* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. I'M GONNA GO [00:00:01] AHEAD AND CALL TO ORDER. IT IS FIVE 30. GOOD EVENING, EVERYBODY. MY NAME'S JOHN PAUL BERGMAN. YOU ARE ATTENDING THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENTS AND APPEALS MEETING. UH, FIRST [2. CONFLICT OF INTEREST DECLARATION] I'D LIKE TO GO AHEAD AND ASK IF ANYONE ON THE BOARD HAS A CONFLICT OF INTEREST, UH, THIS EVENING FOR EITHER OF THESE, NO, UH, [3. DESIGNATE VOTING MEMBERS] THE DESIGNATED VOTING MEMBERS. SINCE WE ARE ONE SHY, I AM GONNA GO AHEAD AND DESIGNATE THE MEMBERS THAT ARE HERE AS WELL AS LAURA, UH, FOR VOTING. BUT OF COURSE, PLEASE, WE, WE NEED YOUR PARTICIPATION. SO EVEN THOUGH YOU'RE NOT VOTING, PLEASE, PLEASE SPEAK UP. UM, [4. APPROVE MINUTES OF NOVEMBER 19, 2025.] NEXT, I'D LIKE TO ASK FOR A MOTION, UH, FOR THE, THE MINUTES. SO MOVE. OH, YOU, WHAT IS THAT? I'LL, I'LL MAKE THAT MOTION MOVE. OKAY. DO WE HAVE A SECOND? ACCEPT THE MINUTES. ALL RIGHT, GO AHEAD FOR APPROVAL. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. AYE. WOULD IT BE KNOWN IF IT WAS FULL IN FAVOR [Items 5 & 6] AT THIS TIME? WHAT WE WOULD LIKE TO DO, UM, THIS IS THE PORTION OF THE, THE, UH, THE PUBLIC HEARING, WHICH I'M OPENING UP IN. UH, THIS IS THE OPPORTUNITY FOR VISITORS AND GUESTS TO ADDRESS THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENTS AND APPEALS ON ANY ISSUE, UM, IN COMPLIANCE WITH LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 5 5 5 1 0.007. THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENTS AND APPEALS MAY NOT DISCUSS ANY PRESENTED ISSUE TONIGHT, NOR MAY IT TAKE ANY ACTION, UH, ON ANY, ON ANY ISSUE AT THIS TIME. BUT WOULD ANYBODY IN THE PUBLIC LIKE TO COME UP AND SPEAK ABOUT SOMETHING OTHER THAN WHAT WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT TONIGHT? OKAY. GREAT. UH, THE NEXT THING I'D LIKE TO SAY IS WE'RE GONNA CHANGE, WE'RE GONNA CHANGE THE AGENDA UP A LITTLE BIT TODAY. WE'RE GONNA GO BACK TO, UH, AN AGENDA THAT WE HAD BEFORE IN TONIGHT'S AGENDA. IF YOU LOOK AT IT, IT LOOKS LIKE THAT WE'RE GOING TO VISIT, UH, NUMBER 0 0 2 AND 0 0 3, UH, OR 2 6 0 1 AND 2 6 0 2, UH, AND THEN GO AND MAKE DECISIONS ON BOTH. WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO TODAY IS WE'RE GONNA GO AHEAD AND RECEIVE COMMENTS ON VARIANCE NUMBER 26 0 1 DIETER EDITION LOT, UH, PT 26, AND THEN WE'RE GONNA CLOSE THAT PUBLIC HEARING. WE'RE GONNA DISCUSS IT AMONGST THE BOARD, AND THEN WE'RE GONNA GO AHEAD AND VOTE ON THAT. AND THEN WHAT WE WILL DO IS WE WILL GO AHEAD AND OPEN BACK UP THE PUBLIC HEARING FOR, UH, RECEIVING COMMENTS ON VARIANCE NUMBER 26 0 2 IRONS AND GRAMS EDITION LOT 180 6. SO AT THIS TIME, AGAIN, I'M GONNA GO AHEAD AND OPEN, UH, RECEIVE COMMENTS FOR VARIANCE NUMBER 26 0 1 IF SOMEBODY FROM THE CITY WOULD PERFECT. YAY. GOOD EVENING BOARD. GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS FRANKIE. I'M WITH THE CITY OF BERNIE'S PLANNING DEPARTMENT, AND I'LL BE PRESENTING THIS CASE. UM, THIS PROPERTY IS 6 0 4 SCHWEPPE STREET. THE APPLICANT SLASH OWNER IS ZACHARY LER, AND THE PROPERTY IS JUST UNDER HALF AN ACRE AT 0.421 ACRES, AND IT IS ZONED R ONE M, WHICH IS MEDIUM DENSITY RESIDENTIAL. THE VARIANCE THEY'RE ASKING FOR IS TO ALLOW AN EXISTING ACCESSORY STRUCTURE TO ENCROACH TWO FEET INTO THE REQUIRED FOUR, UM, EXCUSE ME, REQUIRED FIVE FOOT SIDE YARD SETBACK. OKAY. AND HERE WE HAVE OUR AERIAL MAP. UH, HERE IS OUR ZONING MAP. UH, I WANNA POINT OUT THAT THIS PROPERTY IS PART OF A SINGLE FAMILY, UH, NEIGHBORHOOD, HOWEVER, IT IS ON THE EDGE. SO TO THE NORTH, THE EAST AND THE SOUTH, IT IS A ZONED R ONE M, MUCH LIKE THIS PROPERTY. AND TO THE WEST, IT IS ZONED C TWO, WHICH IS A COMMERCIAL CATEGORY. UH, PUBLIC NOTIFICATIONS WERE SENT OUT ABOUT THIS PUBLIC HEARING. 66, UH, MAIL NOTIFICATIONS WERE SENT TO PROPERTIES WITHIN 500 FEET ON JANUARY 7TH, 2026, AND IT WAS IN THE BERNIE STAR ON DECEMBER 31ST, 2025. UH, OUT OF THOSE 6 66 NOTIFICATIONS, UM, WE RECEIVED FIVE WRITTEN RESPONSES AND THREE CALLS, UH, FOUR WERE IN FAVOR AND FOUR WERE OPPOSED. I DO WANNA NOTE THAT THIS IS A FEW MORE THAN WAS IN YOUR PACKET. UH, THIS WAS UPDATED AS OF TODAY, AND I BELIEVE EACH OF YOU YEAH, WE WERE HANDED THE UPDATES. THANK YOU. PERFECT. OKAY. SO EVERY PROPERTY, UH, EXCUSE ME. EVERY ZONING DISTRICT INSIDE BERNIE CITY LIMITS HAS SETBACKS FOR DIFFERENT USES FOR, UH, RESIDENTIAL CATEGORIES. WE HAVE PRIMARY SETBACKS AND ACCESSORY STRUCTURE SETBACKS. SO FOR R ONE M, WHICH IS THE ZONING CATEGORY, THE FRONT YARD MINIMUM SETBACK [00:05:01] FOR ACCESSORY STRUCTURES IS 1.5 TIMES THE SETBACK OF THE FRONT BUILDING LINE. THE MINIMUM REAR YARD SETBACK IS FIVE FEET, AND THE MINIMUM SIDE YARD SETBACK IS FIVE FEET. AND THAT IS THE VARIANCE THAT THEY'RE REQUESTING TONIGHT. SO FIRST, WE'RE GONNA TAKE A STEP BACK IN TIME, AND HERE WE HAVE SOME AERIAL IMAGES OF THE SITE. UM, HERE IS SCHWEPPE AT THE FRONT OF THE PROPERTY. SO HERE IS THE PROPERTY IN DECEMBER OF 2021, AND YOU CAN SEE THAT THERE IS NO CARPORT. UH, IN MAY OF 2022, YOU CAN SEE THAT THE OWNER, UM, HAD CONSTRUCTED THIS LONG DRIVEWAY, AND BY DECEMBER OF 22, THERE WAS A CARPORT STRUCTURE ON TOP OF THAT CONCRETE. SO I DO WANNA POINT OUT THAT THIS WORK WAS DONE WITHOUT A PERMIT, HOWEVER, IT WAS DONE BY THE PREVIOUS PROPERTY OWNER. UH, THE PROPERTY HAS SINCE CHANGED HANDS IN NOVEMBER OF 2020, I'M SORRY, HERE IS THE PROPERTY IN NOVEMBER OF 2024. IN DECEMBER OF 2024, THE PROPERTY WAS PURCHASED AND HERE IS THE MOST UP-TO-DATE AERIAL THAT WE CAN HAVE OF THE SITE, WHICH IS NOVEMBER, 2025. SO YOU CAN