Family Promise storage shed triggers setback rules; city staff advise site-plan amendment or smaller structure

Family Promise’s contractor told planning staff the group planned to place a 15-by-20 “tuff shed” on its property. Planning staff flagged the structure because the site abuts a residential zone and the city’s interior side setback next to a residential zone is 20 feet.

Jim Hyde, who identified himself as a construction manager assisting Family Promise, said the organization had extended the concrete pad and had the shed nearly positioned; planning staff noted the current clearance to the property line was about 5 feet in some places and the measured clearance between the shed and the building had been about 16 feet 6 inches before the pad move.

Planner Sarah Wicker and other staff said a variance is unlikely to apply in this situation because the code’s variance provisions typically protect property access or remedy an odd-shaped lot rather than reduce setback requirements abutting residential zones. Staff described options: rotate and reposition the shed so its corner is 20 feet from the residential lot line, move the pad to the rear common area, use a smaller shed that does not trigger a building permit, or pursue a formal site-plan amendment and planning-commission review if the structure requires a building permit.

Code and permitting details: staff noted a building-permit threshold of about 200 square feet. The meeting record shows staff recommended either reorienting the structure and ensuring a 20-foot clearance where the shed abuts the residential zoning or using a smaller unit that would not trigger a building permit and a site-plan amendment.

Privacy and operations: Family Promise confirmed the property has an 8-foot privacy fence along the parcel line and said the shed would store supplies and non-sensitive items. Staff advised consideration of future expansion plans for the facility when deciding shed placement.

Next steps: the applicant said Tough Shed (the supplier) could provide parts and the group will either reduce the shed size to avoid triggering a building permit or prepare a site-plan amendment for planning-commission review. Planning staff said they were available to help evaluate a revised, code-compliant placement.