Board approves variance to build on steep Majestic Canyon lot with conditions

The Sandy City Board of Adjustment voted unanimously to approve a variance that will allow a single-family home to be built on a steep lot at 10156 South Majestic Canyon Road.

Burke Staker moved to approve the variances as recommended in the staff report and to modify condition 6 to limit the building footprint to no more than 1,955 square feet; Matt Hale seconded. The board recorded four affirmative votes (Staker, Hale, Josh Chandler and Vice Chair Jim Edwards), and the motion carried. Staff had recommended approval based on findings about the lot’s legal status and the need to avoid utility conflicts.

Staff described the request as a package: variances to allow development within a sensitive-area overlay because the lot lacks a 5,000-square-foot usable area under R-1-10 rules; a front-yard setback reduction from the standard 20 feet to a closest point of 5 feet to the property line (approximately 10 feet to the back of sidewalk); and permission for part of the driveway to lie within the public right-of-way. Planning staff told the board those adjustments reduce hillside disturbance and avoid existing utilities.

The motion’s conditions require several engineering and construction safeguards, and staff clarified that the approved total square footage includes the garage and porches as shown on the site plan. The decision allows the applicant to proceed only if the specified conditions and the staff report findings are met.