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Herington commission advances ordinance to reduce rear-yard setback for accessory structures to 5 feet
Summary
Commission authorized an ordinance in the next sequential order to amend zoning regulations so accessory structures may be as close as 5 feet to rear setbacks in many residential zones, a change intended to reduce variance applications for small sheds; applicability by district will be clarified as text is finalized.
The Herington City Commission voted to authorize an ordinance in the next sequential order to amend Articles 6, 7 and 8 of the zoning and subdivision regulations to allow accessory structures in rear yards to be set back as close as 5 feet from the rear setback line in most residential districts.
Staff said the change aims to reduce the number of variance requests for small accessory structures (for example, backyard sheds) on small lots where prior 15‑foot setback requirements were impractical. Commissioners asked whether the change applied uniformly across R‑1 and R‑3 districts and discussed legacy, leftover language in the zoning code; staff said the only substantive change in the three identified sections is the 5‑foot setback number and that other zoning language remains unchanged.
A motion to authorize the ordinance in the next sequential order was made and seconded; the roll call recorded affirmative 'Aye' responses and no nays were recorded in the transcript. Staff will prepare ordinance text for the next sequence and publish required legal notices and maps of affected zones.
Next steps: planning staff will finalize ordinance language, confirm district applicability and publish the ordinance for public review.
