BZA welcomes new member, OKs variance

Friday, February 6, 2015

Conducting its first meeting of 2015, the Greencastle Board of Zoning Appeals dealt with more organizational matters than zoning issues Tuesday night.

The BZA added a new member, Brian Cox, who was sworn in at the outset of the meeting by Mayor Sue Murray.

Cox, who resides at 707 Highridge Ave., succeeds Scott Davis on the five-member appoined city board.

He joins holdover members Donnie Watson, John Phillips, Wayne Lewis and Margaret Kenton on the panel that meets the first Tuesday of each month at 6 p.m. at City Hall.

The board also conducted its annual election of officers, re-electing the 2014 BZA slate with Watson again serving as president, Phillips as vice president and City Planner Shannon Norman acting as secretary.

In the evening's only other business, the board unanimously approved a development standards variance for Mark and Jeanette Hammer, 720 Ravenwood Drive.

The Hammers plan to convert a portion of their present garage into additional living space and build a 16 x 21 addition to the front of the existing attached garage.

That will put the new construction within four feet of the property line on the north side of the pie-shaped lot, necessitating a development standards variance from the required 10-foot setback.

The front setback, Hammer noted, will still be at least 50 feet, twice the 25-foot requirement.

City Planner Norman pointed out an oddity in the existing ordinance, noting that had the garage been an unattached accessory structure rather than attached version it is, the necessary setback would only have been five feet (the requirement for all accessory structures).

She and City Attorney Laurie Hardwick agreed that the discrepancy should be looked at in any future review of city zoning ordinances and building requirements.

Lewis then made the motion to approve the Hammers' request, which was made unanimous after a second from Phillips.

The BZA is scheduled to next meet in regular session at 6 p.m. Tuesday, March 3.

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