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Board approves conditional use and two variances for detached ADU at 5950 Old LaGrange Road
Summary
The Oldham County Board of Adjustments approved a conditional use permit for a detached accessory dwelling unit (ADU) at 5950 Old LaGrange Road in Crestwood and granted two variances: one for ADU square footage and one for the ADU’s location between house and road, with conditions limiting use.
The Oldham County Board of Adjustments on Sept. 18 approved a conditional use permit for a detached accessory dwelling unit (ADU) at 5950 Old LaGrange Road in Crestwood, and granted two associated variances: one that increases the maximum ADU size and another that allows the ADU to be located between the primary house and the road.
Senior planner Anna Barge explained that Oldham County Zoning Ordinance Section 250.040(e)(1) allows detached ADUs only by conditional use permit and that the county’s rule limiting an ADU’s size to 25% of the primary structure led to the square-footage variance request. Barge reported the primary residence measures 1,453 square feet by PVA records, creating a 25% maximum ADU size of roughly 363.25 square feet. The applicant asked to build a 684-square-foot ADU, a square-footage variance of 320.75 square feet.
Applicant Anne Howard told the board she and co-owner Leslie Hagen purchased the property for “generational living” and said their ADU is designed to be wheelchair accessible for Howard’s adult mother. Howard said she and her co-owner had “gone through probably 25 iterations of layouts and sizes” and that a smaller footprint could not accommodate ADA circulation requirements.
Barge also explained the request for a location variance: the ADU’s proposed placement is technically between the house and Old LaGrange Road because of the lot configuration and a shared driveway, so the applicant requested relief from the rule that detached ADUs not be located in front of the primary structure. Barge noted the ADU would meet adopted setback measurements despite its position between the house and road.
Board members asked about septic, ownership of tracts on the parcel and whether letters were filed; staff said no public letters were received. The board approved three separate motions: the conditional use permit (with a condition that the ADU not be used as a short-term rental) and the two variances (square footage and location). Each approval was limited to the plan considered at the Sept. 18 hearing.
Board members cited the applicant’s testimony about the need for an accessible layout and the lot’s configuration in making findings that the variances would not unreasonably circumvent zoning rules.
The conditional use permit and both variances were approved by voice vote; the board recorded the approvals with the stated condition that the ADU not be used as a short-term rental.
