7.b 2 Variance from front setback for accessory structure - 21203 Lofton Ave.
Memorandum
To: Scandia City Council
Reference: Gonzalez Variance Application
Copies To: Neil Soltis, City
Administrator
Brenda Eklund, City Clerk Project No.: 16322.009
Kevin and Anna Gonzales,
applicants
From: Sherri Buss, RLA AICP,
Planner
Routing:
Date: July 11, 2017
SUBJECT: Gonzalez Variance Request for Accessory Structure
MEETING DATE: July 18, 2017
LOCATION: 21203 Lofton Avenue North
APPLICANTS: Kevin and Anna Gonzalez
ZONING: General Rural (GR) District
60-DAY PERIOD: July 30, 2017
ITEMS REVIEWED: Application and Plan received May 19, 2017
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE REQUEST:
The applicant is requesting a variance to build a 40’x50’ accessory building closer to the
roadway right-of-way than the principal building on the property. The proposed building
setback from Lofton Avenue right-of-way is 78 feet. The property is located in the General Rural
(GR) District.
DETAILED EVALUATION OF THE SUBDIVISION REQUEST:
The Development Code Chapter 2, Section 3.2, requires that “No detached accessory structure,
including storage sheds shall be located closer to the road right-of-way in relation to the front lot
line than the principal building on a lot, unless the following conditions are met:
1. The parcel is located on a lakeshore.
Gonzalez Variance Staff Report
Scandia City Council Page 2 July 18, 2017
2. The accessory structure is located on a lot of five (5) acres or more and is placed at
least 200 feet from the road right-of-way; or
3. The accessory structure is located on a parcel that is less than five (5) acres in size and
is necessary to meet the Exterior Storage requirements of this Chapter.
The front lot line is the property line located on a public roadway—in this case, it is Lofton
Avenue. The parcel is 34.6 acres in size, and the applicants propose to place the building 78
feet from the roadway right-of-way. The parcel is divided by Lofton Avenue, and the portion of
the parcel on the east side of Lofton is over 10 acres in size and has over 1,000 feet of road
frontage.
The applicants are requesting a variance to place the accessory in the proposed location so that
it is accessible to the primary structure, while avoiding impacts to the mature wooded areas and
wetland areas on the parcel. A location that is farther from the roadway than the primary
structure, or 200’ or more from the roadway, would impact the existing woodlands and wetlands
on the property.
The City has not granted permission to locate accessory structures on portions of parcels
divided by roadways that do not include the primary structure in the past (such as the portion of
the Gonzalez parcel that is west of Lofton Avenue) because the parcel could be subdivided in
the future leaving an accessory building on a parcel without a primary structure. While an
accessory building might be located on the western portion in a position that is farther from the
roadway than the primary structure, meeting the literal language in the code, the intent of the
language is to make the accessory structure “subordinate” to the primary structure by placing it
to the side or behind the primary structure. A stand-alone building on the portion of the parcel
west of Lofton Avenue would not appear subordinate, and therefore would likely not meet the
intent of the Code.
Comprehensive Plan
The Comprehensive Plan states that the General Rural (GR) District is a residential area of
mixed lot sizes. The intent of the district is to establish a rural residential area that meets the
Metropolitan Council requirement for rural communities that overall densities shall not exceed 1
housing unit per 10 acres. Residential accessory structures, such as garages, are a permitted
use in the GR District. The proposed accessory structure is generally consistent with the goals
of the Comprehensive Plan for the uses permitted in the GR District.
The Comprehensive Plan also includes goals to protect woodlands and wetlands and rural
views in Scandia along roadways such as Lofton Avenue. The Planning Commission may
consider whether the existing trees along the Lofton Avenue right-of-way provide screening to
protect the rural views along the roadway if the accessory building is permitted in the proposed
location, or if additional screening is needed to meet the goals of the Comprehensive Plan.
Lot Size and Setbacks
The applicants’ lot is 34.66 acres in size, and exceeds the minimum 2.0-acre lot size permitted
in the GR District.
The required setbacks in the GR District include the following:
Gonzalez Variance Staff Report
Scandia City Council Page 3 July 18, 2017
Front: 40 feet
Side: 20 feet
Rear: 50 feet
100 feet from the centerline or 50 feet from the right-of-way of collector roadways (Lofton
is identified as a collector roadway in the 2030 Comprehensive Plan)
The sketch that the applicants provided indicates that the proposed accessory building would
meet the setback requirements. The building is proposed to be 78 feet from the right-of-way of
Lofton Avenue, 27 feet from the nearest side lot line, and exceeds the other setback
requirements.
