Delray Beach board approves variance for one-story addition at 237 Southwest 27th Terrace
May 07, 2026 | Delray Beach, Palm Beach County, Florida
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The City of Delray Beach Board of Adjustment on May 7 approved a variance allowing a one-story addition at 237 Southwest 27th Terrace that reduces the required 25-foot rear setback to 17.6 feet.
The application was presented by homeowner Benjamin Loudon, who identified his wife, Adi Loudon, as co-owner. Jennifer Bews, the city planner, introduced the file (PZ550-2026) and summarized staff analysis. "This is a variance request for ... to allow 17.6 feet in the rear where a minimum of 25 feet is required for the construction of the 1-story addition," Bews said during the hearing.
Loudon told the board the project would add about 196 square feet of covered porch area and 204 square feet of conditioned space, extending roughly 13 feet 4 inches from the existing structure. He said the lot is about 8,145 square feet and described the property as a single-story side of a duplex in the Woodlake community. Loudon said letters of support from neighbors and historical homeowners association materials were included in the application to show precedent for porches and screened enclosures.
Bews placed the request in zoning context and reviewed ordinance history. She noted that setbacks in the area changed over time—25 feet in 1990, reduced to 15 feet in 1993, and increased again by "ordinance 25-23" in 2023 to a 25-foot rear setback for RL and RM districts. She told the board the requested 17.6-foot rear setback is intended to allow the modest, single-story addition without creating the multi-story impacts the 2023 ordinance addresses.
Board members asked no substantive questions that altered the record; the applicant clarified a point about the neighboring two-story structure to the east. The board then moved through the required findings under the land development regulations, including that special conditions exist, the variance is the minimum necessary, and the grant would not be injurious to the neighborhood. The board voted to approve the variance; the vote as recorded showed Mark Ronald, Michelle Wilson, Laura Ramirez, Jesse Slosher and John D'Alessio voting "yes."
An order approving the variance was adopted on 05/07/2026. As noted during the meeting, "pursuant to LDR section 2.1.07(f), all decisions of the Board of Adjustment are final," and appeals, if any, go to circuit court.
The hearing concluded with no additional staff reports and the board adjourned the meeting.
The application was presented by homeowner Benjamin Loudon, who identified his wife, Adi Loudon, as co-owner. Jennifer Bews, the city planner, introduced the file (PZ550-2026) and summarized staff analysis. "This is a variance request for ... to allow 17.6 feet in the rear where a minimum of 25 feet is required for the construction of the 1-story addition," Bews said during the hearing.
Loudon told the board the project would add about 196 square feet of covered porch area and 204 square feet of conditioned space, extending roughly 13 feet 4 inches from the existing structure. He said the lot is about 8,145 square feet and described the property as a single-story side of a duplex in the Woodlake community. Loudon said letters of support from neighbors and historical homeowners association materials were included in the application to show precedent for porches and screened enclosures.
Bews placed the request in zoning context and reviewed ordinance history. She noted that setbacks in the area changed over time—25 feet in 1990, reduced to 15 feet in 1993, and increased again by "ordinance 25-23" in 2023 to a 25-foot rear setback for RL and RM districts. She told the board the requested 17.6-foot rear setback is intended to allow the modest, single-story addition without creating the multi-story impacts the 2023 ordinance addresses.
Board members asked no substantive questions that altered the record; the applicant clarified a point about the neighboring two-story structure to the east. The board then moved through the required findings under the land development regulations, including that special conditions exist, the variance is the minimum necessary, and the grant would not be injurious to the neighborhood. The board voted to approve the variance; the vote as recorded showed Mark Ronald, Michelle Wilson, Laura Ramirez, Jesse Slosher and John D'Alessio voting "yes."
An order approving the variance was adopted on 05/07/2026. As noted during the meeting, "pursuant to LDR section 2.1.07(f), all decisions of the Board of Adjustment are final," and appeals, if any, go to circuit court.
The hearing concluded with no additional staff reports and the board adjourned the meeting.
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