Hearing officer grants variance for 23-foot accessory building at 3927 West 140th Street

The hearing officer granted a height variance July 28 allowing an accessory building at 3927 West 140th Street to reach 23 feet, five feet above the 18-foot limit. The petition was filed by Ryan Jones of Precision Postframe LLC on behalf of Duke Property LLC. "It's just a building that's got a steeper truss, steeper pitch to kinda match the house that's being built there," petitioner Ryan Jones said when describing the request.

Planning staff told the hearing officer the subject site is 27.68 acres and that the proposed structure would be well centered on the property, noting minimum setbacks of about 300 feet to the nearest property line and others closer to 500–600 feet. "Planning staff is supportive of the variance, and we recommend approval as well as adoption of the findings of fact," Angie from planning staff said.

A nearby resident, Tom Chandler of 3848 West 140th Street, asked whether diagrams and elevations were available and where the building would lie on the property; Jones responded that the building would be set back several hundred feet from the subdivision and that existing vegetation around a pond would largely screen it. Chandler said he would not be able to see the structure from his house and asked to review elevations; the petitioner said elevation drawings were in the packet but not carried to the hearing.

The hearing officer cited the large lot size and the distances from neighboring properties in granting the variance and adopted the findings of fact. No vote tally was recorded on the audio transcript. The hearing officer's approval resolved the petition; no subsequent action was specified at the hearing.

The hearing record contains the petition materials and staff report; any future building permits must comply with other applicable codes and permits.