Board denies variance request for 809 South Stewart Street

The Board of Zoning Appeals voted to deny a variance that would have allowed an attached garage to encroach into the required front yard at 809 South Stewart Street.

Planning staff described the application as "BCA request 26 DashFive- for variance to encroach into the required front yard at 809 South Stewart Street which is on medium density residential." Staff explained the lot is a corner parcel where the shorter frontage on Hanley Boulevard is treated as the front yard, that the dwelling dates to 1929 and has legally nonconforming sunrooms, and that the proposed garage "would encroach 11 feet 8 inches into the required front yard resulting in a front setback of 18 feet 4 inches from the public right of way." Staff recommended denial under the variance criteria and cited the state variance standard.

In discussion, board members pressed staff and one another on alternatives that would avoid a front-yard encroachment. Several members said the problems cited by the applicant—tree limbs, an undersized garage and stormwater ponding—appear to be financial or convenience issues rather than the "physical hardship" that state law requires. Members noted that the existing frame garage and driveway could potentially be reconfigured or that additional square footage could be placed farther back on the lot to meet side- and rear-setback rules.

A board member moved to deny the application, saying the applicant "has not presented a demonstrable hardship to justify" the variance, and the board conducted a roll-call vote. The motion carried and the chair announced the motion had passed.

The board also discussed tabling the item to allow the absent applicant to respond and consider alternatives; a member suggested tabling as an option but the body proceeded to a final denial. The board next agreed to form a short work group to clarify application guidance for future variance requests.

What happens next: The denial is final for this hearing; staff and the board signaled intent to revisit application materials and guidance in a separate work session so future applicants can better document hardship and alternatives.