SEE SINCE THE PROPERTY OWNER PURCHASED THE PROPERTY IN NOVEMBER OF 24, UM, WHILE THERE HAVE BEEN SOME FAIRLY SIGNIFICANT SITE CHANGES, UH, THE CARPORT ITSELF HAS NOT CHANGED, UH, IN THE SIZE. HOWEVER, THE PROPERTY OWNER HAS DONE MUCH OF THIS WORK WITHOUT A PERMIT, INCLUDING ENCLOSING THE CARPORT INTO AN AIR CONDITIONED, UM, SPACE THAT CHANGE IN USE FROM A CARPORT TO AN AIR CONDITIONED SPACE. UM, WHICH IF YOU, UH, TOOK A LOOK AT THEIR APPLICATION WAS REFERRED TO AS A PARTY BARN, UM, UH, TRIGGERS THIS. SO THAT IS WHY WE'RE HERE TONIGHT. HERE WE HAVE THAT SAME AERIAL IMAGE, WHICH IS NOVEMBER OF 25, AND THE SITE PLAN, SO YOU CAN GET AN IDEA OF WHAT'S GOING ON ON THE SITE. SO WE HAVE THE CARPORT HERE AND THE MAIN RESIDENCE. THERE IS ALSO ANOTHER EXISTING ACCESSORY STRUCTURE ON THE PROPERTY. UH, IT HERE, IT'S CALLED A CASITA, IT'S A ACCESSORY DWELLING UNIT, IS THE LAND USE WE WOULD CALL IT. SO WE ARE GOING TO FOCUS ONLY ON THIS SECTION, AND HERE WE HAVE IT ZOOMED IN AGAIN, THE SAME IMAGES. AND HERE IS THE STREET VIEW. UH, THIS WAS TAKEN SOMETIME AROUND THE TURN OF THE YEAR, AND HERE IS THE STREET VIEW FROM THE SIDE WHERE YOU CAN SEE THE ACCESSORY STRUCTURE. SO FINDING A FACT, UH, FIRST, AS A REMINDER, ALL OF THESE ITEMS ARE THINGS IN OUR UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT CODE THAT NEED TO BE REVIEWED PRIOR TO GRANTING A VARIANCE. SO FIRST IS THE UNNECESSARY HARDSHIP, INCLUDING A FINANCIAL HARDSHIP. UH, THE LOT WAS CREATED AND ORIGINALLY DEVELOPED PRIOR TO THE ADOPTION OF THE UDC. UH, HOWEVER, THE LOT ITSELF APPEARS TO MEET THE DIMENSIONAL STANDARDS FOR THE R ONE M ZONING CATEGORY. UM, THIS INCLUDES MINIMUM LOT SIZE FRONTAGE, ET CETERA. NUMBER TWO IS NO CHANGE IN USE. UH, THIS VARIANCE WILL NOT AUTHORIZE ANY OTHER USE OTHER THAN THE USES THE ZONING DISTRICT ALREADY ALLOWS. THIS ZONING DISTRICT ALLOWS TWO ACCESSORY STRUCTURES. ONE WOULD BE THE, UM, CASITA THAT A DU, THIS WOULD BE THE SECOND THREE, IS A UNIQUE CIRCUMSTANCE RELATED TO THE PROPERTY AND GENERAL CONDITIONS. UH, THE CARPORT STRUCTURE WAS CONSTRUCTED BY A PRIOR PROPERTY OWNER, UH, WITHOUT A PERMIT. HOWEVER, THE CARPORT CONVERSION WAS CONDUCTED BY THE CURRENT OWNER. UH, THEREFORE, THESE CONDITIONS ARE PARTIALLY CREATED BY ACTION, TAKEN BY THE OWNER, AND NOT A GENERAL CONDITION WITHIN THE DISTRICT. UH, DOES NOT WEAKEN THE GENERAL PURPOSE OF THE ORDINANCE AND ESSENTIAL CHARACTER OF THE DISTRICT. UH, THE SETBACK REQUIREMENTS, UM, ARE CENTRAL TO THE PURPOSE OF THE UDC. UH, THE UDC CALLS OUT EIGHT DIFFERENT, UM, THINGS THAT THE UDC IS SET TO PROTECT, EXCUSE ME, AS I'M FLIPPING THROUGH MY PAGES. UM, AND THESE INCLUDE PROMOTING HEALTH AND GENERAL WELFARE, FACILITATE APPROPRIATE CONCENTRATION OF POPULATIONS, SECURE SAFETY FROM FIRE, PANIC, AND OTHER DANGERS, PROVIDE APPROPRIATE LIGHT AND AIR AND PREVENT THE OVERCROWDING OF LAND. UH, AND THE LAST IS, UH, OH, I DID WANNA POINT OUT THAT ALSO INCLUDED IN YOUR PACKET WAS A LETTER FROM THE ADJACENT PROPERTY OWNER. UH, THE ONE THAT THIS IS NOT ENCROACHING ON THE PROPERTY, BUT ON THAT SETBACK, IN [00:10:01] SUPPORT OF THIS VARIANCE, I DO WANNA MAKE THAT, UM, KNOWN, UH, FINAL IS NO ADVERSE IMPACT ON PUBLIC HEALTH, WELFARE AND SAFETY AND ACCESSORY STRUCTURE. SETBACK REQUIREMENTS ARE IN PLACE TO MAINTAIN FIRE SAFETY, SUNLIGHT AND WIND ACCESS, ENJOYMENT, RIGHTS OF NEIGHBORING PROPERTIES AND NEIGHBORHOOD CHARACTER. SO WITH THAT, UM, STAFF RECOMMENDS THAT THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT HOLD A PUBLIC HEARING AND DETERMINE IF THE CRITERIA FOR A VARIANCE HAS BEEN MET AND APPROVE OR DENY THE VARIANCE REQUEST FROM THE OWNER, ZACHARY RACKER TO THE CITY OF BERNIE'S, UDC, CHAPTER THREE, SECTION THREE DASH FIVE TO ALLOW AN EXISTING ACCESSORY STRUCTURE TO ENCROACH TWO FEET INTO THE REQUIRED FIVE FOOT SIDE YARD SETBACK FOR A DETER EDITION LOT PORTION 26 6 0 4 SCHWABE STREET. UH, WE DO HAVE THESE MOTIONS FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION AND THE OWNER, UM, APPLICANT AND HIS REPRESENTATIVE ARE HERE IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR THEM AS WELL. WAS IT AN ACTUAL CARPORT? THAT IS MY UNDERSTANDING. UM, MY UNDERSTANDING IS IT WAS A CARPORT AND THEN THERE WAS STORAGE IN THE REAR. AND IS THAT, ARE THESE TWO DIFFERENT BUILDINGS, OR IS IT ONE BUILDING AND THEY CALL IT TWO DIFFERENT BUILDINGS? ARE THESE TWO DIFFERENT STRUCTURES BETWEEN THESE TWO PHOTOS? NO, IT SAYS METAL STORAGE AND EX EXISTING METAL CARPORT. SO ARE THERE TWO, TWO BUILDINGS THAT WERE PUT THERE WITHOUT PERMIT, OR IS THERE ONE? MY UNDERSTANDING IS IT'S ONE WITH TWO DIFFERENT USES IN IT. OKAY. ALRIGHT. COOL. RIGHT, THANK YOU. MM-HMM . DO WE KNOW IF THE ORIGINAL CONSTRUCTION, UH, CARPORT HAD SIDEWALLS OR WAS IT COMPLETELY OPEN? THE ORIGINAL CONSTRUCTION? UH, I BELIEVE IT WAS OPEN. OKAY. AND I, I, I WAS EVEN THE STORAGE AT THE REAR EXCLUSIVE OF THAT WAS OPEN. UH, THE, THE REAR I BELIEVE WAS ENCLOSED, BUT THE CARPORT PORTION WAS OPEN. UH, UH, AT LEAST PARTIALLY. I WAS, I WAS TRYING TO FIND IT. 'CAUSE WHEN I WAS READING THROUGH THIS, I THOUGHT I SAW SOMETHING STATING THAT IF, IF, IF IT WERE LEFT ALONE AS IT WAS, AND, AND NOT ENCLOSED, UM, THAT, THAT THIS WOULDN'T BE A VARIANCE ISSUE. IS THAT CORRECT? WELL, BECAUSE IT WAS EXISTING BEFORE. RIGHT. THE CHANGE IN USE TO A MORE, UM, IMPACTFUL USE DEFINITELY, UH, TRIGGERED THIS VARIANCE. OKAY. SO IS IT CURRENTLY, LIKE AIR CONDITIONED? IS THERE PLUMBING IN THERE? I MEAN, MY UNDERSTANDING IS THERE IS HVAC, BUT THERE IS NOT PLUMBING. UM, UH, THERE IS NO PERMIT RIGHT NOW FOR THE WORK THAT'S BEING DONE. UH, IF THIS BOARD CHOOSES TO GRANT THIS VARIANCE, THEY WILL BE REQUIRED TO GET A BUILDING PERMIT TO PROVE, UM, THAT IT DOES MEET CURRENT CODE REQUIREMENTS? NO. NO. