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Home My WebLink AboutBZA Decision Letter - Appeal 3051 - 661-665 Spencer Rd. (Schickel ) - 12-6-16CITY OF ITHACA 108 E. Green Street — 3rd Floor Ithaca, NY 14850-5690 DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING, BUILDING, ZONING, & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Division of Zoning PI YLLIS RADKE, DIRECTOR OF ZONING ADMINISTRATION Telephone: Planning & Development — 607-274-6550 E -Mail: cpyott@cityofithaca.org CITY OF ITHACA BOARD of ZONING APPEALS Area Variance Findings & Decision Appeal No.: 3051 Applicant: Tom Schickel on behalf of Tompkins Community Action (TC Action) Property Location: 661-665 Spencer Road. Zoning District: R -2b Publication Dates: November 17 and November 18, 2016. Appeal of Thomas Schickel, on behalf Tompkins County and Tompkins Community Action (TCAction), owners of properties addressed 661 and 665 Spencer Road, for a Special Permit to operate a child daycare center as required by Zoning Ordinance Section 325-9 C. (1) (e), and for area variances from Section 325- 8, Columns 10 and 11, Percentage of Lot Coverage and Front Yard Setback requirements, and Section 325- 20 E. (3) and 325-20 F. (3) (a) [2], restrictions placed on constructing parking spaces in front and rear yards. The applicant proposes to demolish two buildings at 661 and 665 Spencer Road. The existing building at 661 Spencer Road is a daycare center, which has been operating under a Special permit granted to TC - Action on October 2, 2012 by the Board of Zoning Appeals. The applicant proposes to construct an 8,715 - SF child daycare center at 661-665 Spencer Road and requests a Special Permit to operate the new, larger daycare center at 661-665 Spencer Road, which will provide 5 classrooms for Head Start programs. The applicant seeks a variance from the maximum percentage of lot coverage allowed in the R -2a zone, which will be exceeded by the proposal to construct a larger daycare center at 661-665 Spencer Road. The property at 665 Spencer Road is a portion of a larger parcel addressed as 665-711 Spencer Road. In order to construct the new daycare center, the parcel at 665-711 Spencer Road will be consolidated with the parcel at 661 Spencer Road. The parcel at 661-711 Spencer Road is located on the west end of Spencer Road and straddles the SW -2 and R -2a zone lines. Buildings addressed 701-711 Spencer Road are located on the south end of the parcel and are in the SW -2 zoning district. The location of the proposed daycare at 661-665 Spencer Road is in the R -2a zone. The Ordinance requires each building comply with the District Regulations Requirements for the zone in which it is located. However, because 661 Spencer Road will be consolidated with the parcel at 665-711 Spencer Road, percentage of lot coverage for the new daycare center is based on the amount of building area on the entire consolidated lot that will to be addressed 661-711 Spencer Road. The R -2a zone allows a maximum of 30% lot coverage. The overall lot coverage of the buildings on the consolidated parcel will be 39.2% A variance from the front yard set -back requirement is needed because the two parcels' (665-711 and 661 Spencer Road) street front property line is deeded to the center of the road. As a result, the City has a 50' right-of-way (ROW) that encroaches 25' into both parcels. For the two parcels, it is the ROW line, not the property line that determines the front yard. As a result, the applicant requests a variance from Section 325-8, Column 11, requiring a minimum front yard depth of 25 feet for the proposed daycare center at 661-665 Spencer Road with a front yard depth of 17'8". The applicant also seeks variances for parking area restrictions in both front and rear yards. The proposed daycare center's design includes 2 parking spaces and a drive-through drop-off area in the front yard of the new daycare center. The 2 parking spaces and maneuvering area in the drop-off zone will utilize 54.4% of the front yard. Section 325-20 E. (3) restricts parking and maneuvering areas to 25% of the front yard. In addition, the applicant proposes an additional 16 parking spaces, for a total of 18 spaces, on the proposed daycare center's site in which 11 parking spaces will be located in the required rear yard. Section 325-20 F. (3) (a) [1] states in part that parking is prohibited within the required rear yard set -back area. The property at 661-665 Spencer Road is located in an R -2a residential use district in which the proposed child daycare center use is permitted by Special Permit; and Sections 