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Chair of Zoning Board of Appeals defends rejection of recent appeal at Seven Hills meeting
Summary
Nino Soretti, chair of the Zoning Board of Appeals, addressed the council during public comment on May 13, defending the ZBA's decision to reject an appeal and urging consistent application of the zoning code.
Nino Soretti, chairman of the Seven Hills Zoning Board of Appeals, told the council on May 13 that the ZBA’s recent rejection of an appeal (referred to in his remarks as the "Zambor" decision) was consistent with the letter and spirit of the city's zoning laws.
Soretti said the ZBA based its decision on established standards and cautioned against letting sentiment drive decisions. “Your full throated rejection of that appeal was not only justified, it was essential to preserving the integrity of our role and the zoning laws we are sworn to uphold,” he said. He added that many comments in favor of the appeal were “based purely on feeling not on the law as written.”
Soretti praised council members he said understood the ZBA’s role, naming Councilwoman at large Kelly, Ward 2 Councilman Martin, and Ward 3 Councilman Snitsky for their comments during the process. He told the council the ZBA will continue to apply the same template and standards going forward.
Soretti framed his remarks as an explanation of the principles that guided the ZBA's original decision; he described those principles as grounded in the "spirit and intent of the newly written laws" and in consistent code-based interpretation. The transcript does not include the ZBA’s formal findings or the text of the zoning code at issue; those documents, if published, would provide the full legal basis for the decision.
Soretti’s comments came during the meeting’s public-comment period and were presented as his views on the ZBA’s role and process rather than as a council action.
