Sandusky panel approves variance at 1228 West Osborne for three Welcome Home Ohio houses

The Sandusky Boards & Commissions approved a variance for 1228 West Osborne Street on a voice vote that recorded three affirmative votes, clearing the way for a three-lot subdivision and construction of three single-family homes under the Welcome Home Ohio program.

Planning staff told the panel the property is zoned R2F (two-family residential) and that the proposed subdivision and homes will require relief from the zoning code’s minimum lot-area and rear-yard setback standards. Staff said the site is currently vacant and that surrounding lots along Carr Street commonly fall short of today’s minimums; the proposed development, staff said, would better match the neighborhood’s residential character than the site’s prior high-density commercial building.

Erin Blair, City of Sandusky staff, described the Welcome Home Ohio grant, which the city used to propose construction of 14 single-family homes under an initial $3,500,000 award. "The grant requires that those…