Board of Adjustments approves rear-yard setback variance at 608 15th Avenue South

The Jacksonville Beach Board of Adjustments approved a variance to reduce the rear-yard setback to 20 feet from the 30-foot minimum for the property at 608 Fifteenth Avenue South, allowing the homeowner to extend the rear of the dwelling to add a master bedroom.

The variance was approved after the board heard testimony from the applicant and a nearby neighbor and found the request met the standards for a variance under the Jacksonville Beach land development code. The approval was made by roll call and recorded as affirmative votes by John Moreland, Matt Metz, Douglas Dow and Owen Curley.

Applicant Laurie Dugan testified she owns the preexisting, nonconforming lot—about 6,200 square feet—and said her existing house is a two-bedroom, two-bath home. She said she uses a bedroom as a home office and that her son recently moved back home while returning to school. “I need another bedroom,” Dugan said, describing the requested addition as the least costly and least invasive way to provide another bedroom. She said the proposed rear addition would include no windows on the rear elevation and that side-facing windows would face neighboring yards separated by street or fences.

During public comment, Bonnie Hoyle of 531 Sixteenth Avenue South opposed the request citing drainage problems on Sixteenth Avenue South and Sixth Street. Hoyle asked where runoff from the addition would go if the lot is built out. She also noted privacy concerns but said Dugan told her there would be no south-side windows.

Board members discussed lot characteristics and public infrastructure. A board member pointed out a 10-foot easement at the rear of the lot and described the property as a corner lot with existing nonconformities that limit options for expansion. Board members said drainage and lot coverage limits are enforced through the building department and relevant code provisions (discussed as part of the permitting and inspection process) rather than by the variance itself. The board concluded the requested setback reduction was modest in the context of the lot’s constraints and consistent with staff recommendation.

The motion to approve BOA25-100080 was made during the hearing and passed on the recorded roll call of board members. No amendment was recorded and no formal conditions were added to the approval in the hearing record.

The board then called the next case.