Accessory Structures
The property includes one existing accessory structure that is approximately 800 square feet in
size. The Development Code permits up to 2 residential accessory structures with a total area
of 5,500 square feet and no limit on agricultural buildings. The proposed structure would be
2,000 square feet in size. The number and size of accessory buildings proposed meets the
ordinance requirement.
Lot Coverage
The GR District allows up to 25% lot coverage by impervious surfaces.
The Planner calculated the lot coverage including the existing and proposed structure, and it
would be approximately 1% of the parcel. The lot coverage meets the code requirement.
Building Height
The proposed building will be approximately 21 feet tall. The Development Code permits a
maximum building height of 35 feet in the GR District. The building meets the ordinance height
requirement.
Wastewater Treatment
The proposed expansion does not require additional wastewater treatment on the parcel.
Stormwater Management and Land Alteration
No alteration is proposed in the grades on the site.
The Planner sent the application to the Carnelian-Marine-St. Croix Watershed District for
review. If the District provides comments they will be presented at the Planning Commission
meeting on July 11.
The City’s ordinance requires that the applicants obtain a land alteration and grading permit if
1,000 square feet or more of land area will be disturbed for the proposed expansion. The
applicants should obtain the land alteration and grading permit if needed as part of the building
permit.
Gonzalez Variance Staff Report
Scandia City Council Page 4 July 18, 2017
Driveway/Access and Right-of-Way
The applicants propose to access the building using an extension from the existing driveway.
The driveway is located on the parcel to the north, which is owned by a family member and may
be owned by the applicants in the future. The applicants’ parcel has an existing access
easement from the parcel to the north for the driveway that includes the area for the proposed
extension of the driveway.
The Planner sent the application to the City Engineer and Washington County to review. The
Engineer commented that “I have reviewed this application and from the information submitted
would have no objection or additional conditions of approval other than confirming with
Washington County that the distance from the roadway is adequate.”
Washington County responded that its right-of-way on Lofton is 120 feet wide—60 feet each
way from the center of Lofton. The County staff had no objection to the proposed location of the
accessory building given its rural location.
Landscape Plan/Screening
The Planning Commission recently amended the Accessory Structure section of the ordinance
to provide options to permit accessory structures between the primary structure and the
roadway if the setbacks and screening were adequate to maintain the rural character of the
area. The goal of the amendment was to provide for storage of property on sites where it was
difficult to locate the storage building(s) behind the primary structure. In this case, the
woodlands and wetlands of the parcel make it difficult to locate the storage building behind the
home, and there are existing conifers on the property to the north and along the Lofton right-of-
way that will provide screening of the proposed building.
The Planning Commission should review the existing screening on the site visit, and determine
if additional screening is needed to preserve the views along Lofton from the south of the
proposed structure. The Planner has proposed a condition for approval that the applicants shall
maintain the existing screening along Lofton Avenue.
DETAILED DISCUSSION OF THE VARIANCE REQUEST
Chapter 1, Section 6.0 of the Development Code includes the criteria and required process for
considering variance requests. Variances may only be granted when the terms of the variance
are consistent with the Comprehensive Plan and in harmony with the general purpose and
intent of the development code. The variance criteria include:
1. The applicant proposes to use the property in a reasonable manner not permitted by the
Development Code.
2. The plight of the landowner is due to circumstances unique to the property not created
by the landowner.
3. The variance, if granted, will not alter the essential character of the locality.
4. Economic conditions alone shall not constitute practical difficulties.
5. The proposed variance will not impair an adequate supply of light and air to adjacent
property, or substantially increase the congestion of the public streets, or increase the
danger of fire, or endanger the public safety, or substantially diminish or impair property
values within the neighborhood.
Gonzalez Variance Staff Report
Scandia City Council Page 5 July 18, 2017
6. The required variance is the minimum action required to eliminate the practical difficulty.
7. Practical difficulties include, but are not limited to, inadequate access to direct sunlight
for solar energy systems.
Applicants’ Rationale for the Variance
The applicants stated that the practical difficulties that prevent them from locating the accessory
building in a location that is farther from the road right-of-way than the primary structure are the
location of mature woodlands and location of wetlands on the parcel. A location on the parcel
that is farther from the road than the primary structure would have negative impacts to those
resources.
Findings
The following bullets present the Planner’s findings related to the Gonzalez request for a
variance, based on the statutory criteria for granting a variance. Each of the criteria is shown in
italics:
Variances shall only be permitted when they are in harmony with the general purposes
and intent of the official control.
Granting the requested variance is in harmony with the purposes and intent of the
Comprehensive Plan and Development Code based on the following:
The proposed use of the parcels for a single-family residence and an accessory
structure is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan goals and policies for the
General Rural District.
