Council forwards conditional‑use request for King Circle carriage house; Planning Commission recommended denial of size variance

The mayor and council unanimously voted July 29 to forward a conditional‑use application for a carriage house at 12220 King Circle to the council meeting for final action after a Planning Commission recommendation.

Staff said the site is 8.22 acres in RS‑30 zoning and the applicant proposes a structure with a total of about 3,040 square feet (two lower garage levels and an upper two‑bedroom carriage house). The city code sets a 1,000‑square‑foot maximum conditioned area for a carriage house; the applicant asked for a concurrent variance (transcript referenced a requested increase to about 1,240 square feet). Planning staff recommended approval of the conditional use (subject to compliance with the submitted site plan and tree mitigation) and recommended denial of the concurrent variance because the code’s variance standard requires a hardship tied to lot size, topography or geometry and staff did not find such a hardship.

Planning Commission agreed with staff and recommended approval of the conditional use and denial of the variance. During committee discussion council members noted the property’s size (8.22 acres) and proximity to Milton; one council member observed that precedents cited by the applicant were in a different jurisdiction (City of Milton). Councilmember Hills moved to move the item forward; the motion passed unanimously.

Next steps: the conditional use and the concurrent variance will be considered at the council meeting; if the council grants the variance it should be noted that the approval would apply only to this parcel and not automatically establish a citywide change to the carriage house size limit, staff said.