Commission approves variance to allow backyard pool inside Cheyenne River Corridor control line with owner waiver

The West Fargo Planning and Zoning Commission approved a variance to reduce the Cheyenne River Corridor 100-foot building control line by up to 40 feet to allow construction of an in-ground swimming pool at 3110 Cheyenne River Way, with a condition that the owner sign a release of liability acknowledging the variance.

Staff reported the applicant provided a geotechnical soils analysis concluding the pool would not be impacted by riverbank instability. The report was reviewed by the city engineer, who found it satisfactory for the variance process, but the Southeast Cass Water Resource District had submitted technical comments expressing concern that the report examined a snapshot in time rather than longer-term slope stability.

Why it matters: The overlay district restricts structures and fill within 100 feet of the established riverbank to reduce riverbank destabilization. A variance to reduce that control line requires demonstration through soils analysis that the area is stable for the proposed structure.

Engineering review and risk discussion Jerry Wallace, assistant city engineer, summarized staff review of the geotechnical report and said the evaluation largely met ordinance requirements while noting long-term geomorphology uncertainties: “It’s very difficult to predict when those movements are going to occur,” Wallace said, adding that portions of the riverbank nearer the channel show a factor of safety below 1 but that those conditions lie “considerably outside the footprint of the pool.”

Wallace also cautioned that if the proposed structure were a city facility, engineering would “strongly encourage relocating it and not installing it in this location,” but said the findings satisfy the variance standards under the city code for private construction with an owner waiver.

The commission’s conditions and public input The recommendation to approve includes a condition that the property owner sign a release of liability that acknowledges the potential for future riverbank movement and waives city liability. Commissioners asked staff whether the city can compel future maintenance to mitigate creeping bank failures; staff said maintenance would generally be at the property owner’s discretion and that major bank stabilization (for example, sheet piling) can be cost prohibitive for private owners.

Public comment and precedent Staff noted a recent similar variance to the north with a smaller encroachment and said the commission has reviewed other variances along the Cheyenne River corridor. The Southeast Cass Water Resource District’s technical comments remain part of the record; staff and the city engineer discussed those comments with district representatives prior to the meeting.

Vote and next steps A motion to approve the variance as presented, conditioned on city-engineer concurrence and the homeowner’s signed release, passed on the commission’s vote; the chair noted one negative vote by Commissioner Dodds. Staff will require the release of liability to be executed before final approvals related to the pool construction.

Less urgent detail: Staff noted the Fargo-Moorhead diversion project is expected to normalize Cheyenne River flows over time, which could affect long-term bank stability, but neither staff nor the geotechnical report could predict the timing of potential sloughing.