Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout1977-08-01 MinutesMINUTES OF A BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MEETING A meeting of the Fayetteville Board of Adjustment was held on Monday, August 1, 1977, • in the Board of Directors Room, City Administration Building, Fayetteville, Arkansas. • • MEMBERS PRESENT: MEMBERS ABSENT: OTHERS PRESENT: Chairman Carl Yates, Dr. James White, David Newbern, Larry Smith, Mrs. Don Mills, Chester House. Richard Osborne. Bobbie Jones, Angie Medlock, Ernest R. Coleman, Lorraine Schmitz Myers, Mr. $ Mrs. Stanley Potts, Teddy Morelock, Mr. $ Mrs. Eddie Swiggert. Chairman Carl Yates called the meeting to order. The first item for consideration was the public hearing on the Appeal No. 77-17, Ernest R. Coleman for Realty Development Company, Inc., Rolling Meadows Phase II (proposed), on an application to vary lot width requirements or more specifically, he is asking for a lot width minimum of 65 feet at the 25 foot setback and the required is 70 feet at the 25 foot setback; and a 70 foot width at the 40 foot setback line. Ernest R. (Buddy) Coleman was present to represent. Bobbie Jones explained that under the Zoning Ordinance they can only require a front yard setback of 25 feet. She said in her opinion the 40 -foot setback line is enforceable by the property owners in the subdivision. She said they would have 78 feet of lot width at the 40 -foot setback line, but if they came in for a building permit she could only require a 25 -foot setback, even though the 40 -foot setback is shown on the plat. Mr. Yates said they could make the 40 -foot as the setback line as a condition of approval of the variance. Bobbie Jones noted that according to their letter, they will have 78 feet lot width at the 40 -foot setback line. Buddy Coleman said they have the 40 -foot setback line shown on the plat in order to preserve the trees there. He noted that these are larger lots and they are on the cul-de-sac. Chairman Yates asked if it would present any problems if they grant a variance with the stipulation that a house not be built any closer than 40 feet and Ernest R. Coleman said they would assume responsibility for enforcing the 40 -foot setback. He said they would be building on these lots themselves. David Newbern asked how he would effect the guarantee. Mr. Coleman said the engineer would check the setback line; also the Planning Office will check it when they issue a building permit; and they will have a final survey showing that the house sets back 40 feet .on the lot. He said the plat will be recorded and they will have a copy of the plot plan and also the abstract will be recorded with a copy of the plot plan. There was no one present to oppose the request. The public hearing was concluded. APPEAL NO. 77-17 Ernest R. Coleman Rolling Meadows Phase II The second item for consideration was the public hearing on Appeal No. 77-18, Lorraine Schmitz Myers, 3455 City Lake Road, on an application to vary lot frontage requirement on an improved dedicated street; or more specifically, she is asking the minimum required is 70 feet. Lorraine Schmitz Myers was present to represent. Ms. Myers pointed out that if she had 25 feet of frontage she could ask the Planning Commission for a tandem lot. She said her property is about 1,000 feet off the road. She said she sold the 8 acres in front and when she sold it she pointed out to her realtor and her attorney, David Horne, that she wanted to build on the back three acres APPEAL NO. 77-18 Lorraine Schmitz Myers 3455 City Lake Road for a lot frontage of 0 feet and 1\A • • • Board of Adjustment Meeting August 1, 1977 -2- and they both assured her the 20 -foot easement in her abstract would suffice. She said she has committed herself to moving a house from University Baptist Church and she has to move it by August 15. Mrs. Stanley Potts asked how wide the house would be and she said it would be 34 feet wide. Lorraine Schmitz Myers said they would have to cut the house in half to move it. She said the property would be useless to her unless she can build on it. Chairman Yates asked when she sold the property and Ms. Myers said the final closing was June 25. She said she came down to get a moving permit to move the house and found out that she could not move it onto her property. Chairman Yates asked if other houses use this 600 feet long lane for access and Lorraine Myers said it is a private drive. She said the drive goes 600 feet and she would have to take it back the other 400 feet. She said her realtor had assured her she would have an easement all the way back to her property. David Newbern asked how long Ms. Myers had owned the land which she sold and she said she had lived there from August 1975 until June and she got behind in the payments and had to sell it. Mrs. Don Mills asked if she has a 20 -foot easement from the end of this lane to her property and Mrs. Myers said she had told her real estate agent what she wanted, so she had to assume that she had the easement. Stanley Potts, owner of the property to the north, said the lane is a private drive between the two residences there. Each one owns to the center of the lane, and they both maintain it. David Newbern asked if Mrs. Myers has the right to use the ease- ment and Stanley Potts said he is not saying "she can't use it" but that they do each own to the center of the driveway. It is not a public road. He said he doesn't have any objection if the property owner to the south doesn't but said she would be respon- sible for her portion of maintaining the drive. Mrs. Potts noted that there are some huge boulders where Mrs. Myers property begins and said she doesn't know how they could move a house in there. Teddy Morelock, owner of the property to the south, asked for a clarification Of what Ms. Myers is asking for. Chairman Yates explained the frontage requirements of the zoning ordinance to him. Mr. Morelock noted that the fence on the south side is not exactly on the line and varies a maximum of 17 feet on City Lake Road to the line on the southwest boundary. Eddie Swiggert, who bought the land from Lorraine Myers, said there is no easement on