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? NO. NO. OKAY. THANK YOU. WE OF COURSE, MIGHT BE CALLING YOU BACK UP. OF COURSE. AND IF WE COULD PLEASE HAVE, UH, UH, THE GENTLEMAN, ZACHARY RACKER AND HIS REPRESENTATIVE, COME UP PLEASE AND, UH, INTRODUCE YOURSELVES AND STATE YOUR NAME, PLEASE. OR IS THAT THE SAME THING? . HI, MY NAME IS ZACHARY RACKER, AND THIS IS MY DAD, BRANDON. OKAY. BRANDON RACKER. HI. UM, YEAH, SO, UH, THIS IS, THANK Y'ALL FOR ALLOWING ME TO TALK UP HERE. THIS IS ME AND MY DAD'S FIRST KINDA PROJECT TOGETHER ON RENOVATING HOUSES. AND HE'S KIND OF TEACHING ME THE WAYS OF WHAT IT TAKES TO, YOU KNOW, BUILD, YOU KNOW, BUILD A HOME, PUTTING IN NEW WINDOWS, JUST KIND OF ALL THAT, THAT TO, UH, TO RENOVATING A HOME. AND, UH, I APOLOGIZE FOR NOT GETTING THE HVAC PERMIT FOR THE, FOR THE CARPORT. IT'S A, IT'S A MINI SPLIT, SO IT'S NOT, WE DON'T HAVE ANY PLUMBING OR ANYTHING IN THERE. IT'S JUST A MINI SPLIT SYSTEM TO KEEP IT COOL. AND, UH, WE'RE, WE'RE LEARNING A LOT TOGETHER THROUGH THIS, ON WHAT PERMITS YOU NEED, DON'T NEED. AND WE REALIZE THAT WE JUST NEED TO GO SEE Y'ALL IMMEDIATELY TO SEE WHAT WE CAN, WHAT PERMITS WE NEED. SO THERE'S NEVER ANY ISSUES. SO WE APOLOGIZE ON THAT END. AND, UH, LIKE THIS, UH, THIS CARPORT WAS BUILT PRIOR, AND IF, IF WE KNEW THAT THEY DIDN'T HAVE A PERMIT THAT WAS DISCLOSED TO US BEFORE CLOSING, WE, UH, WE PROBABLY WOULDN'T HAVE EVEN PURCHASED THE PROPERTY TO, TO BEGIN WITH. UM, THANK YOU. UM, SO WAS IT OPEN, COMPLETELY OPEN? UH, YES, SIR. IT, IT WAS, UH, SO THE BACK PART WAS FULLY CLOSED IN, HAD FULL WALLS, AND THEN IN BETWEEN THERE, THERE WERE LITTLE WALLS, BUT IT WAS KIND OF, THERE WAS OPENINGS IN BETWEEN THOSE WALLS, SO IT WAS NEVER, IT WAS NEVER FULLY OPEN. WE JUST COVERED THE, THE SIDES ON THE PART THAT, THAT [00:15:01] WASN'T FULLY COVERED. YEAH. IF YOU LOOK AT THAT, UH, ONE PICTURE THEY HAD, THE FRONT PART WAS OPEN ON THE END COMPLETELY. YEAH. AND THEN WHERE THAT LINE IS, IS WHERE IT WAS ONLY CLOSED OFF THERE BEFORE. OKAY. SO WE BASICALLY MOVED THAT TO THE END. OKAY. SO WHEN, WELL, DO YOU GUYS HAVE QUESTIONS? I DON'T WANNA GO AHEAD. WRECK HERE. SOMETHING. YEAH, I WAS GONNA SAY, LIKE, WHEN I HEAR CARPORT, I'M THINKING CARS PARKING UNDER IT. I MEAN, WAS IT SOMETHING CARS COULD ACTUALLY PARK UNDER, OR WHAT WAS IT? YEAH, IT WAS LIKE, UM, SO IT'S ONE OF THOSE LIKE METAL CARPORTS THAT, I DON'T KNOW, SOMETIMES LIKE THE LITTLE PLACES ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD HAS LITTLE CARPORTS YEAH. SHEDS AND STUFF. IT'S ONE OF THOSE, IT'S LIKE A METAL FRAME UHHUH, UH, BUILDING. SO THIS WHERE IT SAYS EXISTING CARPORT, IT'S LIKE ALL ONE ROOF LINE, UHHUH. AND THEN WHERE THAT LINE IS, THAT'S WHERE THE WALL WAS. AND THERE WAS LIKE A LITTLE GARAGE DOOR ROLL UP. GOTCHA. AND THEN ON THE END WHERE THE DRIVEWAY IS, IT WAS JUST OPEN. SO YOU COULD, YOU COULD PULL UNDER THERE BEFORE. SO SOME OF THE, SOME OF THE QUESTIONS OR ISSUES THAT I HAVE RIGHT NOW ARE THAT WHEN, WHEN SOMEBODY ELSE, LIKE, WHAT, WHAT YOU SAID, ZACHARY, WHEN SOMEBODY ELSE BUILDS SOMETHING ON YOUR PROPERTY TO MOVE ONTO THAT PROPERTY, YOU'RE NOT REQUIRED TO ADHERE TO THAT. UH, THANKS TO THE, YOU KNOW, THE CODE THAT WE HAVE HERE. AND I MEAN, THAT MAKES PERFECT SENSE. BUT AS, AS YOU PROBABLY ALREADY KNOW, I MEAN, IF YOU CHANGE AN EXISTING STRUCTURE, UM, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO GET A PERMIT AND YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO ADHERE TO THE CURRENT, UH, CODES THAT, THAT ARE, THAT ARE ENFORCED. SO YOU CAN'T CHANGE WITHOUT A PERMIT. YOU CAN'T CHANGE THE TYPE OF USAGE. RIGHT. AND IT, IT, THAT'S JUST THAT, THAT'S CRITICALLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE, AND I DON'T WANT TO SPEAK FOR ANYBODY ON IN THE CITY, BUT WHEN YOU GO AND YOU LOOK AT IT AND YOU SAY, OH, IT'S JUST AN OPEN CARPORT, YOU KNOW, WE GO, I'LL GO BACK TO IT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO ADDRESS THAT. BUT WHEN YOU TURN IT INTO SOMETHING THAT SOMEBODY'S GONNA BE INSIDE, THERE'S FIRE, THERE'S ALL KIND, YOU KNOW, THERE, THERE'S A DIFFERENT TYPE OF RISK INVOLVED THAN SOMETHING THAT'S JUST OUTSIDE IN THE OPEN. AND SO IT, THERE, THERE'S A REASON WHY, YOU KNOW, THESE, THESE CODES ARE IN, YOU KNOW, ARE WHAT THEY ARE. UM, SO IT, IT'S HARD, I MEAN, FOR ME PERSONALLY, TO LOOK AT A HARDSHIP WHEN, I MEAN THE, THE THING WAS THERE, IT WAS, IT WAS FOR CARS, IT GOT TOTALLY CHANGED AROUND. PEOPLE ARE GONNA GO INSIDE NOW AND THERE ARE NO PERMITS. UM, SO I, I DECIDE, CAN, CAN YOU HELP ME TO FIND A HARDSHIP FOR YOU IN THIS? ONE THING I DO WANT TO MENTION IS THERE, I MEAN, THERE ARE EXISTING PERMITS ON THE PROPERTY, THERE'S OTHER RENOVATIONS HAPPENING THERE, THERE AS WELL. AND THE MAIN STRUCTURE, UM, AND WE'VE BEEN UP TO THIS OFFICE MANY TIMES AND TALKED TO A LOT OF PEOPLE AND TRIED TO, YOU KNOW, FIGURE OUT ALL THE WAYS AROUND ALL OF THIS. BUT THE, WHEN WE GOT TO THIS PART, THIS IS WHERE WE WERE, WERE KIND OF STUCK WITH, UH, OF WHERE THINGS WERE GONNA GO. UM, SO I DO, YOU KNOW, I UNDERSTAND THAT AB ABSOLUTELY. UM, BUT YES, EVERYTHING, IF, IF IT IS APPROVED, EVERYTHING, UM, WILL BE DONE COMPLETELY BY CODE, WILL BE INSPECTED, EVERYTHING LIKE THAT. UM, BUT THE YES, IN THIS, IT HAS CHANGED IN TERMS OF, UM, THE WALLS AND YOU KNOW, WHAT WE'D WANT TO USE IT FOR. UM, BUT THE KIND OF THE CORE ISSUE THAT WE HAVE