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BZA allows a replacement shed 1 foot from side lot line at 50 Central Avenue
Summary
The board granted a variance to rebuild a shed at 50 Central Avenue with a one‑foot setback from the side or rear lot line where five feet is normally required.
The Athens Board of Zoning Appeals on May 13 approved a variance allowing a replacement shed to be constructed 1 foot from the side/rear lot line at 50 Central Avenue, where accessory structures normally require a five‑foot setback.
Property owner Jody Barnes told the board the existing shed is rotted, that the fence and shed condition pose safety and maintenance issues, and that replacing the structure further into the yard would leave essentially no usable yard. Barnes said the existing condition puts the shed’s floor partly in dirt and that a new, properly constructed shed would improve the site and neighborhood appearance.
Barnes told the board she would remove or donate an older shed if the new structure is approved. She said the fence along the side yard is the owner’s fence and that the proposed replacement would better stabilize the area. No adjacent property owners spoke in opposition at the hearing. Zoning Administrator David Riggs advised that once a structure is removed it generally loses grandfathered setback status and must meet current setback rules; the variance request sought permission to site the replacement as close as the prior structure had been located.
Board members found the lot size, terrain and the location of existing features justified an exception and that rebuilding a single shed would not cause material detriment to neighbors given the existing fence and yard conditions. A motion to grant the variance from ACC 23.03.11.a allowing a one‑foot setback carried unanimously.
