River Heights appeal authority hears variance request to expand shed beside Providence Cemetery

The River Heights City appeal authority heard an application from Kate Erickson to expand an existing backyard shed that sits adjacent to Providence Cemetery and would be in variance of River Heights setback requirements. The applicant described adding a roof and walls to an existing structure to shelter a small trailer.

Erickson, the applicant, told the authority the shed is “flush with the fence in my backyard that borders my backyard and the Providence Cemetery” and that it “has been there, I think, since the house was built in the eighties.” Erickson said the planned work would be limited to adding “an extra roof for coverage and walls to protect just a store like a trailer in there.”

The appeal authority noted it had the written application, maps and other documentation on file and that the city had received a letter from Providence City, which owns the adjacent cemetery. The authority said Providence City did not object to the variance but had proposed conditions; those conditions will be part of the administrative record. The mayor and city staff member Sheila Lynn were present at the hearing; no members of the public offered comment.

The appeal authority chair told Erickson the authority would prepare a written opinion on the variance application and provide it to city staff. “I will draft that written opinion, get that to Sheila from the city, within the next 10 business days,” the chair said. No formal vote was recorded at the hearing.

The hearing focused on a single land-use item: whether to grant a setback variance for a small expansion to an existing shed immediately adjacent to cemetery property. The authority closed the public hearing after receiving no public comments and directed staff to issue a decision in writing to the city within the stated timeline.