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Record of Proceedings

Howard County Hearing Examiner: Variance Case BA 26-001V – June 9, 2026

County Council & Boards — Tuesday, June 9, 2026

BodyHoward County, Maryland

SessionCounty Council & Boards

DateTuesday, June 9, 2026

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 28:00

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0:00

A request by VG Nathan for a rear yard setback variance from 10 feet down to three feet, and that would be a variance then of seven feet.

0:16

The property is located at 10048, Superior Avenue Laurel.

0:22

It is approximately 0.56 acres in size.

0:27

It is in the residential single cluster zone.

0:31

And the variance is to legalize an existing shed and pool house, both of which intrude into the 10-foot rear setback.

0:44

So Ms.

0:45

Nathan, this is your case.

0:47

Normally we sit there, you're good sitting where you are, and why don't you introduce yourself and tell me what it is you want, why you want it, and just tell me about your project.

1:00

Thank you.

1:00

My name is Vijay Nathan.

1:02

I reside at 10048 Superior.

1:07

Just get a little closer to the mic.

1:08

Sorry.

1:12

A little closer?

1:13

A little closer.

1:14

Hello?

1:14

Pull pull the mic, just pull the mic closer to you.

1:18

Sorry.

1:19

Nervous.

1:20

Okay.

1:21

Um my name is V.

1:23

Nathan.

1:23

I reside at 10048 Superior Avenue, Laurel, Maryland.

1:29

Um the reason why I'm requesting uh the setback is I bought the property like that.

1:36

I did not know anything about setback.

1:40

And um not until last year, one of the tenants complained, and that's the first time ever I knew anything about setback.

1:49

So one of the tenants can one of the tenants.

1:52

It's upstairs is the tenant.

1:54

I reside in the basement, and upstairs I have tenants.

2:00

So that's what started the whole process because I didn't know anything about it.

2:04

When I bought the house, there was no violation.

2:10

So how long have you owned it?

2:12

I've owned it for two and a half, three two and a half years.

2:17

So I my um what I'm requesting um the board to do is um to look at this case because I didn't do anything, and I bought the property like that when Howard County personnel came to the pool house to take a look at everything, everything was actually um approved by Howard County versus plumbing electrical, and there was no violation.

2:47

I honestly I do not know how they missed it in terms of the setback.

2:53

So that there was a pool, a permit was gotten for the swimming pool.

2:59

Pardon uh the county came out to sign off on the permits, and they didn't notice that the garage and shed actually intruded into the rear yard setback.

3:12

Correct.

3:13

They they looked at the building, they approved everything in that garage pool house, but somehow it was missed with the setback, it's not um 10 feet.

3:27

Okay, so they you the previous owner actually got permits for the pool house.

3:32

Correct.

3:33

Okay.

3:38

And behind the house, there is no there are no buildings.

3:43

It's um owned by the HOA association.

3:47

It's nothing but just a yard.

3:49

It used to be a farm, so it's not really um affecting anyone behind the house.

3:55

It's a fence and it's a yard that they cannot build on.

3:59

So the the HOA that you're referring to, is that for your neighborhood or for the neighborhood in the rear?

4:05

The neighborhood in the rear.

4:06

I do not have HOA.

4:08

All right.

4:09

Okay.

4:11

So your tenant complained to uh planning and zoning, and you got a violation, or they complained to you, or tell me about that.

4:22

Sure.

4:23

Um the tenant, it's a roommate issue, and they were not getting along.

4:30

The female didn't want the male roommates, even though she knew it's a roommate issue.

4:35

She started targeting the men and told me that I had to get them out.

4:40

And I said everybody has a legal lease.

4:42

If you are having specific um issues with them, please you know call the police or you know, do it do it now, you know, legally.

4:54

I cannot go and uh get a male tenant, you know, out of there, and I can't do that.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Zoning And Land Use████████████████████████████████████████████44%

Engineering And Infrastructure████████████████████████████████████████████44%

Public Safety██████6%

Community Engagement██████6%

Summary of Proceedings

Howard County Hearing Examiner – Variance Case BA 26-001V – June 9, 2026

On June 9, 2026, at 10:00 a.m., the Howard County Hearing Examiner (Joyce Nichols) conducted a hybrid hearing on variance petition BA 26-001V filed by Viji Nathan for property at 10048 Superior Avenue, Laurel, MD. The petition sought a rear setback variance of 7 feet (from 10 feet to 3 feet) and a side setback variance, and originally also addressed lot coverage, which was resolved by a new county law increasing allowed lot coverage for lots over half an acre from 600 to 1,000 square feet. The existing shed and pool house intrude into the required rear setback. The hearing included discussion of the property's topography, retaining walls, and the circumstances of the violation discovery.

