City of Harbor Springs's Zoning Board of Appeals April 12 2023

Detailed briefing

Harbor Springs Zoning Board of Appeals — April 12, 2023 • The board approved prior-meeting minutes with corrections. The corrections included a member's surname and mistaken date references in the draft minutes. The approval was by all-in-favor vote, with no opposition stated. • Bob Thoma was elected vice chair. The vice-chair nomination had been tabled at the January meeting and returned to the agenda in April. The board approved the nomination by an all-in-favor vote; no opposition was stated. • The board granted an extension for a previously approved variance involving an accessory building at 588 East Main Street, requested by Mark and Nancy Rondell. The prior variance allowed the proposed rear-yard building to exceed limits related to the principal building's size and height. • The extension was approved effective when the original variance grant expires, rather than simply from the April meeting date. Staff said the code allows one additional one-year extension. If work does not begin within that extension period, the applicants would need to submit a new variance request and repeat the review process. • The Rondells said their guest-quarters proposal had been submitted to the Planning Commission in February, but the commission could not vote in March because it lacked a quorum and was also not expected to vote in April. A special Planning Commission meeting was being considered for early May. Staff said the ZBA variance action must precede Planning Commission review because the project otherwise would not meet applicable zoning requirements. • The board adopted revised bylaws after reviewing a clean copy and redlined version. The revisions incorporated recommendations associated with updates to the Zoning Enabling Act and changed officer-election timing to January. The board said the document's adoption date would be changed from February 8 to April 12. Worth watching: • Whether the Planning Commission obtains a quorum and considers the Rondells' guest-quarters request at a special meeting discussed for early May. • Whether the Rondells secure the required approvals and permits and begin the project before the extended variance period ends. • Whether ZBA reference materials, including bylaws and decision matrices, are posted online for member access. Upcoming: No next ZBA meeting was identified; staff reported no variance applications had been submitted as of this meeting. Why it matters: The actions preserve a pending property proposal while updating the board's operating rules and highlighting delays caused by unavailable quorums.

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