Board of Appeals grants Sextons a variance for Cambridge addition

The Dorchester County Board of Appeals voted to grant a variance allowing Mark and Robin Sexton to reduce a side-yard setback so they can add roughly 988 square feet to their Cambridge home. The board approved the request after staff presentation and testimony from the applicants' agent.

Staff member Tyler read BOA case 2823 into the record and described the site as pre-dating current zoning; agent Steve Whitten said the existing detached garage (about 15 feet from the property line) will be removed and replaced with an attached garage as part of the addition, which reduces a nonconformity. Whitten entered a blown-up site plan into evidence and submitted a letter from the adjoining owner, Jacqueline M. Davis; he said Davis "has no objection" and "supports the request."

Board members questioned dimensions and setback impacts; staff noted the lot is compact (roughly three-quarters of an acre), contains a 100-foot buffer and a sewage reserve area, and that the proposed changes would not increase encroachment into regulated buffers or flood-prone areas. Planning staff told the board the applicants had received a favorable recommendation from the planning commission at its recent meeting.

After brief discussion the chair moved to grant the variance and the motion was seconded. The board voted in favor and the motion passed. Staff said anyone who testified will be notified of the board's decision by mail and reminded the public that any party may appeal the decision to the circuit court within 30 days.

The board's action resolves the applicants' immediate need to reconfigure an attached garage and proceed with the planned addition; permit and inspection requirements remain in effect for any construction.