Council allows patio/fireplace setback variance on Waterman Street but denies gravel-driveway request; developer ordered to pave within 60 days

Marietta City Council on Wednesday approved a variance to allow an outdoor patio and masonry fireplace to be built at the edge of 486 Waterman Street but declined a separate variance that would have allowed gravel as the permanent parking surface for four new homes on Waterman Street and South Avenue.

Parks Huff, representing the applicant, said the patio and fireplace are intended to create a private outdoor space contained within a C-shaped plan of the house and to provide privacy from an adjacent public alley. Huff said the applicant had negotiated landscaping and finish details with the adjoining homeowners association and that similar approvals had been granted for a neighboring lot developed earlier.

Opponents and nearby residents said they supported careful landscaping but opposed permitting gravel driveways as a precedent for the neighborhood. "I'm against building to the property line," said Robbie Huck, a nearby resident, who called four houses on the parcel "tight" and urged the council to preserve breathing room between homes. Richard Brown, president of the Monjay neighborhood HOA, said the HOA supported the setback variance only after the applicant agreed to landscaping and foundation brick skirting; the HOA would not support gravel driveways.

Brenda Young, a neighborhood resident, told council she objected to gravel as a finished driveway surface and said the example photos showed loose debris and staining. "I'm here to speak against the variance for the gravel driveways," she said.

Council action and conditions: Council members voted to approve the side-setback variance for the patio/fireplace, subject to landscaping between the property and the alley, bricking of exposed foundation/turndown areas to match the house, and coordination with the homeowners association on plant materials. The council rejected the gravel-driveway variance; the motion directed the owner/developer to replace existing gravel surfaces with a concrete surface (or equivalent paved surface) within a 60-day window. The 60-day deadline was an amendment offered at the meeting and adopted by council.

Why it matters: The split decision reflects council balancing of privacy and design for a new infill project while preserving longer-term neighborhood standards for durable paved surfaces. The council recorded the motion as approved and set a compliance deadline for surfacing work.