Board of Adjustment affirms building permit at 319 North Van Buren despite neighbor objections

The Iowa City Board of Adjustment on Jan. 8 voted to affirm a building permit issued for a single-family house at 319 North Van Buren Street, rejecting an appeal by a neighboring property owner who said the permit interfered with a private sewer line and violated multiple setback and parking rules.

The appeal was brought by David Moore and presented by his attorney, Greg Gerdes; the permit holders are Rob and Jamie Maher, represented at the hearing by attorney Matt Adam. In a written and oral presentation, Gerdes argued the permit improperly allowed a structure to be built over a sewer line that Moore says runs under the proposed foundation and that several elements of the submitted plans—front and side ramp intrusions, window wells and a paved parking pad—do not meet the zoning code. “It is our contention that the building official has violated that section by depriving Mr. Moore of the benefits of his sewer easement,” Gerdes told the board, citing Title 14 language in the city code.

City staff and the city attorney disagreed. Danielle Sisman, Development Services coordinator in Neighborhood and Development Services, told the board the permit and supporting drawings were reviewed against the RNS-12 zoning standards and applicable nonconforming-lot provisions. She said the site plan shows a lot area of 2,842 square feet (the base RNS-12 minimum for a single-family unit is 5,000 square…