Board of Appeals approves variance to rebuild shed at 575 Fifth Avenue South

The City of Safety Harbor Board of Appeals voted June 11 to approve variance application 2025-20, allowing an accessory shed to be rebuilt at 575 Fifth Avenue South with a 0-foot separation from the primary structure instead of the 10 feet required by the code.

The variance was requested after the property’s earlier shed — shown in a 2011 aerial photo submitted to the board — was destroyed by a hurricane. Cecilia (senior planner/GIS analyst, City of Safety Harbor) told the board that the property’s configuration and existing features left no practical alternative site for the shed and that staff found the application met the code’s variance criteria and recommended approval.

Cecilia said the lot is in the R-2 single-family residential district and that the proposed location reproduces the long-standing placement of a prior shed. “Staff found that it meets all the variance requirements and recommend approval of the variance,” she said.

Applicant representatives confirmed the owners want to rebuild the shed in the same location. Matthew T. Morrison, the applicant’s authorized agent, told the board he represented the petitioner and said, “I’m happy with the recommendation.” No members of the public spoke in opposition during the hearing.

Board members discussed the staff analysis and raised no substantive objections. A board member moved to approve the variance; the motion passed on an affirmative voice vote with no opposition.

The approval applies only to the setback variance before the Board of Appeals; any future work that requires building permits or other reviews must follow the city’s permitting process and applicable code requirements.