Discussion Items

The applicant, Viji Nathan, explained that she purchased the property about 2.5 years ago with the existing structures and was unaware of the setback violations until a tenant complaint led to an inspection. She stated that previous permits were obtained by the prior owner and the county had approved electrical and plumbing without noting the setback issue. She expressed a desire to comply with regulations.
Hearing Examiner Joyce Nichols reviewed the five required findings for granting a variance.
- Finding 1 (Unique Physical Conditions): The property has a significant slope from front to rear and a retaining wall along the side due to grade changes, which made strict compliance difficult. The examiner accepted the topography as a unique condition.
- Finding 2 (No alteration of neighborhood character): The neighborhood is fully developed, and the structures are not visible from the street. The variance would not impair adjacent properties or public welfare.
- Finding 3 (Hardship not self-created): The applicant did not build the structures and discovered the violation after purchase; the hardship was inherited.
- Finding 4 (Minimum variance necessary): The requested variances match the existing encroachments (shed 5 ft from rear line, pool house 3 ft from rear line), so the relief is minimal.
- Finding 5 (Not in historic district): The property is not in a historic district.
The applicant noted that the lot coverage issue was resolved by a new county regulation effective April 2026 that increased allowed coverage for lots over 0.5 acres to 1,000 sq ft; her structures cover under 900 sq ft.

Key Outcomes

The hearing was concluded. The Hearing Examiner stated that a written decision and order will be issued shortly. Based on the discussion, the examiner appeared inclined to grant the variances, subject to formal findings in the order.

Meeting Transcript

A request by VG Nathan for a rear yard setback variance from 10 feet down to three feet, and that would be a variance then of seven feet. The property is located at 10048, Superior Avenue Laurel. It is approximately 0.56 acres in size. It is in the residential single cluster zone. And the variance is to legalize an existing shed and pool house, both of which intrude into the 10-foot rear setback. So Ms. Nathan, this is your case. Normally we sit there, you're good sitting where you are, and why don't you introduce yourself and tell me what it is you want, why you want it, and just tell me about your project. Thank you. My name is Vijay Nathan. I reside at 10048 Superior. Just get a little closer to the mic. Sorry. A little closer? A little closer. Hello? Pull pull the mic, just pull the mic closer to you. Sorry. Nervous. Okay. Um my name is V. Nathan. I reside at 10048 Superior Avenue, Laurel, Maryland. Um the reason why I'm requesting uh the setback is I bought the property like that. I did not know anything about setback. And um not until last year, one of the tenants complained, and that's the first time ever I knew anything about setback. So one of the tenants can one of the tenants. It's upstairs is the tenant. I reside in the basement, and upstairs I have tenants. So that's what started the whole process because I didn't know anything about it. When I bought the house, there was no violation. So how long have you owned it? I've owned it for two and a half, three two and a half years. So I my um what I'm requesting um the board to do is um to look at this case because I didn't do anything, and I bought the property like that when Howard County personnel came to the pool house to take a look at everything, everything was actually um approved by Howard County versus plumbing electrical, and there was no violation. I honestly I do not know how they missed it in terms of the setback. So that there was a pool, a permit was gotten for the swimming pool. Pardon uh the county came out to sign off on the permits, and they didn't notice that the garage and shed actually intruded into the rear yard setback. Correct. They they looked at the building, they approved everything in that garage pool house, but somehow it was missed with the setback, it's not um 10 feet. Okay, so they you the previous owner actually got permits for the pool house. Correct. Okay. And behind the house, there is no there are no buildings. It's um owned by the HOA association. It's nothing but just a yard. It used to be a farm, so it's not really um affecting anyone behind the house. It's a fence and it's a yard that they cannot build on. So the the HOA that you're referring to, is that for your neighborhood or for the neighborhood in the rear? The neighborhood in the rear. I do not have HOA.

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