DeKalb BZA grants front-yard setback variance so Ashley homeowners can add porch, larger garage

The DeKalb County Board of Zoning Appeals voted to grant a development standards variance allowing Kurt and Katie Tompkins to reduce the front-yard setback for a covered porch and attached garage at 384 County Road 19 in Ashley.

Staff advised that County Road 19 has a 60-foot right-of-way (30 feet from the centerline on each side) and that the UDO requires a 50-foot minimum front-yard setback. Because the right-of-way plus setback yields an 80-foot required distance from the centerline, the Tompkins requested a reduction to place their new porch and attached garage roughly 54 feet from the road center — a 26-foot variance. Staff said the existing house sits about 63 feet from the center of the road, creating a practical difficulty under the UDO.

Kurt Tompkins told the board the house dates to about 1890 and described the proposed porch as about 9 feet deep and 50 feet long. Board members and staff noted county reviews were on file: the county board of health, highway department, soil and water conservation district, surveyor/drainage board and the airport authority found the project not applicable or had no objections in the recorded letters.

Staff recommended approval with conditions, including continued board jurisdiction, compliance with Article 5 environmental standards of the UDO, a prohibition on obstructing off-site drainage, and that no certificate of occupancy or completion shall be issued until the applicant files written evidence of compliance with applicable county and state agencies. The board adopted the proposed findings and conditions and recorded "yes" votes from Roy Walker, Wayne Funk, Jason Carnahan and Frank Pulver on the motion to approve.

The variance lets the Tompkins build the porch and larger attached garage as proposed, subject to the stated conditions and required agency sign-offs before final certificates are issued.