Frederick Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting - October 24, 2017
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Frederick Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting - October 24, 2017
The Zoning Board of Appeals met on October 24, 2017, at 7:00 PM in City Hall to consider two new business items: a variance request for a property at 701 Rosemont Avenue and a conditional use request for the Palmer's Addition townhouse development. The meeting began with the approval of the September 26, 2017 meeting minutes and the swearing in of witnesses. No public comments were received on general zoning matters.
Discussion Items
Variance – ZBA17-784V, 701 Rosemont Avenue
The applicant, Mr. Dialus, sought a variance to reduce the required street setback from 15 feet to 1.5 feet along Glenmore Avenue, a 50-foot public right-of-way that was dedicated in 1911 but never constructed. The property is a corner lot (Rosemont and Glenmore Avenues) zoned R6 low-density residential. The applicant proposed to connect an existing garage (built in 1996 on the footprint of a 1930s garage) to the main house via an addition. Staff recommended approval, finding that the unconstructed right-of-way creates a peculiar hardship, the variance is the minimum necessary, and it will not harm public interests. Board members noted the property's well-maintained yard and the garage's historic presence. No public testimony was offered.
Conditional Use – ZBA17-773CU, Palmer's Addition
The applicant, represented by attorney Dave Severn and engineer Bill Brennan, requested conditional use approval to construct four townhouse units on a property along N. East Street. Two of the four lots would exceed the 50% maximum impervious surface ratio allowed in the Wellhead Protection Overlay (WHO). The property is partially in R6 and R16 zoning and is entirely within the WHO. Staff supported the request, noting that stormwater management regulations will mitigate impacts, the overall project impervious surface is below 50%, and the use (townhouses) is permitted in the zone. The applicant's design includes grass swales, bioretention, and disconnected roof drains to maintain 100% of pre-development groundwater recharge. A condition was proposed requiring the applicant to provide pre- and post-recharge rates during stormwater management plan review if lining of facilities is not required. Board members discussed stormwater design details, sidewalk connectivity, and recharge rate calculations.
Key Outcomes
Variance Approval – The board voted unanimously (4-0) to grant the variance for 701 Rosemont Avenue, finding that the request meets all criteria under Section 313 of the Land Management Code. The motion was made by Mr. Patchon and seconded by Mr. Aronow, adopting the staff's findings of fact.
Conditional Use Approval – The board voted unanimously (4-0) to approve the conditional use for Palmer's Addition, with an amendment to the condition. The original condition required providing pre- and post-recharge rates if lining of stormwater facilities is not required. Dr. Ying proposed amending the condition to specify that the recharge rates must be calculated in accordance with the city's standard stormwater management practices. The motion, as amended, was made by Mr. Patchon and seconded by Mr. Aronow. The board found that the proposal meets all criteria under Sections 308 and 743 of the LMC, including that the use will not create greater adverse impacts, will comply with WHO standards, and will maintain groundwater recharge within 20% of pre-development levels. The conditional use allows the two townhouse lots to exceed 50% impervious surface.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening, everybody. Welcome to the October 24th, 2017 meeting of the City of Frederick Zoning Board of Appeals. For everybody's information, I'll uh start the meeting tonight with a little bit of background on the Zoning Board of Appeals and our rules of procedure that'll govern tonight's uh activities. Uh the members of the board are all volunteers. Uh we are all residents of the city. We are appointed by the mayor, and those appointments are confirmed by the Board of Aldermen. Um in the conduct of our work, uh we have five voting members uh on the board. Um we are also supported in our activities by members of the staff of the City of Frederick. And so for everybody's uh information, to my far right and to your far left is Miss Tyree Butler. She is a planner with the City of Frederick. Uh next to her is Ms. Rachel DePo. She is an assistant attorney with the City of Frederick. And next to her is Ms. Gabrielle Collard, and she is the current manager. I'm sorry, she is the division manager of current planning. She's also the current manager, not the past manager. Um then to my far left and everybody else's far right is Ms. Jessica Murphy, and she is the office manager with the City of Frederick and uh in addition to her numerous duties, she supports the ZBA and all the work that we do. Uh a little bit about tonight's proceedings. Um we've got a couple of housekeeping items on the agenda that we'll go through first, but uh then we'll get on to tonight's cases. I will call uh the case if the applicant or the applicant's representative is here. If you could just at least give us a little short wave and let us know that you're here, uh that would be great. Um but the first thing that we'll do is we'll um ask for the staff report. Uh the staff will read the staff report into the record, and at the end of the staff report, uh the staff will make a recommendation regarding the case. Uh that is one element that the zoning board of appeals members will use in our deliberations tonight, but it is not the only element. Um following the staff report, we will ask for testimony from the applicant. Uh and that's opportunity for the applicant to explain or elaborate on anything that might happen to be in their application, clarify anything uh that might have come up during the staff report. Uh during that time, members of the board might ask questions of the applicant. Following the applicant's testimony, uh, we will see if there are any other members of the general public who wish to give testimony regarding the case. Um following that, we will ask the applicant if they have any closing remarks uh that they would like uh to make before the board, and then we will close the public testimony section uh of the case. Uh following that, I will call for a motion uh from the board. Uh just for uh everyone's knowledge. Uh a simple majority is required to pass a motion at the board of appeals. So we need three out of five members to vote in the affirmative for a motion to pass. Um if you are speaking before uh us tonight, uh the first time that you come to the microphone, um, if we could, we'd like to ask for your name and your address for the record. Um if you happen to step away and and then step back to the microphone for some reason. Uh if once again we could have your name again before you start speaking, that would be helpful. Uh the reason for that being is that all of our tonight's re uh proceedings are being recorded. Anyone that is aggrieved by a decision of the zoning board of appeals has the uh right to appeal our decision to circuit court. Uh and when the circuit court judge is re reviewing the tapes and listening to the the transcripts, that helps them keep straight who happens to be speaking at any one time. Any questions about tonight's proceedings by folks in the audience? No. Okay. Uh seeing none, as I mentioned earlier, we have a couple of housekeeping uh measures on our general agenda uh before tonight's cases. We'll get started with those and then we'll get on to tonight's business. All right. Uh first item on the agenda is general public comment. General public comment about zoning in the city of Frederick. Um it has happened a few times that folks have come wanted to come and just uh speak not related to the cases.
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