IS THAT WE DIDN'T QUITE REALIZE THE SETBACK PART, UH, AHEAD OF TIME. AND THAT'S WHERE IT'S A COUPLE FEET OFF, RIGHT? UM, SO THAT'S, THAT'S THE PART THAT, UH, WE'RE, WE'RE KIND OF STUCK WITH BECAUSE IF IT'S NOT APPROVED, I MEAN, I, YOU KNOW, FIGURE OUT WHAT, WELL, HERE'S THE DEAL. I LOVE WHAT YOU'RE DOING. MM-HMM . SO I THINK YOU, YOU KNOW, , YOU'RE WORKING WITH YOUR SON, Y'ALL ARE FIGURING OUT HOW TO GET STUFF. BUT, UH, PERMITS WOULD PROBABLY BE ON THE, ON THAT LIST TOO. DO YOU GUYS ARE, WHAT ABOUT YOU, LAURIE? SO MY OTHER, MY OTHER QUESTION IS, I MEAN, TODAY ALL WE'RE REALLY RULING ON IS THE SETBACK OR THE, WHAT, WHAT THEY'VE DONE TO THAT BUILDING PROBABLY ISN'T HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH US. AND SINCE THAT, SINCE THAT WAS ALREADY THERE, BEYOND THE SETBACK, I MEAN, IF IT WAS STILL A CARPORT WOULD BE, WOULD WE HAVE AN ISSUE WITH THEM NOT, YOU KNOW, BEING IN THAT SETBACK. I THINK IF HE, IF HE DID WHAT HE WOULD HAVE TO DO SOMETHING TO THE CARPORT, RIGHT? IN ORDER FOR IT TO, AND, AND IF SOMEBODY FROM THE CITY CAN CORRECT ME, BUT YOU MOVE INTO A PLACE, YOU HAVE A CARPORT THAT IT SHOULD HAVE NEVER BEEN THERE. IT'S THERE, YOU BOUGHT IT, THE CITY CAN'T SAY, HEY, YOU GOTTA CHANGE IT. YOU GOTTA, YOU GOTTA DO THIS TO IT, YOU GOTTA MOVE IT ALL THAT. RIGHT? THE MOMENT YOU GO AND YOU CHANGE IT, YOU SUDDENLY ARE IN A DIFFERENT WORLD. THE, WHAT SOME PEOPLE CALL GRANDFATHER CLAUSE, WHICH ISN'T A FAVORITE. I'M A GRANDFATHER, [00:20:01] I LOVE IT, . UM, BUT, UH, IT'S THERE FOR A REASON. I MEAN, IT MAKES, IT MAKES COMPLETE SENSE ONCE YOU START CHANGING THINGS AROUND, UH, YOU KNOW, IT, IT COMES INTO SCOPE. AND ANOTHER THING THAT I, THAT I'D LIKE TO POINT OUT, JUST THROUGH THE BOARD AND EVERYBODY, I MEAN, WHAT WE TRY AND AVOID HERE IS LET'S SAY THAT YOU CAME IN AND YOU HAD BUILT A CONCRETE DRIVEWAY THAT WAS 50 FEET LONG AND IT WAS NOT SUPPOSED TO BE THERE. AND WE GO AHEAD AND SAY, YOU KNOW, WELL, WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO? IT'S JUST GONNA BE A DRIVEWAY. WE SWORE TO GOD AND WE APPROVE IT. YOU MOVE OUT. THREE YEARS LATER, SOMEBODY MOVES IN AND THEY BUILD A STRUCTURE ON IT BECAUSE THERE'S A PAD THERE. WELL, THE STRUCTURE MIGHT, BUT GOING THERE SHOULDN'T BE THERE. BUT THEY DID IT BECAUSE THERE WAS A PAD THERE ANYWAY, THEY THOUGHT THAT IT JUST, IT CREATES, IT CREATES ISSUES LATER. AGAIN, WHAT YOU GUYS ARE DOING RIGHT NOW, THE PROPERTY I WENT BY, IT, IT LOOKS, I MEAN, IT LOOKS NICE WHAT YOU GUYS ARE GONNA DO TO, IT'S A GREAT PART OF, GREAT PART OF TOWN. UM, STEVE, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING? I'M LIKE YOU, I'M WRESTLING WITH THE IDEA THAT THE PREVIOUS HOMEOWNER, WHICH OBVIOUSLY WE CAN'T REALLY DOESN'T MATTER. UM, BUT THE INTENDED USE CHANGED. AND SO I'M STRUGGLING WITH THE, WITH THE USAGE VERSUS WHAT IT WAS. UM, AND SO LET'S JUST SAY IT, IT WASN'T COMPLIANT, BUT IT WAS BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT IT AND WHAT HAVE YOU. BUT, SO HERE WE ARE, THE USAGE IS CHANGING. SO THAT'S WHAT I'M STRUGGLING WITH. I'M TRYING TO, IN MY OWN HEAD, UH, MAKE, MAKE THAT WORK FOR ME. AND IT, RIGHT NOW I'M, I'M, I'M ON THE FENCE STILL. JOSH, YOU LIKE YOU HAD SOMETHING, DO WE NO, NO. I WAS JUST FROM A PROCEDURAL STANDPOINT, ARE WE AT THE POINT IN THE MEETING WHERE WE'RE GONNA CLOSE IT AND BOTH WE CAN DISCUSS IT? DO WE WANT TO ASK FOR MORE? I GOT ONE A QUESTION FOR THE CITY. OKAY. WELL, CHAIRMAN, WE HAVE TO ASK ANYBODY FROM THE AUDIENCE IF THEY WANNA SPEAK. OH, WE WILL. TO, TO THIS VARIANCE TODAY. YES. YES MA'AM. I HAVE IT IN RED . SO IF THERE WERE A FIRE, IS THERE ADEQUATE SPACE TO GET AROUND THAT STRUCTURE? SO THERE ARE SOME POTENTIAL IMPACTS THAT THIS HAS. ANY STRUCTURE THAT IS WITHIN, UH, 10 FEET OF ANOTHER STRUCTURE IS REQUIRED TO HAVE A, A FIRE RATED WALL, ESSENTIALLY. AND THAT'S SOMETHING WE WOULD CHECK IN PERMITTING AND ENFORCE IN THE PERMITTING PROCESS. UM, NOW IF THERE IS A FIRE ON THAT AREA, UM, THEY, I CAN'T REALLY SPEAK FOR OUR, FOR OUR FIREFIGHTERS. UH, THEY MIGHT HAVE TO GO TO, THROUGH A DIFFERENT PROPERTY IN ORDER TO ACCESS IT. UM, BUT FROM A BUILDING PERMIT, UH, PERSPECTIVE, THEY WOULD HAVE TO MEET HIGHER STANDARDS IN ORDER TO ALLOW THAT PROPERTY, UH, THAT, THAT STRUCTURE THAT CLOSE TO THE PROPERTY LINE. SO IF WE WERE TO APPROVE THIS, THEY'D STILL HAVE TO COME BACK AND GET A PERMIT AND THE CITY COULD END UP TURNING IT DOWN. YES. IF YOU APPROVE THE VARIANCE, THEY ABSOLUTELY WILL STILL, STILL NEED TO GET A PERMIT, UM, FOR ELECTRIC, FOR HVAC, FOR THE INTERIOR REMODEL, FOR SEVERAL THINGS ON THAT SITE. THEY WILL HAVE TO MEET ALL OF OUR REQUIREMENTS. YEAH. WELL IT'S NEXT TO THE, I MEAN, ANYWAY, YEAH, IT'S RIGHT NEXT TO THE OTHER STRUCTURE, IT NEXT TO THE FENCE ON THE OTHER SIDE. I MEAN, IT'S JUST LOCKED TOO. I CAN CERTAINLY TELL HOW LONG YOU'VE BEEN ON THE BOARD. MY NEXT QUESTION. HMM. IT'S YOUR TURN. I HOPEFULLY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS. UM, I GUESS, SO APPROVING THE VARIANCE WOULD TRIGGER ALL THE OTHER, MY CONCERN IS ALWAYS LIKE IF IT'S A PARTY BARN, THERE'S SAFETY ISSUES. YOU WANT ALL THE NECESSARY PERMITTING, SO SOMETHING DOESN'T HAPPEN DOWN THE ROAD. YES. SO THEY WOULD STILL HAVE TO MEET ALL OF THE REGULAR CITY REQUIREMENTS IF THIS, UM, VARIANCE IS GRANTED, UM, A PERMIT COULD NOT BE ISSUED RIGHT NOW BECAUSE OF THIS ENCROACHMENT. SO THIS IS A REQUIREMENT IN ORDER TO OBTAIN A PERMIT. YES. I ALSO WANNA SPECIFY THAT, UM, I, I KNOW THE TERMINOLOGY BEING USED FOR THIS IS A PARTY BARN. UM, THIS CANNOT BE AN EVENT SPACE. THIS IS A