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El Paso Zoning Board OKs legalization of small encroachments, requires accessory structure relocation
Summary
The Zoning Board of Adjustment approved a request to legalize existing and proposed encroachments at a historic R-4 property, with a condition that an accessory structure be removed or relocated.
The Zoning Board of Adjustment of the City of El Paso approved a request June 2 to legalize existing side- and rear-yard encroachments and to permit a small addition at a residence in the R‑4 historic zone, with a condition that an accessory structure be relocated or removed.
Staff emphasized the request was to legalize an existing structure that encroaches 5 feet into a required side setback and 11 feet 4 inches into the rear setback, a total encroachment of 351 square feet, and to permit a proposed home addition that would encroach 4 feet 2 inches into the side yard for 78 square feet. Blanca Perez, planner with Planning and Inspections, told the board the accessory structure at the rear “shall be relocated or removed to comply with zoning requirements.”
The request cited two special exceptions under the zoning code: special exception K for structures existing 15 years or more and special exception B for two or more nonconforming lots. Perez showed aerial and site plans and a 2009 image staff said confirmed the rear structure existed more than 15 years, supporting the exception K request. Notices were mailed to property owners within 300 feet on April 25, 2025; staff said it received one phone inquiry and no written support or opposition.
The applicant’s designer, architect Jorge Limón, representing property owner Patricia Beltrán, said he met with an adjacent neighbor to demonstrate on-site clearances and agreed to move the proposed addition 6 inches farther from the shared driveway at the neighbor’s request. Limón also told the board he agreed with staff’s condition to relocate the accessory structure.
Board member Jorge Leon moved to approve staff’s recommendations; Martha Aguayo seconded. The board voted in favor; the chair announced the case passed.
The board’s approval legalizes the existing encroachments and allows the home addition as proposed, subject to the accessory structure’s removal or relocation. The decision does not specify a construction permit or inspections timeline; those follow standard permitting procedures.
The case file is listed as PZBA25‑00003. Staff advised property owners within 300 feet were notified and no written opposition was received.