325-38 and 325-39 require zoning deficiencies be granted variances before a Building Permit or Certificate of Occupancy is issued Meeting Held On: November 28, 2016. Requirement for Which Variance is Requested: Percentage of Lot Coverage, Front Yard Setback, Restrictions placed on constructing parking spaces in front and rear yards. Applicable Section of City Zoning Code: Section 325-8, Columns 10 and 11, and Sections 325-20 E. (3) and 325-20 F. (3) (a) [2]. Public Hearing Held On: November 28, 2016. No one spoke for or against the Appeal. Members Present: Steven Beer, Chair Teresa Deschanes Marshall McCormick Moriah Tebor Tompkins County Review per Section 239 -1 & -m of New York State General Municipal Law: Tompkins County has reviewed the proposal, as submitted and has determined that it has no negative intercommunity, or county wide impacts. Environmental Review: Type: 1 The City of Ithaca Planning and Development Board determines the proposed project will result in no significant impact on the environment and that a Negative Declaration for purposes of Article 8 of the Environmental Conservation Law be filed in accordance with the provisions of Part 617 of the State Environmental Quality Review Act. Planning & Development Board Recommendation: The Planning Board did not identify any long term planning impacts regarding this appeal. This is an unusual site both in its typography and the fact that it extends into the City ROW. This project is providing needed services and infill. Motion: A motion to grant the variance request was made by Marshall McCormick. Factors Considered: 1. Whether an undesirable change would be produced in the character of the neighborhood or a detriment to nearby properties: Yes ❑ No Findings: This is a very unique property where the end of a residential district abuts a sprawling commercial district as well as the dense open green space of Buttermilk Falls. The increased lot coverage and reduced setbacks will not change the character of the neighborhood due to the Developer's design which is sensitive to screening, tree planting, and surrounding green areas. 2. Whether the benefit sought by the applicant can be achieved by a feasible alternative to the variance: Yes ❑ No FJ Findings: There are many services needed in the community and in this area TC Action would like to provide services on a relatively small lot which is difficult to develop because of its typography and shape. 3. Whether the requested variance is substantial: Yes ❑ No Findings: With respect to pure numbers, the percentage of lot coverage and setback variance are not large. Percentage of lot coverage is approximately 9% and there is a small discrepancy in the front yard required setback. The ones that may sound large are the front and rear yard percentage of allowed parking area. However, the parking in the rear yard abuts solely green space and the rear yard parking location is not near residential areas. Furthermore, a proposed driveway will provides a drop off zone which will help eliminate the need for more parking spaces. 4. Would the variance have an adverse impact on the physical or environmental conditions in the neighborhood: Yes ❑ No Findings: There are no findings that the proposal will cause any adverse impact on the neighborhood's physical or environmental conditions. Aside from the Planning Board's Negative Declaration for the required environmental review, the Board of Zoning Appeals also finds the project will not cause adverse conditions. 5. Whether the alleged difficulty was self-created: Yes ® No ❑ Findings: The project is self- created in that the Applicant does not have to redevelop the property in a manner that would create or exacerbate the need for zoning variances. However, we find that this factor is not determinative and also is outweighed by the Community services this proposal will provide. Second Motion to Grant Variance: Teresa Deschanes Vote: Steven Beer, Chair: Yes Teresa Deschanes: Yes Marshall McCormick: Yes Moriah Tebor: Yes Determination of BZA Based on the Above Factors: The BZA, taking into consideration the five factors, finds that the Benefit to the Applicant outweighs the Determinant to the Neighborhood or Community. The BZA further finds that variances from Zoning Ordinance, Section 325-8, Columns 10 and 11, and Sections 325-20 E. (3) and 325-20 F. (3) (a) [2], are the minimum variances that should be granted in order to preserve and protect the character of the neighborhood and the health, safety, and welfare of the community. December 6, 2016 Secrettry,and of Z ing Appeals Date Directf nin dministration