St. Joseph County zoning board approves four variances, denies front-yard fence request; staff director announces resignation

The St. Joseph County Area Board of Zoning Appeals on Feb. 12 granted variances for four property owners, denied a request to keep a 6-foot solid front-yard fence at a South Bend-area address, and tabled one petition until next month. The meeting also included administrative approvals of minutes and a public announcement that the county planning director, Abby (last name not specified in the record), resigned effective Feb. 21; Sean Klein will serve as interim if the Area Plan Commission approves that personnel resolution.

The board approved a variance for Derek A. Manley of 716 East Michigan Street in New Carlisle to build a 30-by-50 accessory garage before completion of the primary dwelling, subject to a staff condition that a building permit to finish the house be issued within two years. Area Plan Commission staff member Carl Brun Grama told the board the petitioner previously obtained a building permit and began construction, and staff recommended approval conditioned on timely issuance of a permit to complete the house. Manley told the board building the garage first would allow on-site storage of “construction, machinery, tools, and ... materials” and would improve site security while work resumes.

The board denied a variance request from Katie M. Lewis for 50859 (transcript lists 5 0 8 5 9) Michigan Road to retain a 6-foot solid fence with less than 70% open space in the minimum front yard where a 36-inch (3-foot) solid fence is permitted. Fariel Sharif, Area Plan Commission staff, recommended denial, citing county ordinance history and the ordinance’s intention to restrict tall solid fences in front yards. Lewis said the fence improves privacy and safety for her and her daughter; she told the board “the fence makes us feel safer,” and that neighbors supported it. The board voted to deny that petition; the record shows a split vote with a majority supporting denial.

The board approved a commercial fence variance for Great Lakes Auto Auction (GLAA Property LLC) at property along Peach Road and State Road 2 to extend an existing chain-link fence topped with barbed wire farther along a side property line. Staff recommended approval for the commercial site, saying the fence would match surrounding commercial uses and would not impair visibility on the main road because the extension is several hundred feet from State Road 2. Heath Phelps, general manager at Great Lakes Auto Auction, said the additional fenced area would let the business use paved surface already on site for vehicle storage.

The board approved two residential accessory-structure variance requests: one for Joseph W. Neils at 200 Pierce Street (and an unaddressed adjacent parcel) to allow an accessory building larger than the town cap (requested 2,663 sq. ft. where 1,200 sq. ft. is the town of Osceola’s standard and 23.5 feet height where 19 feet is permitted); and one for Justin and Leah Richards (unaddressed parcel abutting 70178 State Road 104) to reduce a required east-side setback from 30 feet to 8 feet for a proposed accessory structure used for agricultural and storage purposes. Area Plan staff recommended approval for both based on lot size, setbacks, screening, and the parcels’ configurations; attorneys and the petitioners described existing screening and nearby uses. The board voted to grant those variances and said it would issue written findings of fact.

Petition number 1 (not specified in public detail during the recorded portion) was tabled until next month.

Votes at a glance

- Petition 1: tabled until next month (details not specified in transcript).

- Petition 2 — 716 East Michigan Street (Owner: Derek A. Manley): variance to allow accessory building (30 x 50 garage) before primary structure; staff recommended approval with condition that a building permit to complete the primary residence be issued within two years. Motion to approve was seconded by Dr. Lauck. Recorded vote: yes — Tom Byers; yes — Mr. Ritzma; yes — Mr. Rausch; yes — Mr. Schaeffer; yes — Joe Velleman; yes — Dr. Lauck; yes — Mr. Tavernier. Outcome: approved (conditioned).

- Petition 3 — 50859 Michigan Road (Owner: Katie M. Lewis): variance to allow 6-foot-tall, low-open-space fence in minimum front yard where 36 inches is permitted; staff recommended denial. Motion to deny carried. Recorded vote: no — Mr. Ritzma; yes — Mr. Rausch; no — Mr. Schaeffer; yes — Joe Velleman; yes — Tom Byers; yes — Dr. Lauck; yes — Mr. Tavernier. Outcome: denied.

- Petition 4 — 56519 Peach Road (Owner: GLAA Property LLC / Great Lakes Auto Auction): variance to allow extension of a 7-foot chain-link fence topped by barbed wire in a front/side area for a commercial property; staff recommended approval. Motion to approve was made by Dr. Lauck and seconded by Joe Velleman. Recorded vote: yes — Mr. Schaeffer; yes — Mr. Rausch; yes — Mr. Ritzma; yes — Tom Byers; yes — Joe Velleman; yes — Dr. Lauck; yes — Mr. Tavernier. Outcome: approved.

- Petition 5 — 200 Pierce Street and adjacent parcel (Owner: Joseph W. Neils): variances to allow 2,663 sq. ft. accessory building where 1,200 sq. ft. is permitted and to allow 23.5-foot height where 19 feet is permitted; staff recommended approval for the oversized lot in the town of Osceola. Motion to approve by Joe Velleman, seconded by Dr. Lauck. Recorded vote: yes — Mr. Schaeffer; yes — Mr. Rausch; yes — Joe Velleman; yes — Tom Byers; yes — Dr. Lauck; yes — Mr. Ritzma; yes — Mr. Tavernier. Outcome: approved.

- Petition 6 — unaddressed parcel abutting 70178 State Road 104 (Owners: Justin E. and Leah M. Richards): variance to reduce east-side setback from 30 feet to 8 feet for an accessory structure used partly for agricultural storage; staff recommended approval. Motion to approve was made by Dr. Lauck and seconded by Tom Byers. Recorded vote: yes — Mr. Ritzma; yes — Mr. Rausch; yes — Mr. Schaeffer; yes — Mr. Bellman; yes — Tom Byers; yes — Dr. Lauck; yes — Mr. Tavernier. Outcome: approved.

What the board said and why it mattered

Staff members told the board they found practical difficulty in several cases because of lot size, existing partial construction, or lot orientation and recommended approval when the requested relief would not injure public health, safety or property values. For the New Carlisle property (Manley), staff recommended conditioning approval on a two-year deadline for a permit to complete the primary residence; Carl Brun Grama said the petitioner had previously begun construction and that “the grant of the variance should pose no threat to the general welfare of the surrounding area.”

For the Lewis front-yard fence request, staff emphasized the county ordinance’s long-standing limit on solid front-yard fences and said 6-foot solid fences are out of character for residential county lots; Fariel Sharif said the county began requiring permits for residential fences in April 2023 to better track unpermitted construction. Lewis described neighborhood harassment that she said the fence reduced and asked the board for a variance to keep the fence for safety and privacy reasons.

For the commercial GLAA request, staff and the petitioner said the proposed extension is set back several hundred feet from State Road 2 and would match fencing on nearby commercial and industrial properties; the manager said the additional fenced area would allow use of existing asphalt for vehicle storage.

Administrative items and staff change

The board approved minutes for prior meetings with a staff-corrected spelling change noted and approved findings of fact from Jan. 8, 2025. During the meeting Abby (last name not specified in the record), the county planning director present at the meeting, announced her resignation effective Feb. 21; she said Sean Klein will serve as interim pending formal action by the Area Plan Commission and that a search process will follow.

Next steps and records

The board said it will issue written findings of fact for the approved and denied petitions. Where the board conditioned approval (for example, Manley’s two-year requirement for a permit to complete the dwelling), staff indicated the condition will be included in the written findings and reflected in permit processing.

(Article compiled from meeting transcript of the St. Joseph County Area Board of Zoning Appeals, Feb. 12, 2024. The article quotes and vote tallies are drawn from the recorded proceeding.)