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Record of Proceedings

St. Charles Parish Zoning Board of Adjustment Meeting - July 16, 2026

Parish Council & Boards — Thursday, July 16, 2026
BodySt Charles Parish, Louisiana
SessionParish Council & Boards
DateThursday, July 16, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 42:17

Transcript — Verbatim
0:04

Call on the zoning board of adjustments meeting to order on this July 16th, 2026.

0:10

Please rise for the pledge.

0:33

All right.

0:34

We have five cases tonight on the docket.

0:37

Um first case tonight is a uh a postponed case that we had from uh last month.

0:43

Do we have a motion from the board to pull this off the table?

0:47

I'll move we remove it from the table and take the requested actions uh listed on the application one at a time.

0:58

All right, we have a motion.

1:00

We have a second second fifty.

1:08

Oh, yep, seconded by Mr.

1:09

Vicola.

1:16

Yeah.

1:17

Hang on one second.

1:18

There we go.

1:19

Please cash your votes.

1:25

All right, that motion passes.

1:26

So we are pulling it off the table and we'll hear it now.

1:29

So if the applicant is here, please come forward, explain your case.

1:34

And uh in this case, there are three requested actions, so we'll kind of go over them separately.

1:38

So just I'm sorry.

1:40

There's three requested actions in this uh in this case, so we'll kind of go over them separately as as we go.

1:47

So okay.

1:47

Just explain what uh what you're here to do.

1:49

Sure.

1:50

So uh I was here last month.

1:51

Uh you guys I'm sorry, we have to uh name address and we might download the chief administrative officer for St.

1:58

Charles Parish here representing the parish on this project.

2:01

Yes, sir.

2:01

All right, and we have to sway in now, okay?

2:04

Yeah, okay.

2:04

So uh raise your right hand.

2:06

Do you swear to tell I can't raise my right hand?

2:08

Yeah, well, there we go.

2:10

Apologize.

2:11

Um do you swear to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so God?

2:15

I do.

2:15

All right, thank you.

2:16

Now you might proceed.

2:17

Thank you.

2:17

Okay.

2:18

So I was here last month.

2:19

Um had a lot of gave you all a lot of details.

2:21

You wanted something more formally in writing to expanding the written testimony that was provided.

2:27

So we had our professional engineer who is in charge of the project with the DDG, write a technical memorandum, which I believe you all have.

2:35

But in short, this is a hundred and ten acre project overall.

2:40

Phase one is installing and getting the boat launch operational, and that's what we're doing on that.

2:47

Okay.

2:48

Also, phase two is in the process of a planning phase.

2:52

We won't know exactly what we're gonna plan for the balance of the hundred and ten acres until probably the end of this year, in which the design will start the beginning of next year.

3:01

So it's pretty straightforward what we're requesting on the variance is we don't want to plant stuff now that we're gonna have to move, rip out, and replant at a later phase.

3:13

And on the parking area, it as he mentions in his memo, it has not reached the compaction that is desired for us to put the permanent uh surface on the roadway.

3:25

So it's that's really all I have.

3:27

You guys have any additional questions from last month.

3:30

I'm happy to answer them.

3:32

All right.

3:32

Any questions from the board?

3:34

Yep.

3:36

I have several questions.

3:38

Uh hit your mic real quick.

3:39

There you go.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Engineering And Infrastructure█████████████████████████████████████████████50%
Procedural██████████████████████████████████████████47%
Public Engagement███3%
Summary of Proceedings

St. Charles Parish Zoning Board of Adjustment Meeting - July 16, 2026

The St. Charles Parish Zoning Board of Adjustment met on Thursday, July 16, 2026, at 6:00 PM in the Council Chambers to consider five variance requests. All five requests were approved, with the first request granted under conditions that postpone compliance to January 1, 2028.

2026-18-ZBA – St. Charles Parish Department of Recreation (Boat Launch)

Discussion: The applicant, representing the Parish, requested three variances for a boat launch at 1541 WPA Road (110-acre project, Phase 1 covering 11 acres): (1) waiver of required tree plantings, (2) reduction of the minimum 10% design landscaping requirement, and (3) waiver of permanent dust-free parking. The applicant explained that tree planting and permanent surfacing would be delayed until Phase 2 (planned for 2027–2028) to avoid removal during later construction. Board members questioned the timeline and proposed postponing compliance rather than a full waiver. The Parish’s professional engineer’s technical memorandum was submitted. A member of the public spoke in favor, noting the site’s size and the reasonableness of the request.

