At its July 17 meeting, the City of Highland Park Zoning Board of Appeals approved a variance allowing an eight-foot driveway gate at 1700 Meadow Lane, granting relief from the six-foot fence-height limit in the R-3 zone.
The variance matters because the gate already exists on the property and was installed without a building permit; the board voted 6-0 to allow the structure to remain after staff said the request met Chapter 173 standards for variation.
Anthony Mistretta, a planner with the community development department, told the board the property is zoned R-3 and that the zoning code’s maximum fence height within a required front yard is six feet. "The gate existing is currently 8 feet," Mistretta said, and he reported no objections from forestry, the building division, engineering or neighbors. Joshua Minster, the homeowner, affirmed under oath that the subcontractor who installed the gate did not pull a permit and said he only learned later that no permit had been filed: "My subcontractor, unbeknownst to me, didn't pull a permit for the gate."
Board members clarified that the board was approving only the gate height, not authorization for an eight-foot perimeter fence. Chair Bey and members asked staff to confirm the motion’s scope; staff confirmed the approval applies to the gate only. Vice Chair Yablon moved to approve the variance, the motion was seconded, and a roll-call vote produced six ayes and zero nays. The board’s public record shows no written or spoken objections from neighbors at the meeting.
The board’s action lets the existing gate remain at its current height but does not authorize other eight-foot fencing around the property. Staff said that future, different proposals for fencing or other modifications would require separate review.