Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting

Detailed briefing

ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS — March 11, 2026 ATTENDEES: Kim Morris, Wendy Reed, John Leo, Ron Turner, Janie Jenkins and Chip Everest, who participated by Zoom. Sue Stewart was absent. Property owner Sean O’Brien and public commenter Bob Garguro also spoke. • With the regular chair absent, the board nominated and selected Kim Morris to chair the meeting. Members also approved the prior meeting minutes. • The board unanimously approved the requested dimensional variance for 417 East Main Street, with five yes votes recorded in the roll call. Members found that the property has unique physical constraints, that strict application of the zoning rules would be unfair or unnecessarily burdensome, and that there was no reasonable alternative to a variance. • The property owner described a lot roughly 33 feet wide and a house built in 1890 that already sits about 1.2 to 1.4 feet from a property line. The proposed one-story house addition would be about 1.5 feet from the property line. The owner clarified that it would add a bathroom to an existing bedroom rather than create another bedroom. • The proposal also replaces a deteriorating one-car accessory building with a wider, two-car, two-story accessory building containing guest quarters. The owner said the completed project would remain at the city’s 40% lot-coverage limit. The accessory building has been moved back to meet the current 20-foot setback from Third Street. • Board discussion addressed the approximately three-foot grade drop across the proposed garage area, how the foundation would appear from the lower side, and the need to avoid directing excess stormwater onto neighboring properties. The owner also said an oak tree near the property line would most likely need to be removed because its root ball would be affected. • The board heard that written support had been received from the two contiguous property owners. No opposition was stated during the recorded discussion. Worth watching: 1. The accessory building and proposed guest quarters still require Planning Commission special land use review, where neighborhood impacts and the use itself will be considered. 2. Final grading and drainage must avoid excess runoff onto neighboring properties. 3. The likely removal of the oak tree remains part of the anticipated construction impact. Upcoming: Planning Commission review of the special land use request; no meeting date was provided. Why it matters: The approval allows alterations to a constrained historic property while leaving the accessory-building use and neighborhood impacts for further city review.

No open public follow-ups are linked to this meeting yet.