work through these issues tonight if possible. Morical Well, the trick with that is we've go to be comfortable with them, your client needs to be comfortable with them because it involves his, his investment and there's a lot to deal with, not only with these restrictions but we also need to figure out the duration piece. I wouldn't want us to grant this use variance in perpetuity, at least without further thought. Price And, to your point on that, that is, that is a significant issue for us given the investment being made here. While I'm not suggesting there isn't any limitation that could be acceptable, I think, given, you know, part of what we're trying to do is make the historic structure exist, you know, into the future. So, if it were limited in some way, I think it's going to discourage, you know, the investment in it or perhaps even change, you know, the club will need to go to actually dispose of the property. Morical No, we understand that, and I appreciate that. Nevertheless, we have to mindful of not only today, but the future and again, your client's great and everybody likes him but what happens if somebody in the future who isn't as pleasant were to acquire the property and we have to look at these, this use and this use variance in that, in that context? So, I'm hopeful that the club will extend your purchase agreement so that you've got the time to work these issues with the town and come back to use. I really do think there are a number of them, it's really pretty complex. It will be well served by having the time for you and your client to work those issue. So, we would be interested in continuing your matter to the August 14 meeting. Are you amenable to that? Okay. For the record, you nodded your head. Price I'll say yes. I'm hopeful, I'm hopeful we'll be back is my concern. Page 21 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 Morical Yeah. That sounds, that sounds good. Any further questions or comments amongst the Board? Hearing none, I would entertain a motion to continue this. Jones I move that we continue Docket # 2018-24-UV for 7300 Hunt Club Road to the August 14 BZA meeting. Morical Thank you. Is there a second? Mundy Second. Morical All those in favor, please say aye? All Aye. Morical Opposed? [No response.] Morical Motion carries. Thank you very much. Wayne, what further things that we need to-- DeLong We do have the negative findings of fact for your review and adoption these evening related to wireless tower proposed on 875 as well as the negative findings of fact for your sign off and review for B&B Homes which is the project on Mulberry. We do want to report that for the Williams special exception and use variance, we have received a recorded version of those commitments so that we can wrap that project up. And, we do want to note that while Fischer Homes still remains on your other matters to be considered, we have yet another workout conversation with some parties related to that project and we did issue a grading permit within the last 30 days to assist that project moving forward so there is new life in the Ansley Park project at least on paper so hopefully that will translate to plat amendments to facilitate those variances that were granted some time ago to get that wrapped up and off your docket. Morical When, when are we going to have certainty that those changes are made? DeLong Well, we are in pretty close communication with those parties that are moving the ball forward on that project. I don't, I do not have an answer as to any certainty. I would like to think within the next 120 days, we will have solidified the actions that will be taken. Morical But, you have in mind the fact that they've got these requirements to meet and we're using available tools to ensure that they meet them? DeLong Yes. Morical Okay. DeLong And, just like this last, most recent meeting, we again reminded these parties that are stepping in to acquire this project who, I don't believe are related to the builder that Page 22 of 23 Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals July 10, 2018 sought the variances of this requirement and so I would imagine they will either abandon those requirements because they're not interested in them which are going to make things a little more complicated. Morical In which case they would be abandoning the variances, right? DeLong Yes, yes. Morical Okay. We should get clarity on that. DeLong Yes, that's why we’re working with them and we do not, clarity was not offered in the meeting we had about two weeks ago. Morical But you granted them a grading permit? DeLong A grading permit, yes, to for the subdivision itself which was already under construction. Morical Can we otherwise not grant them anything further until we have clarity? DeLong Right. There is nothing further to grant in the toolbox if you will because the next thing they need is to record their plat in order--they needed the grading permit to stabilize earth that had become-- Morical Unstable? DeLong --unstable from 18 months of neglect. Morical So, it was more of an emergency measure? DeLong Yes, emergency measure but the next step is to record the plat. But, there is no plat to record because it has not been. We have not seen an amended plat for review. Morical Got it. So you're going to hold the line until we get-- DeLong Yes. Morical Perfect. Thank you. So we need adopt on the record these two findings of fact or do we just sign them? Chad They just need to be signed. Morical Okay. Well, we're going to do that. Anything else that we need to address tonight? Thank you, Wayne. Anything else you guys want to talk about on the record? Okay. Hearing none, we're adjourned. Thank you. Page 23 of 23