Homewood zoning board denies variance request for permeable parking and landscaping at 208 Devon Drive

Homewood’s Board of Zoning Adjustments denied a variance request July 10 from homeowners Greg and Michelle Gilbert to change front-yard landscaping and add a permeable off-street parking pad at 208 Devon Drive, the board announced after a vote that fell short of the required four affirmative votes. Greg Gilbert and his wife sought the variance to address what they described as a long-standing aesthetic issue and a traffic-safety concern caused by limited sight distance on a downhill segment of Devon Drive. The board’s action matters because the board rules require at least four positive votes to grant a variance, and the Gilberts will need to contact planning staff about next steps; the denial means the applicants may revise and reapply or pursue other remedies under the city’s code. The Gilberts told the board they planned a partially permeable parking pad and landscaping that would reduce the property’s measured impervious area by about 48 square feet from an existing figure the applicant described as roughly 57 percent. Greg Gilbert said the parking pad was intended primarily to remove one vehicle from the narrow street near a downhill transition, which he said creates “limited sight distance” and an increased risk to pedestrians, including children walking home from nearby Shayskahaba Elementary. “There are kids everywhere unattended, dodging around cars,” Michelle Gilbert told the board, arguing that an off-street space would reduce a dangerous condition. Board members and staff questioned technical details. Planning staff noted that porches covered by structures are counted as impervious, and staff pointed out the applicant would need a solid concrete apron at the right-of-way edge where the proposed permeable pavers meet the street. One board member asked whether the proposed parking pad would require occupants to back directly into Devon Drive; the applicant acknowledged that vehicles would back onto the street. A staff reviewer also observed that, because the driveway and front area slope toward the street, there is limited space to place a detention or retention system in the front yard. The formal motion on the record was “I move we vote to approve case number SV250701 208 Devon Drive.” The motion was seconded; the board’s roll-call vote did not produce the four affirmative votes required by the board’s rules, and the chair announced, “Your request has been denied.” The board advised the Gilberts to contact planner Emily Harris Miller for guidance on next steps. The denial is procedural and final to the extent that a board decision stands unless appealed: the board’s prefatory remarks to applicants noted that variances require a positive vote of at least four members, variances lapse after one year if no construction occurs, and any party may file a written notice of appeal to the circuit court within 15 days.