RESIDENTIAL LOCK. COMMERCIAL USES ARE NOT ALLOWED. SO I GET IT . SO THE ENCROACHMENT REALLY IS THE ONLY ISSUE. YEAH. AND SO IT WOULDN'T MATTER WHETHER IT'S A DRIVEWAY OR WHETHER IT'S THE STRUCTURE THAT'S SITTING THERE NOW. UH, SO IT'S SPECIFICALLY FOR THIS STRUCTURE, RIGHT? THE, THE, THIS VARIANCE BEING OTITIS SPECIFICALLY FOR THIS EXISTING STRUCTURE. SO THEY WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO ADD ONTO IT. THEY WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO PUT ANOTHER STRUCTURE UP THERE OR ANYTHING ELSE WITHIN THAT FIVE FOOT SETBACK. IT'S EXPLICITLY [00:25:01] FOR THE EXISTING STRUCTURE. WELL, IT IS UNFORTUNATE THAT YOU GUYS BOUGHT SOMETHING THAT ALREADY HAD THIS ENCROACHMENT SITUATION. AND SO HERE YOU ARE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT TO DO. SO I DEFINITELY FEEL FOR YOUR, YEAH, I JUST FEEL LIKE I BEFORE YOU PUT UP THE WALLS. I COULD HAVE YOU LIKE, WE COULD HAVE ALL GONE OUT THERE AND I DON'T KNOW. I COULD DO IT. I DON'T KNOW ABOUT LAURA. ALRIGHT, WELL, UM, THANK YOU. WE MIGHT BE CALLING YOU GUYS BACK UP HERE. UM, SO JUST HANG TIGHT. OKAY, SIR. THANK YOU. THANK Y'ALL. THANK YOU. AT THIS TIME, WOULD LIKE TO INVITE ANYBODY, UH, TO COME UP IF THEY WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON, UH, THIS PARTICULAR VARIANCE? NO. OKAY. WE'RE GONNA GO AHEAD AND CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING ON THIS AND HAVE THE INTERNAL DISCUSSION. LAURA, I'M OH, SORRY, JOSH. I'M SORRY. OH MY GOSH. LOOK, SOME LAURA PLEASE. NO, GO AHEAD. . I'VE BEEN TALK, I'VE BEEN TALKING ALL NIGHT. I'M SORRY, I HAD TO JUMP AHEAD. THAT'S OKAY. UM, NO, I'VE, YOU KNOW, BEEN JUST KIND OF THINKING ABOUT THIS AND LOOKING AT THIS AS IF THIS WERE DONE IN A DIFFERENT ORDER. IF THEY BOUGHT THE PROPERTY, HAD THE IDEA OF ENCLOSING IT, WENT TO GO GET PERMITS, THEY WERE TOLD, WELL, BECAUSE YOU'RE CHANGING THE USE NOW THE SETBACK IS AN ISSUE. GO TO THE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENTS, TRY TO GET A VARIANCE. IF YOU CAN GET A VARIANCE, THEN YOU CAN PROCEED AND TRY TO GET IT PERMITTED. MM-HMM . MAY OR MAY NOT HAPPEN. AND I THINK FOR ME, BECAUSE THE STRUCTURES THERE, THE SETBACK ISSUE DOESN'T CHANGE A LOT FOR ME BECAUSE IT'S ALREADY THERE AND I'M SORT OF LEANING TOWARD SAYING, WELL, IT'S ALREADY THERE IF YOU WANT TO CHANGE THE USE, PROCEED, BUT YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO GET IT PERMITTED AND ALL THAT. AND SO THAT'S KIND OF HOW, THE WAY I'VE BEEN LOOKING AT IT. SO YOU, YOU DON'T HAVE A CONCERN OF, OF THEY'RE NOT THERE PREVIOUSLY THERE WASN'T A WALL AND NOW THERE'S A WALL. RIGHT. AND I MEAN, FIRE WALL AND ALL THAT STUFF. I MEAN, THERE'S A REASON WHY THERE'S THERE. I MEAN, I I, I THINK THAT THAT'S GONNA BE ADDRESSED DURING PERMITTING. OKAY. PERMITTING. ALL RIGHT. I CAN, I, I DEFINITELY AGREE. LIKE I FEEL LIKE IF IT WAS JUST THE CARPORT AND THEY CAME IN, I HAVE NO ISSUE. 'CAUSE IT'S ALREADY THERE AND THEN IT'S UP TO PERMITTING TO FIGURE OUT IF THEY CAN ACTUALLY ENCLOSE IT AND ALL THE THINGS. THAT'S WHERE THE HARDSHIP IS GONNA COME IN, IS IF PERMITTING DOESN'T APPROVE IT AND THEY HAVE TO TAKE THOSE WALLS BACK DOWN, BUT THEY'RE NOT GONNA MAKE 'EM TAKE THE CARPORT DOWN. SO HOW CLOSE IS THAT WALL TO THE ACTUAL, UH, FENCE LINE? THREE FEET? I MEAN, A A A SKINNY FIREMAN LIKE ME COULD GO BACK THERE. YEAH. NO COMMENT. THE RECORD AND THE NEIGHBOR HAS NO ISSUE WITH IT EITHER. YEAH. SO THAT'S KIND OF REASSURING THAT THE PERSON THAT SHARES THAT FENCE DOESN'T HAVE AN ISSUE WITH IT. I, I APPRECIATE JOSH'S WAY OF LOOKING AT IT FROM IF WE HAD REVERSED ORDERED SOME OF THESE THINGS. SO YEAH. ALL RIGHT. I THINK, WELL, I'D BE REMISS. OH, I'M GOOD. OH, YOU'RE GOOD. OKAY. WELL, ARE YOU, THAT'S MY QUESTION ANSWERED. ARE ARE YOU, ARE YOU READY TO, UH, MOTION? LET'S CALL FOR A VOTE FOR A MOTION. ONE NEEDS TO MAKE A MOTION. MOTION. WOULD YOU LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION, JOSH? I'LL MOVE THAT. THE, UH, ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT. ACCEPT THE FINDINGS AND APPROVE THE VARIANCE REQUEST. SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. AYE. IT IS FOUR. WAS THAT FOUR? MM-HMM . OKAY. FOUR APPROVED. THAT ONE IS DONE. THANK YOU. OKAY, THAT ONE IS CLOSED. WE'RE GONNA GO AHEAD AND OPEN BACK UP THE PUBLIC HEARING TO RECEIVE COMMENTS ON THE VARIANCE NUMBER 26 DASH ZERO TWO IRONS AND GRAMS EDITION LOT. 180 6 3 10 WEST TYSON STREET. HELLO, YOUNG MAN. GOOD EVENING. LET CAN PULL UP MY PRESENTATION HERE QUICK. SO FAR SO GOOD. THAT'S BEAUTIFUL. . GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS BEN SIMMONS. I'M A MEMBER OF THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT AND WE'LL BE PRESENTING THIS ITEM. UH, FIRST WE'LL LOOK AT SOME OF THE BACKGROUND OF THE PROPERTY. THE APPLICANT SLASH OWNERS ARE BRAD AND CHRISTINA WELLS. UH, THEY ARE HERE TODAY. THE PROPERTY IS 0.4165 ACRES. IT IS ZONED R TWO M AND IS ADDRESSED AS THREE 10 WEST TYSON STREET. THE APPLICANT [00:30:01] IS REQUESTING A VARIANCE TO ALLOW FOR AN EIGHT FOOT FENCE IN THE REAR YARD OF THIS PROPERTY. THIS IS A ZONING VIEW OF THE SUBJECT PROPERTY WITH THE PARCEL SUN AND YELLOW. YOU CAN SEE THAT IT IS IN A RESIDENTIAL HOME DISTRICT. UH, REGARDING CITIZEN INPUT, 65 NOTIFICATIONS WERE MAILED TO PROPERTIES WITHIN 500 FEET OF THE SUBJECT PROPERTY. AND THIS REQUEST WAS NOTICED IN THE BERNIE STAR. WE RECEIVED 11 RESPONSES, UH, ALL OF WHICH WERE IN FAVOR. UH, I WOULD LIKE TO NOTE THAT THIS NUMBER IS LIKELY DIFFERENT THAN WHAT WAS IN THE PACKET, UH, BUT IT IS A CURRENT