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ZBA grants equitable waiver for garage that encroached into front setback by small amount
Summary
Board granted an equitable waiver to allow an existing garage that was built slightly into the front setback to remain, finding the encroachment was a good‑faith error and the impact negligible.
The Town of Alton Zoning Board of Adjustment unanimously granted an equitable waiver Feb. 2 allowing a garage that sits slightly inside the front setback to remain.
The application (Case C25‑02) arose after a new survey showed a corner of a recently constructed garage encroached roughly a foot into the front setback — amounting to roughly five square feet of encroachment, according to testimony. The agent for the owners told the board the contractor had positioned the garage to avoid large boulders and thought the structure complied with the permit. Town staff noted the contractor’s permit drawings showed the garage placed to meet the 25‑foot setback; a subsequent survey revealed the small encroachment.
Board members discussed equitable‑waiver criteria, including whether the encroachment was discovered only after construction, whether it was an honest measurement error, whether the encroachment constituted a nuisance or diminished neighboring property values, and whether the cost of correcting the encroachment outweighed public benefit. Several board members said the encroachment was negligible compared with the 56‑foot distance from the road and that the town and owner had acted in good faith.
A member of the public reiterated support for the owners but asked the board to note the importance of code enforcement going forward. The board concluded the four statutory equitable‑waiver criteria were met, approved the waiver unanimously, and recorded that correcting the structure would be inequitable relative to any public benefit.
