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Board grants variance to allow 28‑foot front setback for Terrace Lane house addition
Summary
An Area Board of Zoning Appeals approved a request Aug. 13 to reduce the front‑yard setback at 54118 Terrace Lane from 35 feet to 28 feet to permit a kitchen addition and covered porch; staff had recommended denial citing neighborhood character, but the board granted the variance after petitioner testimony about internal constraints.
The Area Board of Zoning Appeals on Aug. 13 granted a variance reducing the required front setback from 35 feet to 28 feet for a home at 54118 Terrace Lane to allow a kitchen expansion and a covered porch.
Fariel Sharif, Area Planning Commission staff, presented the petition and said staff recommended denial based principally on the second statutory criterion: that the encroachment would deviate from the established character of the neighborhood because adjacent homes appear to be uniformly set at the 35‑foot line. Sharif noted the house is currently built at the 35‑foot setback and that the petitioner proposed to extend the front wall about six feet forward.
Petitioner Michael Bessinger of Dikes and Sons told the board the home’s interior layout places the kitchen at the front of the house and that rearranging the interior to avoid a forward addition would require moving more than half of the house. Bessinger said the kitchen is currently too small to seat a table, and the addition is needed to create usable space for the resident.
Board discussion acknowledged staff’s point that many nearby homes extend rearward rather than forward, but several members agreed the petitioner had practical difficulty because of the home’s internal layout and narrow 60‑foot lot width. One board member observed that homes of the era often locate kitchens at the front and that the requested change would allow needed modernization. The board voted to grant the variance and said written findings will be issued.
Why it matters: the variance permits a modest forward extension for a single‑family home in a neighborhood that staff described as having uniform front setbacks, illustrating the board’s balancing of neighborhood character against demonstrated practical difficulty.
What’s next: the board will prepare written findings of fact; the petitioner may proceed with permits consistent with the granted variance.