AS OF TODAY. THIS VARIANCE REQUEST RELATES TO UDC SECTION FOUR DASH FOUR POINT B 0.2, WHICH STATES SIDE OR REAR YARD, NO FENCE OR WALL OTHER THAN THE WALL OF A PERMITTED STRUCTURE SHALL BE ERECTED OR ALTERED IN ANY SIDE OR REAR YARD TO EXCEED A HEIGHT OF SIX FEET. UNLESS A, A HIGHER FENCE FOR SCREENING OR SECURITY PURPOSE IS, IS REQUIRED BY THE CITY. B, THE FENCE ABUTS A COLLECTOR OR A HIGHER ORDER STREET C. THE GROUND FLOOR ELEVATION OF THE PRINCIPLE BLOWING ON AN ABUTTING LOT IS AT LEAST FOUR FEET HIGHER THAN THE ELEVATION AT THE ABUTTING LOT LINE OR D THE FENCE IS A SOUND WALL OR FENCE REQUIRED BY THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION. THIS PROJECT DOES NOT DIRECTLY MEET ANY OF THE CRITERIA LISTED ON THE SLIDE. UH, HOWEVER, IT DOES PARTIALLY MEET, UH, EXCEPTION B AS THE FENCE, UH, AS THE PROPERTY FRONTS AN ALLEY, NOT THE REQUIRED, UH, COLLECTOR OR HIGHER. IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THESE ARE THE ADMINISTRATIVE EXCEPTIONS THE CITY COULD TAKE TO ALLOW A FENCE HIGHER THAN SIX FEET WITHOUT THE APPROVAL OF THIS BOARD. UH, THIS PROJECT DID NOT MEET ANY OF THESE ADMINISTRATIVE EXCEPTIONS, AND THAT IS WHY IT IS BEFORE THE BOARD TODAY. UH, THIS IS A MAP THAT SHOWS THE SUBJECT PROPERTY IN RED WITH THE BLUE LINE REPRESENTING WHERE THEY WOULD LIKE TO, UH, PUT THE EIGHT FOOT FENCE. THIS IS A MAP THAT SHOWS THE SUBJECT PROPERTY IN RELATION TO OTHER NEARBY PROPERTIES WITH FENCES TALLER THAN SIX FEET. UH, WE'LL SHOW THESE FENCES IN THE FOLLOWING SLIDES. IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THESE FENCES, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF ONE, WERE PERMITTED PRE UDC AND WERE ALLOWED BY RIGHT AT THE TIME WHILE THE MAP IS SHOWN. I WOULD LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT THIS PROPERTY HERE, 4 0 5 LOT STREET. I'D LIKE TO NOTE THAT THIS PROPERTY WAS GRANTED A FENCE HEIGHT VARIANT IN AUGUST OF 2025. THIS IS AN IMAGE OF THE CURRENT FENCE AT THREE 10 WEST TYSON STREET. IT CURRENTLY IS NINE FEET TALL. UH, IT EXISTS IN A LEGALLY NON-CONFORMING STATUS. SO REPLACING THE FENCE WOULD REMOVE THE STATUS REQUIRING THE NEW FENCE TO COMPLY WITH OUR CURRENT CODES AND REGULATIONS. THESE ARE SOME IMAGES OF OTHER NEARBY FENCES. THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT SHOWS THE FENCE ALONG THE ALLEY AT 4 0 3 O'GRADY STREET. THIS FENCE IS APPROXIMATELY SEVEN AND A HALF FEET TALL. THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT SHOWS THE FENCE ALONG THE ALLEY AT 5 0 5 O'GRADY. THIS FENCE IS APPROXIMATELY EIGHT FEET TALL. THESE ARE SOME ADDITIONAL FENCES. UH, THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT SHOWS THE FENCE AT 4 0 7 OH GRADY. THIS FENCE IS APPROXIMATELY SEVEN FEET TALL, AND THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT SHOWS THE FENCE AT 4 0 5 LOT STREET. THIS FENCE IS APPROXIMATELY EIGHT FEET TALL AND IS THE FENCE THAT WAS GRANTED A FENCE HEIGHTS VARIANCE IN AUGUST OF 2025. WE WILL NOW GO OVER THE FINDINGS OF FACT. THE FIRST IS UNNECESSARY HARDSHIP, INCLUDING FINANCIAL HARDSHIP. THE SUBJECT PROPERTY DOES NOT APPEAR TO MEET FINANCIAL HARDSHIP, HARDSHIP STIPULATIONS. IN ADDITION, THE PROPOSED FENCE DOES NOT FULLY MEET ANY OF THE FOUR EXEMPTIONS IN THE UDC. HOWEVER, A PORTION OF THE PROPOSED FENCE DOES FRONT AN ALLEY. THE SECOND IS NO CHANGE IN USE. UH, THE VARIANCE WILL NOT AUTHORIZE A USE OTHER THAN THE USE THE ZONING DISTRICT ALREADY ALLOWS. THE THIRD IS UNIQUE CIRCUMSTANCES RELATED TO THE PROPERTY AND GENERAL CONDITIONS. THERE APPEARS NOT TO BE A UNIQUE CIRCUMSTANCE OF THE SUBJECT PROPERTY, UH, BUT IN RELATION TO GENERAL CONDITIONS, THERE ARE SEVERAL OTHER PROPERTIES THAT FRONT THE ALLEY BETWEEN LOT STREET AND HERF STREET THAT HAVE FENCES RANGING FROM SIX AND A HALF TO EIGHT FEET TALL. THE FOURTH FINDING IS, DOES NOT WEAKEN THE GENERAL PURPOSE OF ORDINANCE AND ESSENTIAL CHARACTER OF THE DISTRICT. THE FENCE WILL NOT ALTER THE CHARACTER OF THE SURROUNDING DISTRICT AS PROPERTIES HAVE FENCES ABOVE SIX FEET TALL. THE FIFTH IS NO ADVERSE IMPACT ON PUBLIC HEALTH, WELFARE AND SAFETY. UH, THE PROPOSED FENCE COULD POTENTIALLY NEGATIVELY IMPACT ACCESS TO SUNLIGHT AND WIND FOR ADJACENT LOTS, UH, AND TO PRESERVE SAFETY FENCES EIGHT FEET AND TALLER REQUIRE ENGINEERED PLANS AS PART OF THE APPROVAL PERMITTING APPROVAL PACKAGE. STAFF RECOMMENDS THAT THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENTS HOLD THE PUBLIC HEARING AND DETERMINE IF THE CRITERIA FOR OUR VARIANCE HAVE BEEN MET AND APPROVE OR DENY THE VARIANCE REQUEST [00:35:01] FROM BRAD AND CHRISTINA WELLS REQUESTING A VARIANCE TO UDC CHAPTER FOUR, SECTION 4.4 B TO ALLOW AN EIGHT FOOT FENCE AT THE REAR OF THE PROPERTY RATHER THAN THE REQUIRED SIX FOOT FENCE FOR IRONS AND GRAMS. ADDITION LOT 180 6 3 10 WEST TYSON STREET. I WILL NOW YIELD TO THE BOARD FOR QUESTIONS AND DISCUSSION WITH THESE MOTIONS FOR CONSIDERATION. CAN YOU GO BACK TO SLIDE 11, PLEASE? YES. THANK YOU. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THEY JUST, UH, ASKED FOR A PERMIT TO REBUILD WHAT'S ALREADY THERE? JUST IT'S IN PRETTY BAD SHAPE. IT WOULD ALTERING THE STRUCTURE OR REPLACING THE PICKETS OF THE FENCE WOULD REQUIRE THEM TO COME TO COMPLIANCE WITH CURRENT CODES, EVEN THOUGH THERE IS AN EXISTING NINE FOOT FENCE. VERY SIMILAR TO THE, TO THE LAST, UH, LAST ONE. ANY QUESTIONS FOR THE CITY? I MEAN, NO, THANK YOU, MIKE. CALL YOU BACK UP. BEN, WOULD YOU GUYS LIKE TO COME UP AND SPEAK? THERE YOU GO. IF YOU COULD JUST PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME AND, ABSOLUTELY. GOOD EVENING. BRAD WELLS, ONE OF THE PROPERTY OWNERS. UM, I THINK BEN COVERED IT, UH, PRETTY WELL. I ACTUALLY LEARNED SOMETHING NEW. UM, WHEN I FIRST ASKED ABOUT FENCE WHEN WE BOUGHT IT, I SAID, OKAY, I WANNA BRING THIS BACK IN. 