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Resident urges NDOT and council involvement after BZA fence setback variance could obstruct bike lane
Summary
A resident told BPAC she is contesting a Board of Zoning Appeals appeal that would allow a fence built beyond its setback near a preschool on 12 South, saying the fence intrudes on visibility and the bike lane; she asked NDOT and the commission to review the variance and urged contacting Councilmember Cash and MDOT director Diana Alarcon.
A resident, Marybeth Snodgrass, addressed the commission during public comment to raise concern about a Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) appeal to allow a fence that she said extends six feet beyond the required setback adjacent to an arterial boulevard with a bike lane.
Snodgrass said the fence, already built on 12 South near a preschool, creates visibility problems for motorists who must pull partially into the bike lane to see, and that cars were observed temporarily blocking the bike lane to gain sight lines. She described a prior appeal in which she said the BZA majority granted a variance after reviewing photographs rather than visiting the intersection in vehicles, and she said she found the BZA panel composition heavily weighted by real estate and development interests without traffic or safety expertise.
She asked NDOT and commission members to check whether NDOT had been consulted on the variance and to notify Councilmember Cash and MDOT director Diana Alarcon; she said a BZA hearing was scheduled in November and warned that the variance, if approved, would be permanent and could render the bike lane unusable at that location.
Commission staff said they would investigate whether the planning/codes department or NDOT had been involved in prior reviews and would follow up with the speaker.
