Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting Summary – July 23, 2024
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Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting Summary – July 23, 2024
The City of Frederick Zoning Board of Appeals convened on July 23, 2024, at 7:00 PM at City Hall (101 North Court Street) under the leadership of Chair Jim Racheff. The board, consisting of four members present (Racheff, Sisson, Hicks, Colar), conducted a regular meeting. Items included the approval of prior meeting minutes and a single new business item: a temporary use application for a construction office and storage facility. The board unanimously approved the application with conditions.
Consent Calendar
- The board approved the minutes from the May 28, 2024 meeting. Motion by Bob Sisson, seconded by Dixon Hicks, passed unanimously.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No members of the public spoke during the general public comment or on the specific case. Chair Racheff noted that a letter had been received expressing concern about construction impacts from the broader development, but he clarified that the application under consideration pertained only to the temporary office use and not the overall construction activity.
Discussion Items
- Case ZBA24-6TU – Temporary Use at 1730 N Market Street: The applicant, 1730 North Market Street LLC (represented by attorney Bridge Dean of McCurdy, Dean & Gronauer, and representatives of The Duffy Companies), sought authorization to operate a temporary construction office and storage facility on the site. The property is zoned R-16 (high density residential) and is part of the Canterbury Station community development. The existing building, formerly the Banner School administration building, will be used as a construction office. No new construction is involved; storage will be limited to office supplies and overnight parking of construction vehicles in the existing paved lot. Staff Planner Monica Robyns presented the staff report, recommending approval with findings that the use is temporary and does not adversely affect public health, safety, or welfare. The board had no questions for the applicant. Chair Racheff offered unsolicited advice to the applicant to maintain good community relations, which the applicant acknowledged.
Key Outcomes
- Motion and Vote: Commissioner Dixon Hicks moved to approve the temporary use for a period of six months, with authorization for the planning division to grant two subsequent six-month renewals (total not to exceed 18 months), subject to conditions: (1) applicant must apply for and receive a six-month zoning permit for the construction office and storage facility; (2) after the initial six-month period, the applicant must request renewal from the planning division for one or two consecutive six-month periods. The motion was seconded by Bob Sisson. The board voted 4-0 in favor (Sisson, Hicks, Colar, Racheff). The motion passed, and the temporary use was approved.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening, everybody. Welcome to the July twenty third, twenty twenty-four meeting of the City of Frederick Zoning Board of Appeals. Before we get started with tonight's meeting, I always like to at least give a little short introduction to the Zoning Board of Appeals for anybody who might happen to be watching or might not be a frequent flyer with us here. We conduct all of our responsibilities in accordance with the city's land management code and all applicable Maryland state law. Members of the board are all volunteers. Um we are appointed by the mayor, and those appointments are confirmed by the board of aldermen. Um the board uh has four members to constitute a quorum, as we just discussed uh before we started the meeting. We have four members uh with us here tonight. The board is also supported in our activities by members of the city staff. Um, and to my far right and um uh your far left is uh Ms. Gabrielle Collard. Uh she is the director of the planning department here with the City of Frederick. Um next to her is Miss Monica Robbins, she is a planner here with the planning department in the city of Frederick. And then to my left and your right is Miss Jennifer Vandergreek, and she is the office manager here with the planning department. And in uh addition to her numerous, numerous numerous tasks, she supports the ZBA in our activities uh here tonight. Um our procedures for tonight's cases are um basically as follows. I will call the case by number. Um I we have one case on our agenda, and I see that the applicants are here. Usually I ask for a wave. Um I will then ask for the staff report. The staff report will be um summarized and uh entered fully into the record. Um at the end of the staff report, the staff may make a recommendation or recommendations concerning the case. Um that is one element that the board uses in our decision making, but it is not the only element. So following the staff report, I will ask the applicant to give a statement. Um during that time, the applicant may clarify or expand on their application. Um they might provide um additional information that they think is useful to the board. Members of the board might ask questions of the applicant or the applicant's team during that time. Um following the applicant's testimony. I will call for any public comment regarding the case. Any member of the public may offer testimony regarding any of the cases before the ZBA. And then following any public testimony, I will offer the applicant an opportunity to make any closing statements or address any issues that have been uh raised during uh um public comment. Um I will then close the um public testimony portion of the case. I will ask for a motion uh from the board. Um, a majority of uh members of the full board constitutes um what we need to pass a motion. So that would be three out of the four members here need to vote in the affirmative for any motion to pass. Um questions regarding procedures from anybody. No, all right. Yes. This is for an appeal, but there wasn't an initial uh request, right? This is this is the request. Yes. So so the board can hear appeals, and I know we're called the zoning board of appeals. Um, but we also hear like temporary uses, special exceptions, um, and things like that. So there's some things in the land management code that would say um uh a property owner could do X, Y, and Z if they come before the board and get um an exception to that. Um, entertainment at a restaurant downtown is a good example, right? So if you got a restaurant and you want to have a band, you've gotta have an application that we review, even if though there's been no initial decision. So we get a couple little extra stuff in there. Um so following along with our agenda this evening uh for uh anybody who is following along. This is item number one, which is our call to order and announcements. Item number two is general public comment related to zoning um broadly in the city of Frederick.
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