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Bonita Springs panel approves variance to allow 15-foot setback from Melody Lane for Bay Road home
Summary
A Bonita Springs advisory board approved a variance reducing the required setback from a water body on the north side of a Bay Road lot from 25 feet to 15 feet so a single-family home can be built on an undersized, platted lot; the approval is limited to the north side and does not guarantee a building permit.
A Bonita Springs advisory board voted unanimously to approve a variance (case 26409) to allow a 15-foot setback from the Melody Lane right of way on the north side of a Bay Road lot, instead of the 25-foot water-body setback, to permit construction of a single-family home on an undersized, platted parcel.
The board’s action reverses the more restrictive water-body standard along the Melody Lane mean high water line and allows the applicant to use the 15-foot side-street setback from the right of way. Mike Fegan, Community Development, told the board the parcel predates current zoning, is significantly undersized compared with RS-1 lot standards, and that the boat ramp and mean-high-water line—shown in a later survey—created two competing setback standards. “If you approve this variance, it will not hinder access to the boat ramp,” Fegan said, addressing public concerns about ramp access.
The variance was approved with conditions limiting relief solely to the north side of the property: the reduced 15-foot setback is measured from the Melody Lane right of way; development must conform with the site plan in exhibit B of the record; and all other zoning and development regulations remain in effect. The board and staff noted that approval of the variance does not guarantee issuance of a building permit. The applicant must still submit plans that comply with Florida building code, FEMA requirements and the city’s permitting process.
Staff explained the property’s zoning is RS-1 under the city code, which calls for minimum lot dimensions of 75 feet in width, 100 feet in depth and 7,500 square feet in area; the subject lot does not meet those dimensions and was platted in 1949. Fegan said a similar variance approved by Lee County in 1990 allowed a 15-foot setback tied to a specific 957-square-foot footprint, but that approval is not sufficient under current development patterns and code, prompting the new request.
Board members asked no substantive questions of staff or the applicant during the presentation. Public feedback received online included concern that moving the structure closer to Melody Lane would limit public access to the adjacent boat ramp; staff put that concern on the record and clarified the plan would not impede ramp access. After a motion and second, the board voted in favor of the variance; the oral roll-call recorded Gambrell, Waterhouse, Benson, Chairman Maraccio, Vice Chairman Hershinson, Galloway and Wynne as voting yes.
The decision grants only the specific setback relief described and does not alter other setback, interior side, rear water-body setback, or street setback requirements; those remain applicable to any future permit review.