back to her property. He said the abstract stated that she would have access to the regular road that leads back to her property, which is only 600 feet long. Lorraine Myers said she was assured by the realtor that in the abstract she has an easement all the way to her property. She said she had told him that she intended to build there. Chairman Yates asked Mr. Swiggert if he objected to her using the property and Mrs. Swiggert said not as long as she fences her property. David Newbern asked if she had talked to someone in the City before selling the property and she said "yes". She said she called the City to check on the water and they told her City water would be run to her property line. She explained that she did not expect the City to go to the expense of running it back 1,000 feet. Mr. Morelock said he is concerned about the type of house that will be put on the property. He said he would like to see a nice home there. The public hearing was concluded. Chester House said as long as they have the clearance on the side yards and the rear yard he feels they should approve the variance in Rolling Meadows, Phase II, as the developer wishes. David Newbern said he feels these lots meet the criteria for are off -shaped lots and the general plan has been approved. APPEAL NO. 77-17 Ernest R. Coleman Rolling Meadows Phase II granting a variance. They He said the kind of condition nog • Board of Adjustment Meeting August 1, 1977 -3- they should put on the variance if they approve it is what troubles him. He said the developer will guarantee the 40 -foot setback. He questioned if some sort of deed restriction should be required. He said even though the plat isa plat of record, it is still subject to interpretation. David Newbern made a motion to allow a lot width of 65 feet at the 25 -foot setback line and a note on the plat saying the actual building setback will be 40 feet. Mrs. Don Mills seconded the motion. Bobbie Jones said the developer will need to add a note on the plat to that effect. The motion, made by David Newbern and seconded by Don Mills passed unanimously. Chairman Yates asked for an opinion from the City Attorney about the 40 -foot setback being shown on the filed plat. Can the planning office enforce those or is it up to the other property owners in the subdivision? David Newbern agreed with Mr. Yates that the APPEAL NO. 77-18 Board of Adjustment is not here to settle a Lorraine Schmitz Myers dispute of whether or not there is an easement 3455 City Lake Road all the way to Mrs. Myers'property. Mrs. Mills said it bothered her that Ms. Myers had been to the abstract company, a realtor, and an attorney and had taken what they told her at face value. She said Ms. Myers' problem is not really through any fault of her own. Chairman Yates asked Mr. Swiggert if there is any possibility that they could work out the transfer of a 25 foot strip of land across the north side to her property so she could go to the Planning Commission for a tandem lot development. Lorraine Myers said she wouldn't have the funds to purchase the 25 foot strip of land to City Lake Road. Larry Smith suggested they deed the land to her and let her grant them an easement to it. Then, if she sold the property, they could still use the easement as they wished. David Newbern said the question is if they want her to have this property without access to a public road. He said perhaps her attorney was thinking of an "easement of necessity" when he assured her she would have access. He said the thing that bothers him is that she is not going to be able to use the property without a variance and he feels that is a fairly compelling hardship. David Newbern questioned if this case could be distinguishable from the case the Board of Adjustment had last week and Chairman Yates said the only difference he could see is that part of it was outside the City. David Newbern said he feels this is not what the Board of Adjustment is here to do and he feels the realtor and abstractor should be responsible. David Newbern made a motion to grant the variance. Chester House seconded the motion, which passed unanimously. The minutes of the July 18, 1977 Board of Adjustment meeting were MINUTES approved as mailed. Bobbie Jones asked for a clarification of the WELLS BONE variance granted to Kelley Bros. Lumber and Supply KELLEY BROS. LUMBER CO. Company on June 6, 1977. Bobbie Jones said they came to the Board of Adjustment for a variance because there is a 50 -foot sewer easement across the back of the property. She said the Zoning Ordinance requires the building setback to be from the roof overhang and the drawing, she didn't realize, calls for the setbacks to be from the wall. This would involve a variance of 16 inches to the south toward the side property line and an additional 16" on the front yard variance. Bobbie Jones said she doesn't think the Board of Adjustment has the power to allow them to build over the sewer 11� • • • Board of Adjustment Meeting August 1, 1977 -4- easement. She said the Board of Adjustment needs to clarify that they will find the roof overhang permissable as a setback rather than the wall. David Newbern made a motion to grant the additional 16" variance to the variance granted previously for building the roof overhang and a 16" variance on the south side yard setback. Dr. White seconded the motion, which passed unanimously. Chairman Yates said the Rules of Procedure require ELECTION OF OFFICERS having a new chairman appointed after the first meeting of the month in July. After some discussion, Dr. White made a motion to nominate Carl Yates. Don Mills seconded the motion. On a motion by David Newbern, the nominations were closed and the election scheduled for the August 15 meeting. There was some discussion about a new form for applicants to fill out when requesting a variance. Chairman Yates said the person asking for the variance needs to have looked at all of the possibilities before asking for a variance. Dr. White suggested giving them a copy of the Zoning Ordinance and asking what is peculiar about the property so that they should be entitled to a variance. The meeting was adjourned at 5:15 P. M. 120