'CAUSE IT IS KIND OF, UM, UH, WEATHERED. AND AS WELL AS YOU CAN SEE IN ONE OF THOSE PHOTOS, IT HAS BIG PILLARS WHERE IT'S BIG METAL PILLARS WHEN KIDS CAN KIND OF CRAWL THROUGH. AND I SAID, WHAT CAN I DO? I I DON'T WANT TO, UM, DECREASE THE PRIVACY THAT'S ALREADY THERE. YOU CAN TELL THE NEIGHBORS ARE EXCITED TO CONTINUE WITH THE EIGHT FOOT FENCES. THEY'RE ALL AROUND, UH, THE NEIGHBORHOOD. SO WE WANT THE ENJOYMENT OF NOT ONLY OUR LOT, BUT ALL THE, THE INDIVIDUALS AROUND US. UM, AND SO ONE OF THE OPTIONS I THOUGHT I HAD UNTIL JUST A FEW MINUTES AGO WAS JUST TO CUT A FOOT OFF. AND I SAID, WELL, THAT DOESN'T MAKE A LOT OF SENSE. I DON'T WANNA DO THAT. I WANNA PUT IT NEW MATERIALS. AND THAT'S WHERE WE CAME INTO SUBMITTING THE PERMIT, UH, OR THE VARIANCE TO GET THE EIGHT FOOT FENCE TO BE CONSISTENT WITH THE NEIGHBORS, GET THE NEW MATERIAL, UM, AND OBVIOUSLY, UH, PRESERVE THE PRIVACY OF THE, THE NEIGHBORHOOD. SO, UM, THAT WAS THE PLAN. THAT'S WHY THE NINE FOOT FENCE IS STILL THERE. UM, IT ACTUALLY WILL GIVE MORE SUNLIGHT TO GO TO EIGHT FOOT FROM THE NINE FOOT THAT'S THERE AND PROVIDE THE SAFETY AND CONSISTENCY OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD THAT'S ALREADY, UH, IN EXISTENCE. SO, UH, HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS, BUT APPRECIATE YOUR REVIEW. SO J JUST TO, UH, VERIFY OR I GUESS FOLLOW UP ON WHAT HE JUST SAID. SO HE COULDN'T CUT A FENCE A, A FOOT OFF OF THAT FENCE. THAT WOULD NOT BE, IT WOULD ALLOWED. SO THAT ACTUALLY WOULD BE ALLOWED, UH, THAT WAS A DETERMINATION MADE BY OUR CHIEF BUILDING OFFICIAL WHO WENT OUT AND INSPECTED THE STRUCTURE OF THE FENCE AND DETERMINED REMOVING THE TOP FOOT WOULD NOT NEGATIVELY IMPACT THE STRUCTURE OF THE FENCE SO HE COULD CUT IT DOWN TO EIGHT FEET. YEAH, THAT MAKES NO SENSE TO ME AT ALL. I MEAN, IT, IT, HE'S CHANGING. IT'S CHANGING, RIGHT? THE I DOES THE, WHAT DOES THE CODE SAY? DOES THE CODE SAY THAT IF IT'S OKAY THAT YOU CAN DO IT? BECAUSE I, I DON'T, I DON'T UNDERSTAND BECAUSE SOMEBODY ELSE CHANGES ANYTHING OF A STRUCTURE AND IT'S, IT'S ON THERE. BUT, SO WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE? SO I BELIEVE THE DIFFERENCE WOULD BE A CHANGE TO THE STRUCTURE OF THE FENCE. SO REPLACING THE PICKETS WOULD REQUIRE THE CHANGE, A CHANGE OF THE STRUCTURE. SO REMOVING THE TOP FOOT OF THE PICKETS WOULD NOT ALTER THE STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY OF THE FENCE. WAS THE DETERMINATION MADE BY THE BUILDING OFFICIAL? OKAY. HMM. THE MENDING OF FENCE WOULD NOT BE ALLOWED, I'M SORRY. LIKE MENDING THE FENCE, REPAIRING IT, REPAIRING IT, REPAIRING BROKEN TICKETS, THAT THAT WOULD NOT BE ALLOWED ONE BY ONE. . . THAT'S A SLIPPERY SLOPE. LOVE IT. NO WORRIES. UH, SO TO CLARIFY, WHERE WE GET CONCERNED, WHERE THE CODE IS BUILT TO BE CONCERNED IS, UH, EVERY FENCE THAT IS OVER, UH, THAT'S EIGHT FEET TALL OR HIGHER, IT NEEDS TO BE STRUCTURALLY ENGINEERED. SO IT NEEDS TO BE TO DESIGNED AND REVIEWED BY A STRUCTURAL ENGINEER AND STAMPED. SO WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE STRUCTURE, STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY OF THE FENCE, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE CONNECTION. SO NOT JUST THE PICKETS, BUT THE CONNECTIONS. SO WHEN HE SAYS THAT THE, UH, CHIEF BUILDING OFFICIAL WENT OUT TO INSPECT THE SITE, HE WAS LOOKING TO SEE NOT JUST, YOU KNOW, WHERE THE PICKETS ARE, BUT WHERE ARE THE REINFORCEMENTS OF IT? WILL REMOVING THAT FOOT OFF THE TOP, WILL THAT AFFECT THE WIND LOAD IN A NEGATIVE OR POSITIVE WAY? IN THIS SPECIFIC CASE, IT WOULD AFFECT IT IN A POSITIVE [00:40:01] WAY. AND THE REASON, UM, WE WENT OUT AND LOOKED AT IT IS BECAUSE ULTIMATELY, YOU KNOW, WE WANT EVERYONE TO BE ABLE TO MAINTAIN AND ENJOY THEIR PROPERTY AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE AND HAVE MORE OF LIKE A COMMON SENSE APPROACH WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT THESE THINGS. SO IF WE CAN ALLOW THEM TO DO IT IN A WAY THAT IS SAFE, THEN WE ARE GOING TO DO THAT. IF NOT, IF WE CAN'T DO THAT IN A SAFE WAY, THEN WE'RE GOING TO RECOMMEND TO A BOARD LIKE THIS WHERE YOU CAN DECIDE TO GRANT AN EIGHT FOOT VARIANCE IF YOU SO CHOOSE. OKAY. SO IF HE DOES DECIDE TO DO NEW FENCE AND IT'S APPROVED AT EIGHT FOOT, DOES HE HAVE TO GO THROUGH THAT STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING PROCESS? ABSOLUTELY. AND THAT WOULD BE THROUGH THE FENCE PERMIT PROCESS. SO ANY FENCE PERMIT, EIGHT FEET OR TALLER, WHETHER IT'S RESIDENTIAL, COMMERCIAL, WHATEVER, WHEN THEY'RE GOING THROUGH THAT ADMINISTRATIVE PERMIT PROCESS, WE'RE GONNA REQUIRE THAT STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS, UH, SIGNED AND SEALED BY A ENGINEER. OKAY. I MEAN, IT SOUNDS LIKE AN IMPROVEMENT ALL THE WAY AROUND TO ME, IT'S NICER FENCE, NEWER FENCE, STRUCTURALLY ENGINEERED SHORTER AND IT, AND IT MATCHES WHAT THE OTHER NEIGHBORS HAVE. SO WHY WOULD WE HAVE EIGHT FOOT FENCES AND THEN HIS A SIX FOOT? I JUST, I DON'T KNOW. I LOVE YOUR COMMENTS. PERFECT. THAT'S WHERE I'M AT. DOES, DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? I ACTUALLY, SO DOES THIS VARIANCE APPLY FOR IF HE MODIFIED AT THE CURRENT FENCE, OR DOES IT OKAY. WE, WE ARE ALLOWING AN EIGHT FOOT FENCE. SO IF HE GETS A NEW FENCE, DOES HE HAVE TO SEEK, WOULD HE SEEK ANOTHER VARIANCE MM-HMM . FOR A