Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Housing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board approves parking variance to allow increased occupancy at 402 South Albany Street
Summary
The Board of Zoning Appeals unanimously granted variance Zone 25-7 Nov. 4 to allow St. John's Community Services to increase certificate-of-occupancy use at 402 South Albany Street from nine to 11 beds, after staff confirmed existing legal parking and the board concluded the additional occupancy would not adversely affect neighborhood character.
The Ithaca City Board of Zoning Appeals voted unanimously Nov. 4 to grant variance Zone 25-7 for 402 South Albany Street, allowing St. John—s Community Services to bring two additional bedrooms into use and to increase the facility—s certified occupancy from nine to 11 beds.
Brian Coleman, New York State director for St. John—s Community Services, told the board the property operates as an OASIS-certified residence for people recovering from substance use disorder. Coleman said the facility is staffed 24 hours a day with typically one staff person on duty, that most residents walk or bike for local needs, and that in a year of operation the program had only one resident with a vehicle. "We don't have any residents currently that have vehicles," Coleman said.
Planning staff reviewed on-site parking and past variances and advised the board that the property has established rights to approximately four to five legal parking spaces (two tandem spaces, one perpendicular space at the rear and two parallel spaces), though some on-site spaces would not meet current code if newly constructed. Board members and staff discussed realistic existing parking capacity and whether applicants would face future inspection issues if interior renovations changed occupancy or configuration.
During deliberations the board applied the variance factors: whether the change would produce an undesirable change in neighborhood character (board found none), whether feasible alternatives exist (none viable given site constraints), whether the request is substantial (board found it was not), and whether the difficulty was self-created (board noted it was). The motion to grant the variance included findings that the proposed additional occupants were unlikely to increase car traffic materially and that the public interest was protected.
The board directed staff to prepare the written decision and forward it to the building division so the applicant may complete the certificate-of-occupancy update.
The variance applies to the use and parking relief discussed at the Nov. 4 hearing; any future renovation altering bedroom sizes, occupancy or parking configuration may prompt additional review.
