Council rejects request to allow permanent storage of 35-foot RV at 1365 East Carpenter

Council considered a three-part variation at 1365 East Carpenter Drive that included widening a driveway and permitting on-site permanent storage of a recreational vehicle exceeding the village's permitted length. Staff and the zoning board reviewed the petition; the petitioner's RV was described in staff materials as approximately 35 feet long, while village code allows permanent on-site storage of screened RVs up to 22 feet. Neighbors and several council members expressed concern about the scale of the requested exception and about creating a policy precedent.

The petitioner, Dave Richards, told the committee his property configuration and screening (including a 55-foot house and fences) would screen the RV from neighbors. "If the concern is about the 35 foot length, the complete screening with the 55 foot house and no site should alleviate that concern," he said. Committee votes were mixed, the committee of the whole and later the full council recorded negative votes and the motion to permit permanent storage failed.