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Board denies Kenneth Boyd variance for pole barn; requires removal or compliance
Summary
The Variance and Adjustment Board denied Kenneth Boyd's request for reduced setbacks and an expanded driveway after finding the pole barn and driveway exceeded permitted setbacks and continued construction after code warnings. The board ordered compliance or removal and noted a 30-day appeal window.
The Walton County Variance and Adjustment Board voted to deny a set of variance requests from Kenneth Boyd for a 30-by-36-foot pole barn and an oversized driveway after finding the structure was built inside required setbacks and that county code compliance had previously issued a notice of violation.
The board's decision followed testimony from county planning staff and multiple neighbors who called Code Compliance in November and said the structure was built without permits and that construction continued after the department raised concerns. Matt Carpenter of the Planning Department told the board that setbacks and permitting requirements were clear and that staff found the structure was completed after a notice of violation was issued.
"Setbacks were clearly enumerated on the original building permit review for the house that was properly permitted," Carpenter said. "The structure, creates a new driveway beyond the 20 feet that he's allowed on the opposite street. The structure that has been constructed over the drainage ditch that's in the public right of way would never have been allowed by public works." Carpenter added that the site is in a windborne-debris region and requires proper permitting.
Neighbor Mark Douglas, who said he filed the original complaint, described the pole barn as a heavy, noisy presence that encroached on the narrow street and raised public-safety and drainage concerns. "I was the person who called this complaint," Douglas said. He told the board the structure sits near the drainage ditch, narrows the roadway, and has been a source of community disturbance.
Kenneth Boyd told the board he relied on contractors who informed him permits were not needed and that he believed he was allowed to finish construction because Code did not post an immediate stop-work order. "I don't even know where to start after that. Pack of lies," Boyd said in response to public statements; he also told the board he would prefer to negotiate a route to compliance rather than demolition.
Board members and staff discussed possible mitigation, including engineered redesign that meets windborne debris requirements and management of stormwater; several members said the extent of the setback violations and the timing of continued construction after notice required denial. Commissioners on the panel emphasized the importance of stopping work after a code officer informs a property owner they are in violation. "When they do not stop then we need to enforce the setbacks," one board member said.
The board moved and seconded a motion to deny the variance request and recorded a unanimous vote in favor of denial. The chair informed the applicant: if Boyd does not appeal within 30 days he must remove the structure and the concrete and bring the property back into compliance.
Planning staff will supply the applicant with the necessary path to seek compliance and noted that any revised plan will require a full permitting review, engineered stormwater and windborne-debris compliance, and a driveway permit for any throat wider than the 20-foot maximum allowed by code.
