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St. Joseph County board approves variances for Hawthorne Road house addition, 5–0
Summary
The St. Joseph County Area Board of Zoning Appeals approved two variances for an addition at 61069 Hawthorne Road despite a staff recommendation to deny; the board cited practical difficulty and voted 5–0 to grant the variances and later approved findings of fact.
The St. Joseph County Area Board of Zoning Appeals on Nov. 12, 2025 voted 5–0 to grant two variances allowing an addition at 61069 Hawthorne Road after hearing staff analysis, testimony from the petitioner and a neighbor, and board discussion.
Fariel Sharif of the Area Plan Commission told the board the 0.71-acre property contains a home built in the 1940s and that staff recommended denial mainly under "criteria 3" (practical difficulty), saying alternatives—including an addition at the rear or to the south or treating adjacent farm field as common ownership—might avoid the need for variances. "Staff does recommend denial mainly on criteria number 3," Sharif said.
Petitioner David Bueter, who said he is seeking to purchase the family property and would not complete the purchase unless the variance is approved, described constraints he said make other options infeasible. "I won't purchase it unless this goes…
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