COMPLETELY NEW STRUCTURE? OR IS THIS RELATED TO THE CURRENT FENCE RIGHT NOW? SHOULD HE WANT TO CUT OFF, CUT OFF THAT TOP? GREAT QUESTION. GREAT CLARIFICATION. MM-HMM . UM, SO VARIANCES RUN WITH THE LAND. SO THIS WILL APPLY FOR THIS SEGMENT OF THE LOT IN PERPETUITY. OKAY. SO IT WILL APPLY FOR A NEW FENCE. NOW IT WOULD APPLY FOR A NEW FENCE IN 10 YEARS. IT WOULD GO IN PERPETUITY. OKAY. BUT ONLY ON THAT SECTION. CORRECT. OKAY. ALRIGHT. ANY MORE QUESTIONS? OKAY. DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING FURTHER? WE MIGHT CALL, I'LL SAY BACK UP. OKAY. I'M GONNA CALL. THANK YOU. I I WANNA MAKE TWO QUICK POINTS. FIRST OF ALL, IT'S COMPLETELY IRRELEVANT THAT WE GAVE, THAT WE DID A PERMIT TO AN ADJACENT PROPERTY. ABSOLUTELY IRRELEVANT. UH, IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT WE UNDERSTAND THAT BECAUSE WE DON'T SELL SET PRECEDENTS FOR OTHER PROPERTIES. AND WHEN, THE SECOND POINT IS, IT'S GREAT TO HAVE AN EIGHT FOOT FENCE. I DON'T THINK I WOULD'VE APPROVED OF ANY OF THE, THE YELLOW DOTTED ONES. LIKE YOU SAID, IF WE WERE TO CHANGE SOME TIME AROUND, THOSE WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN PERMITTED. SO AGAIN, THOSE ARE, THOSE ARE IRRELEVANT TO THE EIGHT FOOT FENCE. NOW, BEING THAT IT'S AN ALLEYWAY, AND TO ME, OKAY, THAT'S KIND OF A COLLECT, I DON'T, I THINK THAT'S A COLLECTOR ROAD. I DON'T THINK WE COLLECT THERE ANYMORE, BUT THAT'S A COLLECTOR ROAD. UH, ON ONE SIDE OF THE PROPERTY, IT WAS MENTIONED THAT THE, THE MULTIFAMILY, I THINK IT, IT'S COMMERCIAL. SO THEY, THEY HAVE A, I THINK ONE OF THE SIDES IS LIKE COMMERCIAL, SO IT'S GONNA HAVE A DIFFERENT HEIGHT, RIGHT. IF IT'S MULTIFAMILY OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. I JUST THINK THAT WE, WE JUST NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT WE, IT MIGHT LOOK GREAT, BUT THERE'S STILL A, THERE'S STILL A REASON BEHIND IT. SO WE NEED TO LOOK AT THIS ONE INDIVIDUALLY. I AM NOT, YOU KNOW, THE, THE WAY THAT THE REST OF IT, WHEN WE LOOK AT IT LIKE THAT, IT'S, IT'S MORE WE DON'T WANT TO HAVE A PURPLE HOUSE, WHICH I USED TO HAVE. BUT, UM, DO YOU GUYS, WHAT DO YOU GUYS THINK? I, I AGREE WITH YOU. FOR THE MOST PART, THE, THE ONE THING THAT I DO THINK MAYBE IS SOMEWHAT RELEVANT ABOUT THE OTHER YELLOW DOTS IS MM-HMM . YOU KNOW, THE, THE OVERALL APPEARANCE OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD. OBVIOUSLY WE WANT IT TO BE EVERY NEIGHBORHOOD IN BURNING TO LOOK VERY NICE. MM-HMM . IF ALL OF THE SURROUNDING PROPERTIES HAVE SEVEN AND A HALF TO EIGHT FOOT FENCES, WOULD A SIX FOOT FENCE DECREASE THE APPEAL? I, I TOTALLY HEAR WHAT YOU'RE SAYING. AND WHAT, WHAT I WOULD SAY TO THAT IS THAT THEY DON'T RIGHT NOW, AND IF THEY'RE, AND TO YOUR POINT, NOT ALL OF 'EM ARE EIGHT FEET. AS A MATTER OF FACT, SOME OF 'EM ARE SEVEN AND A HALF, SOME OF THEM ARE NINE, YOU KNOW, THINGS LIKE THAT. RIGHT. SO THERE'S, THERE'S A UNIFIED A UNIFIED CODE FOR ONE THING. RIGHT. BUT, UH, IT, I, I JUST THINK THAT, THAT BEING SAID, I MEAN, IF THEY WERE ALL SIX FOOT FENCES AND THAT ONE WAS EIGHT FOOT, AND I THINK IT'S BEEN EIGHT FOOT [00:45:01] OR NINE 12 FOOT, HOWEVER, IT'S BEEN THAT, LIKE THAT FOR A LONG TIME. FOR, FOR REASONS, FOR HISTORICAL REASONS. I MEAN, I'M NOT, I'M NOT SAYING I'M COMPLETELY OPPOSED TO THIS. I JUST WANT EVERYBODY TO UNDERSTAND THAT THE ADJACENT PROPERTIES, IT'S ONLY IMPORTANT TO THE, I THINK TO THE CITY AND OBVIOUS TO US AS NEIGHBORS, THAT YOU DON'T WANT TO GRANT SOMETHING THAT'S GONNA TOTALLY CHANGE EVERYTHING. RIGHT. AND THE WAY THAT THE EXISTING PROPERTIES ARE AROUND IT, YOU DON'T WANT TO, YOU DON'T WANT TO REFLECT NEGATIVELY ON, ON THAT. SO, UM, I, I WENT BY THE PROPERTY, I MEAN, YOU GUYS HAVE SEEN THE FENCE. SOMETHING HAS GOT TO BE DONE ABOUT THAT FENCE. I, FOR SURE. UM, BUT, UH, I, I, I THINK IT'S A GOOD IDEA. IT'S A, IT'S A, UH, ON EITHER SIDE OF IT. IT'S, YOU KNOW, IT'S ALL EIGHT FOOT AROUND THE, THE FENCES NEXT TO HIM ARE BRAND NEW. I, I, I'D WANT A BRAND NEW FENCE AS WELL. DO WE HAVE ANYONE ELSE IN THE AUDIENCE THAT WANTED TO SPEAK? I DON'T REMEMBER IF YOU, I ASKED. OKAY. I'M SORRY. NOT, NOT FOR THIS ONE. I DID CHAIRMAN. I WAS ABOUT TO SAY SOMETHING. YEAH, IF THERE'S ANYBODY FROM THE AUDIENCE, I'M CURIOUS, IS THERE ANYBODY IN THE AUDIENCE, THESE TWO YOUNG LADIES IN THE BACK CAME ALL THE WAY UP HERE? WOULD Y'ALL LIKE TO SPEAK? WELL, YEAH. SOMETHING DOES NEED TO BE DONE. THAT SENSE. I MEAN, WELL COME ON, COME ON UP. THIS IS GREAT. THANKS JOSH. COME ON UP. WE NEED YOUR NAME. NOW THAT YOU'VE SPOKEN. YOU HAVE TO BE ON RECORD NOW. . OH, I DID NOT COME TO SPEAK. . . HERE YOU ARE. HOW ARE YOU? UH, MY NAME'S DEBBIE. HI, DEBBIE. HI. UM, I LIVE RIGHT OVER THERE. OH, COOL. AND YEAH, THAT RED FENCE. YEAH, IT DOES NEED TO GO DOWN AND CUTTING OFF A FOOT'S NOT GONNA DO A BLOOMING THING. . SO, I MEAN, I MEAN, IT'S GOT BIG SPACES IN BETWEEN. YOU'RE TAKING A LIP STOCK OFF OF THE PIG AT THAT POINT, I THINK IS WHAT WE HAVE , RIGHT? NO, WE REALLY JUST CAME TO SEE WHAT WAS GONNA BE BUILT THERE. BUT THAT'S PROBABLY NOT ON THE AGENDA. SO NO. NO. OKAY. THAT'S ALL I HAVE TO SAY THOUGH. HE DOES NEED A NEW FENCE. OKAY. THANK YOU DEBBIE. OKAY. WE'RE, I THINK WE FOUND A SUPPORTER. THANK YOU, DEBBIE. THANKS. NOW ALL OFFICIALLY . YEAH, I, I MOVE THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENTS EXCEPT THE FINDINGS AND APPROVE THE VARIANCE REQUEST. SECOND. OH MY GOSH. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. AYE. WOO-HOO. SAID AND DONE. THIS HEARING IS NOW ADJOURNED. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.