The Comprehensive Plan includes goals to preserve mature woodlands and
wetlands, and the proposed building location is consistent with those goals. A
location farther from the roadway that the primary structure would impact the
woodlands or wetlands on the parcel.
The Comprehensive Plan includes goals to maintain rural views. The proposed
structure would be screened by conifers along the Lofton right-of-way and on the
property to the north that will help to maintain the rural views of the site from Lofton
Avenue North.
The city has recently updated the standards for Accessory Structures to provide
expanded options to locate storage buildings between the primary building and the
roadway to meet the City’s policies for exterior storage. The proposed structure is
consistent with those standards.
The property owner proposes to use the property in a reasonable manner under the
conditions allowed by official control(s).
Single Family Residences and their accessory structures are reasonable uses in the GR
District.
The practical difficulties are not caused by the landowner, and are unique to the
property.
Gonzalez Variance Staff Report
Scandia City Council Page 6 July 18, 2017
The practical difficulties are caused by the location of the mature trees and wetlands on
the property, and these conditions were not created by the landowner.
The variance would not alter the essential character of the area.
The applicants’ property is surrounded by large agricultural parcels that include
accessory buildings. The woodlands on the applicants’ parcel and nearby parcels will
screen the proposed building from view from the adjacent parcels. Granting the
variance would not alter the essential character of the area.
Economic conditions alone shall not constitute practical difficulties.
The practical difficulties are caused by the location of existing mature trees and wetlands
on the parcel. The difficulties are not related solely to economic conditions.
The proposed variance will not impair an adequate supply of light and air to adjacent
property, or substantially increase the congestion of the public streets, or increase the
danger of fire, or endanger the public safety, or substantially diminish or impair property
values within the neighborhood.
The proposed variance will not impair the supply of light or air to adjacent properties.
The addition of the accessory building will not increase congestion or endanger public
safety. The proposed expansion is well-screened by existing trees, and will not impair
property values in the neighborhood.
The required variance is the minimum action required to eliminate the practical difficulty.
Construction of the proposed accessory building in a location that meets all setback
requirements and is screened from the roadway and adjacent parcels in the minimum
action required to eliminate the practical difficulty.
Practical difficulties include, but are not limited to, inadequate access to direct sunlight
for solar energy systems.
The variance is not related to a need for direct sunlight for solar energy systems.
PLANNING COMMISSION PUBLIC HEARING AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The Planning Commission held a public hearing on the variance request on July 11, 2017. The
Commission received no verbal or written comments on the request. The Commission
discussed the request and site visit findings in detail. Commission members noted that based
on observations at the site visit, there may be space in the wooded area behind the existing
home to locate the structure, but also noted the following:
1) The location behind the home would require placing the structure upslope from
the house, probably at the top of the hill. It would be far more visible in this
location, and would appear to dominate the primary structure, rather than be
subordinate to it. The proposed location closer to the roadway than the home is
approximately 10’ lower in elevation than the home, and the building would
largely be hidden from view from the roadway by topography and existing trees.
Gonzalez Variance Staff Report
Scandia City Council Page 7 July 18, 2017
2) Constructing the building behind the home would require removal of mature trees
and screening between the home and neighboring parcel.
The Commission determined that based on the topography of the site and screening the
applicants’ proposed location met the criteria for approving a variance. The Commission
concluded that the existing screening is adequate, and should be preserved. The Commission
added a condition requiring that the color of the exterior building materials used for the
accessory building should be coordinated with the colors of the existing home. With the addition
of this condition, the Commission voted to recommend approval of the variance request.
ACTION REQUESTED:
The City Council can take the following actions for the request:
1. Approval
2. Approval with conditions
3. Denial with findings
4. Table the request
PLANNING COMMISSION RECOMMENDATIONS:
The Planning Commission recommends that the City Council approve the variance to permit
construction of the proposed 40’x50’ accessory building in a location that is a minimum of 78’
from the right-of-way of Lofton Avenue and a minimum of 27’ from the northern property
boundary on the parcel at 21203 Lofton Avenue North.
1. The location and construction of the accessory building shall be in substantial
compliance with the plans submitted to the City on May 11, 2017.
2. The applicants shall obtain a building permit for the accessory building.
3. The applicants shall obtain a land alteration and grading permit from the City if the area
that will be disturbed for construction exceeds 1,000 square feet.
4. The applicants shall maintain the existing trees and screening along the Lofton Avenue
North right-of-way.
5. The applicants shall coordinate the color of the exterior building materials of the
accessory structure with the colors of the primary structure.
6. The applicants shall pay all fees and escrows associated with their application.