Board Of Zoning Appeals Grants Residential Owner’s Variance Request To Build Garage In Front Yard

The Board of Zoning Appeals met 05/20/2024. One of the items they took up was a variance request from a property owner on Estherbrook Court wanting to build a garage 25 feet from the front property line which was closer to the front property line than the principal building. The zoning ordinance prohibits detached accessory buildings in the front yard.

This was a very straightforward variance request that the board decided in less than 10 minutes, unanimously voting in favor of it after determining that the property’s proximity to a ravine made any other area of the land unbuildable.

I’ve prepared a transcript of the discussion for download:

Charles and Kara, the property owners, appeared before the board and made their case for the variance. They currently had two garages that were old and deteriorating. They wanted to tear them down and build a new, two-stall garage in the same area. The new garage would take up less space than the existing two garages. Their property is at the end of a cul de sac, the house is set back from the street, and the driveway is bordered on both sides by a ravine. The house was built on a peak where two ravines met and there was not a lot of buildable area due to the drop-offs on either side of the house.

This was a very straightforward case, and board member Scott Engstrom made a motion to approve based on “the unique topography. It’s a unique lot. There’s not a lot of buildable area. You’re kind of limited also, when you have that ravine and the change of slope. So, I think that they’ve demonstrated a hardship based on the unique conditions of the property.”

Right before the board was going to take a vote, a member of the public raised his hand and voiced concerns about the garage and how it might potentially impact drainage on the street. However, upon further instruction it turned out that the member of the public was actually concerned about a variance request to allow a garage to be built on a lot on Leminwah Street. The Leminwah Street variance had appeared on the agenda, but apparently, it was not going to be discussed that night and would be taken up at the June Board of Zoning Appeals meeting

The board went on to vote 5-0 in favor of granting the variance request.

View full meeting details and video here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1191899&GUID=D427C620-E4F2-4434-9C67-2C2B0CC3D3DF