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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1983-03-07 Minutes1 MINUTES OF A BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MEETING A meeting of the Board of Adjustment was held at 3:45 P.M. on Monday, March 7, 1983 in Room 209 of the Continuing Education Center, Center Street and East Avenue, Fayetteville, Arkansas MEMBERS PRESENT: Chairman Chester House, Mrs. Don Mills, Butch Robertson, Dennis Becker, David Crittenden, Larry Tompkins MEMBERS ABSENT: OTHERS PRESENT: Robert Waldren Rev. Kermit Mullin, Jim Sandra Carlisle, Connie Suzanne Kennedy Galloway, Johnny Quinn, Edmonston, Bobbie Jones, It was moved by Don Mills, MINUTES seconded by Larry Tompkins and passed, 6-0, that the Minutes of the January 3, 1983 meeting be approved as mailed. Public hearing was opened by APPEAL NO. 83-1 the Chairman on Appeal No. 83-1, NEW LIFE CHAPEL New Life Chapel, 5255 Wedington 5255 WEDINGTON DRIVE Drive, on an application to vary the minimum acreage and setback requirements for a mobile home on a lot (not within a mobile home park) inside the City of Fayetteville. Rev. Kermit Mullin and Jim Galloway were present. Rev. Mullin stated they wish to place a 14' x 70' trailer 50 feet from the south property line of the church's property for use as a parsonage on a temporary basis. He said he now lives 25 miles from the church. He said the property adjacent to the south and east is pasture owned by Mr. Poole who has no objections. Rev. Mullin said the church would eventually like to purchase Mr. Poole's house for a parsonage, or build a new one. Larry Tompkins asked Bobbie Jones if there is some agreement on how long a temporary time period should be. Rev. Mullin stated the church hopes to have the new parsonage in less than three years. In answer to a question from Tompkins, Rev. Mullin explained the vandalism he referred to in his application is the problem of people parking by the church property and drinking and spinning cars around. Crittenden asked where the parsonage would be built and Rev. Mullin said it is planned to be west of the trailer site, close to the county road and that the trailer would not have to be moved during construction. He said the church is presently on septic tank and they would want the mobile home to use the same septic system. Bobbie Jones explained the County Health Department must approve the use of the septic tank for the mobile home, even though the church was once approved for a day care center they no longer have. Chairman House asked if there were other churches with mobile homes in the area and Rev. Mullin said he knew the Pentecostal Church had one and the Bethel Baptist Church did have one. • • Board of Adjustment Minutes March 7, 1983 Page Two Bobbie Jones suggested, if a time limit is considered, it be specified whether the time limit applies to the completion of the structure or if it applies to the time in which to obtain a building permit. David Crittenden brought up the topic of the need for the City Office to find a way to monitor variances which have been granted with time limits. Bobbie Jones said a permit for a temporary mobile home must be renewed annually and any condition placed on the issuance of the temporary permit should come up each year. There was no one present to speak in favor of or against the petition. Chairman Chester House closed the public hearing. The second public hearing on the agenda was for Appeal No. 83-2, City of Fayetteville Community Development Project, Walker Park North, located north of West 13th Street and west of South Block Avenue, on an application to waive the requirement for on-site parking. Sandra Carlisle was present representing the City's Community Development Dept., Johnny Quinn was present for McClelland Engineers and Connie Edmonston for the City Parks and Recreation Department. Mr. Quinn stated the request is for a temporary waiver of the on-site parking requirement, and explained the playing fields are designed closely together, that there are existing trees they are trying to preserve for the Park, and they do not wish to develop paved parking on the site. Quinn explained the Parks and Recreation Department will be nego- tiating with the owners of the Naval Reserve facility immediately north of the park site for constructing parking spaces on Naval Reserve property. Quinn stated the request for street parking on one side of Block Avenue should accommodate approximately 45 parking spaces and they expect to need 15 immediately and 32 spaces ultimately. Quinn stated he did not see any other need for parking along the area of Block they wish to use. Sandra Carlisle explained only the two center fields are slated for construction at this time and it will be about a year before they are playable. It was determined that the 99 -year lease for the Naval Reserve facility was executed in 1937. Larry Tompkins stated he did not think 45 spaces would be adequate for two playing fields. Carlisle explained that monies are available in the budget to construct the parking lot at the Naval Reserve facility next year. Tompkins asked if any of the available parking south of the property would be used. Quinn said, when the other fields are not being used and if spots are available, they would use that area. Connie Edmonston explained there is about a one or two month overlap when softball and soccer fields are being used at the same time.. APPEAL NO. 83-2 WALKER PARK NORTH COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT CITY OF FAYETTEVILLE 3_A Board of Adjustment Minutes March 7, 1983 Page Three Quinn explained the plans for permanent parking would be an extension of some existing parking already at the Naval Reserve facility and that there would be access from Block Street, slightly north of the north property edge of the park. Larry Tompkins and Chester House noted the playing fields were designed so that the players would be looking into the sun. David Crittenden noted that, in essence, the request is for a variance to allow the development to take place, with the parking question to be taken care of later since, whether the variance is granted or not, you most likely could not stop people from parking on Block Street anyway. Larry Tompkins stated the City of Fayetteville should be the first ones to be responsible for providing off-street parking and that they should be the first ones to recognize and carry out their own ordinances. He said he would go along with a temporary variance only. With no further questions, the Chairman