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Plan commission approves private-drive waivers for Patel property with fire-department and maintenance conditions
Summary
The Greenwood Advisory Planning Commission approved two waiver requests allowing three single-family lots to share a gated private drive, limiting lots to three and requiring an access-maintenance easement and White River Fire Department approval of the turnaround; staff had recommended denial.
The Greenwood Advisory Planning Commission on May 12 approved two waiver requests that let three single-family lots on an 11.9-acre parcel share a gated private drive rather than a public street.
The commission approved the first waiver allowing three lots to share the private drive and the second waiver granting limited frontage/access relief for one lot. The approvals carried on recorded votes (one motion carried 7–1; the other carried 8–0) and include conditions that the final plat show an easement describing maintenance and access, the shared drive be limited to a maximum of three lots, the White River Fire Department sign off on the type of turnaround required, and the constructed driveway meet a minimum width determined by the plan commission (the commission required a 22-foot minimum in one motion).
The petitioner, represented by surveyor Andrew Varkosi, said the owner originally proposed two lots and later requested a third so several family members could each build homes. The owner intends one lot of about 5 acres and two additional lots each larger than 3 acres, on a total parcel of about 11.9 acres.
Staff recommended denying the waivers, saying a shared driveway for three lots increases the need for public-style turnaround and subdivision infrastructure — such as sidewalks and adequate emergency turnaround — and warned that maintenance disputes could fall to staff and code enforcement in future generations. Commissioners pressed the petitioner on emergency access, surfacing, and who would maintain the private drive; the record shows the commission added the easement-and-maintenance condition in response.
The commission’s conditions require that the easement be recorded on the final plat and that the White River Fire Department have final determination and approval of the turnaround type. Commissioners also discussed the difference between the legal easement width and the constructed drive: staff noted a 50-foot access easement will be shown on the plat while the constructed drive generally will be a 20-foot paved driving surface, and the commission adopted a 22-foot minimum paved width in one motion.
Because the waivers alter access and emergency access expectations, implementation depends on the fire department’s approval of any turnaround or hammerhead and on the petitioner recording the required maintenance/access easement on the final plat.
Votes and formal actions recorded in the meeting minutes show the commission approved the two waiver requests subject to the conditions described above.
