Board allows new house to encroach into street and impervious setbacks after staff condition recommendations

Sandy Springs planning staff recommended approval of variance V25-43 on Nov. 5 for a proposed new home at 50 Mountain Creek Trace, and the Board of Appeals voted to approve the request with conditions.

Planning Manager Michelle McIntosh Ross told the board the 1.7-acre lot is a legal lot of record platted in 1980 and is largely encumbered by stream buffers and steep topography. Staff concluded that strict adherence to current buffer and setback requirements would force construction to the opposite side of the stream, which staff judged more intrusive because it would require a stream crossing and more tree removal.

Staff recommended limiting encroachments so they would not exceed 25 feet into the primary street setback or the impervious surface setback, and requiring a stormwater mitigation plan prepared by a registered design professional at permitting.

Builder Edward Levin, who said he developed the street in the early 1980s, and other supporters argued the staff proposal was reasonable and less intrusive than alternatives. Opposing testimony from land planner Helen Tapp stressed Metropolitan River Protection Act protections and urged caution, saying cumulative buffer waivers can cause gradual environmental degradation.

After deliberation the board approved V25-43 with conditions: the applicants must submit a stormwater mitigation plan at permitting, encroachment into the primary street setback is limited to 25 feet and encroachment into the impervious surface setback is limited to 25 feet. The board noted that crossing the stream would be allowable without a variance but could be more damaging to riparian buffers.