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Board OKs variance to enlarge accessory garage at 1196 Willard Avenue
Summary
The Grandview Heights Board of Zoning Appeals approved a variance allowing an accessory garage at 1196 Willard Ave to increase from 628 sq ft to 736 sq ft to accommodate a large vehicle and a woodworking area; staff will verify survey and lot-coverage before issuing final clearance.
The Grandview Heights Board of Zoning Appeals voted to approve a variance for 1196 Willard Avenue on Sept. 11, 2025, allowing the property’s accessory structure to increase from 628 square feet to 736 square feet to accommodate a deeper vehicle stall and a woodworking area. The motion passed following staff presentation and board discussion.
Planning staff told the board the lot is just under 6,300 square feet and that proposed total lot coverage would be about 39.9%, under the 40% limit. Staff noted the accessory-structure limit is calculated at 50% of the principal foundation (628 square feet after a planned 96-square-foot house addition); the applicant is proposing a 736-square-foot garage, an overage of 108 square feet. Staff recommended approval, saying the site’s eight-foot grade change and the alley siting reduce the garage’s apparent massing from public view.
Applicant Brenda Parker (identified on the record as the applicant for the case) and a project representative described the project as a two-and-a-half-car detached garage with a deeper 24-foot stall to accommodate a Ford F-150, a second car bay and a half-bay for a woodworking shop. The applicant said the lot is among the larger parcels on that block and that several neighboring properties already have 2.5- to 3-car-size garages.
Board members questioned a discrepancy between architectural drawings and a site survey on the north property line. Planning staff said they would cross-check the survey and revise lot-coverage calculations prior to issuing a certificate of zoning clearance. The board also discussed whether the need for a larger garage represented a legitimate hardship or a self-created condition; some members called the truck requirement a self-made condition while others said the design and site conditions (including alley context) justified approval. One board member summarized the difference as roughly one square foot in the comparable percentage calculation.
After discussion, a board member moved to approve BZA case 10-2025 (variance under Grandview Heights planning and zoning code §11.53.02(a)), the motion was seconded and the board approved the variance. The board directed staff to verify survey dimensions and lot-coverage calculations before final administrative clearance.
Votes at the meeting recorded members answering 'yes' during the roll call on the motion. The board’s approval clears the project to proceed to building-permit review, subject to final survey confirmation and compliance with setback requirements.