Key Outcomes: The board approved all three actions with a condition: compliance with tree planting, landscaping (10% minimum), and permanent dust-free parking is postponed until January 1, 2028. Each motion passed unanimously (voice votes). The applicant agreed to provide a construction update letter if an extension is needed.

2026-22-ZBA – Richard Knuppel (Accessory Building)

Discussion: The applicant requested an increase in the maximum square footage for wet floodproofing a residential accessory building at 318 Luke Drive. He stated that raising the structure with 7 feet of fill would be costly and cause runoff issues with neighbors.

Key Outcomes: The board voted unanimously to approve the variance as requested.

2026-23-ZBA – Talaysha Houston (Rear Setback)

Discussion: The applicant requested a reduction of the rear-yard setback from 20 feet to 10.3 feet for a new residential construction at 644 Oak Street. The reduced setback applies only to the garage portion; the rest of the home meets the 20-foot requirement. The lot is a corner lot, making compliance difficult. The applicant noted that the adjacent property owner (Dunhomes) has no objection.

Key Outcomes: The board voted unanimously to grant the variance, allowing the 10.3-foot rear setback for the garage.

2026-24-ZBA – Susan and Gerald Mahan Jr. (Accessory Building in Front Yard)

Discussion: The applicants requested permission to place a residential accessory building within the front yard and reduce the required front yard setback at 171 Autin Lane. They plan to rebuild on the same slab as a previous building destroyed by Hurricane Ida, raising it with a 3-inch concrete cap. The lot has two front yards (on Autin Lane and Murphy Lane).

Key Outcomes: The board voted unanimously to approve the variance, allowing the accessory building in the front yard at the original footprint.

2026-25-ZBA – Michael and Nicole Shields (Fence Height)

Discussion: The applicants requested to allow a residential fence exceeding 4 feet in height within the front yard setback at 311 Belle Ormond Circle (a corner lot). They want to install an 8-foot fence to enclose the side yard for dogs and grandchildren and to screen a camper. The applicant stated he worked with staff to ensure sight clearance at the corner.

Key Outcomes: The board voted unanimously to approve the variance, allowing the fence height of up to 8 feet.

Other Business

The board approved the minutes from the June 18, 2026, meeting and adjourned.

Meeting Transcript

Call on the zoning board of adjustments meeting to order on this July 16th, 2026. Please rise for the pledge. All right. We have five cases tonight on the docket. Um first case tonight is a uh a postponed case that we had from uh last month. Do we have a motion from the board to pull this off the table? I'll move we remove it from the table and take the requested actions uh listed on the application one at a time. All right, we have a motion. We have a second second fifty. Oh, yep, seconded by Mr. Vicola. Yeah. Hang on one second. There we go. Please cash your votes. All right, that motion passes. So we are pulling it off the table and we'll hear it now. So if the applicant is here, please come forward, explain your case. And uh in this case, there are three requested actions, so we'll kind of go over them separately. So just I'm sorry. There's three requested actions in this uh in this case, so we'll kind of go over them separately as as we go. So okay. Just explain what uh what you're here to do. Sure. So uh I was here last month. Uh you guys I'm sorry, we have to uh name address and we might download the chief administrative officer for St. Charles Parish here representing the parish on this project. Yes, sir. All right, and we have to sway in now, okay? Yeah, okay. So uh raise your right hand. Do you swear to tell I can't raise my right hand? Yeah, well, there we go. Apologize. Um do you swear to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so God? I do. All right, thank you. Now you might proceed. Thank you. Okay. So I was here last month. Um had a lot of gave you all a lot of details. You wanted something more formally in writing to expanding the written testimony that was provided. So we had our professional engineer who is in charge of the project with the DDG, write a technical memorandum, which I believe you all have. But in short, this is a hundred and ten acre project overall. Phase one is installing and getting the boat launch operational, and that's what we're doing on that. Okay. Also, phase two is in the process of a planning phase. We won't know exactly what we're gonna plan for the balance of the hundred and ten acres until probably the end of this year, in which the design will start the beginning of next year. So it's pretty straightforward what we're requesting on the variance is we don't want to plant stuff now that we're gonna have to move, rip out, and replant at a later phase.

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