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BZA approves split of 80-acre Glen Road parcel despite width-to-depth ratio variance
Summary
The Barstow County Board of Zoning Appeals approved a request to split an 80-acre Glen Road parcel into 50- and 30-acre tracts, granting a variance from the ordinance's 1:3 width-to-depth ratio after staff and the technical review committee recommended approval.
The Barstow County Board of Zoning Appeals on Sept. 9 approved a variance allowing an 80-acre parcel on Glen Road (case 25BZA34) to be divided into a 50-acre parcel and a 30-acre parcel despite the resulting lots not meeting the zoning ordinance's 1-to-3 width-to-depth ratio.
Staff and the Technical Review Committee recommended approval, and the board moved to adopt the findings of fact and grant the requested split.
Staff told the board that the property is rectangular and that splitting it as proposed would create parcels that do not meet the ordinance's width-to-depth requirement or the board's road-frontage condition if the split is made along the parcel's length. The staff report identified three findings required by state statute: approval would not injure public health, safety or general welfare; adjacent property values would not be substantially harmed; and strict application of the ordinance would create practical difficulties for use of the property. Based on those findings, staff and TRC recommended approval.
James McGloth, a surveyor with Whiteman Associates who prepared the split documents, said the only clear zoning issue raised by the application was the 1-to-3 ratio. "As far as I'm aware ... the only thing that popped out was the 1 to 3 ratio," McGloth said.
Board members asked whether the split would change zoning designations; staff confirmed the zoning (A1 agricultural and B zone references in the packet) would remain the same and that any future further subdivision of either new parcel would require the owner to return to the board for approval. The board also discussed access concerns: staff said future subdivision would likely hinge on finding road access (easements) and compliance with minimum lot-size and access requirements.
The board moved and seconded approval of the findings and the split; the motion carried.
The board's approval allows the immediate split as requested. Any subsequent divisions of either resultant parcel would require additional approvals and, where applicable, compliance with road-access, minimum-lot-size, and other ordinance standards.