closed the public hearing. Chester House asked the Board APPEAL NO. 83-1 to consider Appeal No. 83-1. Butch Robertson stated he did not see any hardship in the New Life Chapel request. Don Mills did not think the Board of Adjustment should have authority to grant a variance on the setback for the mobile home, since the property does not meet the three acre requirement. Bobbie Jones said she had checked with the City Attorney and he said, because the 3 acres and 100 feet setback requirements are bulk and area requirements, the Board of Adjustment is the appropriate body to hear the request. Jones explained several different Code requirements which apply to this case. She said, for a mobile home outside a mobile home park, there is a requirement for three acres or more and setbacks of 100 feet from any property line. She said, in the agricultural zones, there requirement of two acres. Jones said, in the subdivision regulations, sewer, there is a 11 acre requirement for a new by the Board of Directors. Jones said, because the lots were platted back in the SO's before the City had adopted subdivision regulations for a Growth Area in 1966, the property cannot be considered under the 111 acre requirement. Mills asked who is responsible for the Code that states the acreage for a septic tank. Jones said the City Code requires that new lots created after 1977 must have 11 acres for -a septic tank. Septic tank permits must be approved by the County Health Department. Lots created before 1977, less than 11/2 acres, and approved for septic tank permits by the Health Department, are accepted by the City. Jones stated, regardless of actions by the Board of Adjustment, the County Health Department must approve the issuance of the septic tank permit. Mills said she still feels, since this involves septic tanks, the issue is out of the jurisdiction of the Board of Adjustment. Rev. Mullin said he had chosen the mobile home site to be thirty feet away from the future parking site, so that if he moved the mobile home back far enough away to meet the 100 foot is a minimum lot size for a lot not on a public lot, which can only be waived setback it would be in the 4 • Board of Adjustment Minutes March 7, 1983 Page Four future parking area. He reminded Dr. Crittenden that they still need a variance from the three acre requirement as well as the variance from the setback requirement. Crittenden said he thought the request for the mobile home to be temporary and to prevent vandalism was reasonable and poses a legitimate hardship. He said he thought a time limit on the setback requirement and perhaps the acreage would not hurt the surrounding property, since it is just pastureland. He would not approve a permanent variance. Crittenden recommended again that a mechanism be set up in City Hall for monitoring time limits placed on variances, since he has seen instances where the work has never been done. Dennis Becker asked what would happen if the property changed hands and the owner had a violent objection to a mobile home. Jones explained a statement must be signed stating if the property is sold or rezoned by the property owners' actions or divided down into smaller pieces of property, the mobile home would have to be removed. Becker said he would be in favor of the variance with a time limit. Tompkins said he thought the time limit would be an aide to finishing the construction of a new building and he. -sees no conflict with the Master Street Plan. Chester House asked if they had already purchased the mobile home. Rev. Mullin said they had not, but had considered a maximum size in their request. Larry Tompkins moved to approve the variance with a three-year temporary time limit for removal of the mobile home, to be renewable every year in conformance with present policy. The motion was seconded by Dennis Becker and passed, 4-2, with Butch Robertson and Chester House voting "nay". Chester House asked the APPEAL NO. 83-2 Board to consider Appeal No. 83-2. Butch Robertson said he would approve of the use of on -street parking as he feels Block Street was built for that purpose. Tompkins said the request is reasonable, but reiterated the City is the first one who should stand by its regulations and he feels that, ultimately, there needs to be off-street parking in this area as there will be dynamic use over the next five years, particularly if there will be night use of the playing fields. Connie Edmonston said it will be three to five years before the additional fields will be built. Becker said he felt the variance should be tied to a time limit, and said, in keeping with Tompkins' comments, the City should be "looking at its own business". Crittenden said this might be a moot point since, if a time limit is placed on the variance and the playing is not built, would the playing fields if only two fields are scheduled to be were not designed to include a parking fields are built but the parking lot be then moved? Crittenden asked, built at this time, why the plans lot. S v • • Board of Adjustment Minutes March 7, 1983 Page Five Sandra Carlisle said a Master Plan was designed by Northwest Engineers years ago. Crittenden asked if the Engineers did not know that there were parking requirements when they came up with the design. Quinn said he thought the engineers may have intended all along for there to be off-site parking at the Naval Reserve facility. Sandra Carlisle said there is money in the Community Development budget which could be used for building a parking lot on the Naval Reserve property. Don Mills said she felt a variance should have a time limit. David Crittenden asked Bobbie Jones if there were plans to install "no parking" signs on one side of Block Street. Bobbie Jones said the street standards say a 31 foot street is designed for parking on one side and the Board of Directors would have to direct that there be no parking on one side of the street and they have not yet done that. Crittenden moved to approve the requested variance to allow on -street parking with a time limit of two MOTION years and, after that time, off-site parking would have to be provided. The motion was seconded by Butch Robertson and passed, 6-0, with Robert Waldren absent. There was some discussion OTHER BUSINESS on why the Rules of Procedure call for public hearings to be held on every appeal before any discussion or vote is taken. It was decided that the possibility of changing this rule would be considered as the first item on the next agenda. With no further business, the meeting ended at 4:40 P.M. 6