Glynn County planning commissioners voted to deny a variance request for a pavilion at 212 Sandcastle Way on St. Simons Island after staff said the structure encroaches on a required 10-foot utility easement. The pavilion owner had asked to reduce the front-yard setback to 7.3 feet to accommodate the existing, nonconforming structure.

The denial came after staff described a code-enforcement case and showed survey and site photos indicating the 107-square-foot accessory structure extended into setback and easement areas. "The structure was called into question, but because of the placement, not because of the rails," code enforcement officer Ruben Shaw said, adding the issue is its location in the setbacks.

The applicant, Cheryl Treanor, told the commission she moved the portable pavilion after county staff advised her to do so and said she uses it to store a golf cart because she has balance issues and difficulty lifting. "I have balance issues … it's really hard or impossible for me to use like a traditional cover," Treanor said.

Planning staff and several commissioners said the easement presented a legal barrier to approving the variance. Senior planner Christopher Carey explained that a zoning setback variance would not by itself allow a structure to remain inside a subdivision utility easement: "If you were to reduce the setback, they would still have to move the structure out of the utility easement unless the utility easement is modified or abandoned." Carey said moving or abandoning that easement would require separate actions, including an IPC review and an abandonment by the Board of Commissioners.

One commissioner who initially moved to approve later withdrew the motion after staff outlined the easement implications, and another commissioner moved to deny the request. The motion to deny was seconded and carried. The meeting record does not include a roll-call tally.

The applicant was told she may appeal the commission's decision to the Board of Commissioners and that staff could help with other potential avenues, but staff emphasized the easement as the principal obstacle.