BRADY TOWNSHIP ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS

MINUTES OF MEETING HELD SEPTEMBER 30, 2008

A meeting of the Brady Township Zoning Board of Appeals was held September 30, 2008. Chairman James Dyke called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m.

Members Present: Chairman James Dyke

                                Vice-Chairperson Aileen Greanya

                                Ed Haberle

                                Jim Laure

Absent was Mike Oswalt.

Also attending were Township Attorney Craig Rolfe and Mr. William Couchenour.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

A motion was made by James Laure and seconded by Aileen Greanya to approve the proposed minutes of the August 19, 2008 meeting with the following correction: on page 2, paragraph 4, change “as” to “as published”. The motion was carried.

REQUEST FOR A VARIANCE REQUEST by Noah Funk

Noah Funk has requested a variance for relief from side yard setbacks as set forth in Brady Township Zoning Ordinance Article XIV. He wants to add a 15’ x 8’ porch to his residence on his corner lot located at 7940 Salem Street in Brady Township (zoned R-5).

Chairman Dyke opened the Public Hearing. He asked Attorney Rolfe to address the need for a variance.

Attorney Rolfe stated that because Mr. Funk’s lot is a corner lot, the front yard setback of 40’ applies to both front yard and the side yard with road frontage. The setback on one side of the property is 15’.

Attorney Rolfe stated that the proposed addition would be to a legal, nonconforming structure. He explained that the R-5 zoning was created to assist both the Nazarene Campground residents and the Zoning Board of Appeals. Before the R-5 zoning was adopted, the residents of the Campground had to request a zoning variance for nearly every building project. However, the R-5 zoning did not capture every situation, especially those involving very small lots.

Mr. William Couchenour, 7955 South Street, stated that he is a friend and neighbor of Mr. Funk’s and is representing his interests this evening. Mr. Funk is currently in Florida. Mr. Couchenour distributed photos of the Funk residence, which showed both front and side yards. He stated that Mr. Funk has greatly improved the appearance of the cabin on the property. The lot is 40’ x 80’, and the proposed porch will have the same 15’ setback that the house has.

There were no further comments. There has been no written correspondence on this matter. The Public Hearing was closed.

The Zoning Board of Appeals considered the variance request with the variance standards as published in Article XXIII, Section 23.8 of the Brady Township Zoning Ordinances. After discussion, the members of the ZBA agreed that none of the conditions have been met:

1a. The reason of exceptional topographic conditions or of size, shape, etc. practical difficulties has

      been met because of the small size of the lot.

1b. A variance will not be of substantial detriment to adjoining properties; the setback for the porch is the

      same as the setback for the house.

1c. Exceptional circumstances are proven due to the small size of the lot, smaller than others in the area.

1d. The proposed addition would allow the Funk family to enjoy their property in the same way as others

      in the area with enclosed porches.

2. There is no economic hardship requested or presented.

3. This is not a self-created difficulty.

It was noted that the house is in good condition and that the addition of this porch will not extend the life of the existing non-conforming structure, as stated in Article XXII, Section 22.3 of the Brady Township Zoning Ordinances.

Jim Laure made a motion to approve Mr. Funk’s request for variance relief because the proposed porch meets all of the variance standards as set forth in Article XXIII, Section 23.8 of the Brady Township Zoning Ordinances. Aileen Greanya supported, and the motion was carried unanimously.

Mr. Couchenour expressed his gratitude to the members of the Zoning Board of Appeals for the time and effort they put into their community.

There was a motion by Ed Haberle to adjourn at 7:25 p.m. Jim Laure supported, and the motion was passed unanimously

Respectfully submitted,

________________________________

James Dyke, Chairman

Brenda Brock

Recording Secretary