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Commission approves large accessory building at 988 Pierce Street; Board of Adjustment grants variance
Summary
Planning commissioners approved a conditional use permit for an oversized accessory building at 988 Pierce Street and the Board of Adjustment granted a variance allowing accessory building area to exceed the principal building's square footage on the 6.4-acre property; staff cited property uniqueness and installed fire hydrant.
The Laramie Planning Commission on March 24 approved a conditional use permit for an oversized accessory building at 988 Pierce Street and, sitting as the Board of Adjustment, later approved a variance allowing the total accessory-building square footage to exceed the size of the principal residence.
Planning staff described the 6.4-acre property as atypical for the R-1 single-family residential zone: the proposed accessory buildings would total about 2,560 square feet while the home is 2,180 square feet. Staff said the parcel’s size, rural character and the presence of similar large outbuildings in the area supported approval. Staff also noted the applicant installed a fire hydrant to meet fire-suppression requirements for the proposed building.
"The variance before you is related to the last conditional use that you just considered ... the purpose of the variance is to permit that the total cumulative square footage of the accessory buildings in the R-1 zone exceed the square footage of the principal use," planning staff Derek explained in the meeting record. Staff recommended approval of both the conditional use and the variance, finding the request would not alter the essential character of the neighborhood.
No public comments were received at the hearing and the applicant was not present. Commissioners voted to approve the conditional use permit and later moved to grant the variance from Laramie Municipal Code Section 15-280-304 (accessory building subordinate in area to principal use). The motions passed by voice vote.
Staff emphasized the approvals are subject to standard conditions, including timely submission of building permits and continued compliance with development standards. Staff also noted the parcel’s history: the property had been proposed for subdivision in the past but the subdivision did not proceed, and earlier conditional-use approvals for similar work had expired when building permits were not pursued by the applicant.
