Olivette Zoning Board unanimously approves 4-foot rear-yard variance for deck at 9118 (transcript) Old Bottom Road

The Zoning Board of Adjustment of Olivette City on June 13 unanimously approved a 4-foot rear-yard setback variance to allow a homeowner to replace an existing deck at the property recorded in the hearing as 9118 Old Bottom Road.

Jack Carswell, the city’s planning and zoning administrator, told the board staff found no permitting record authorizing the existing deck and described the lot as a legal nonconforming parcel with a depth of about 118 feet (below the preferred 150-foot depth). “The rear yard setback is currently set at 24 feet. The deck goes over 4 feet,” Carswell said while reviewing surveys and permit materials on the record. He pointed to existing surveys from 2003 and 2010 that show a 12-foot deck encroaching four feet inside the required setback.

Petitioner Eddie Cherry said the original deck had deteriorated and posed safety concerns for his young children. “When we purchased the home we were not informed or aware that the existing deck was built 3 to 4 feet past the rear setback line,” Cherry said. He told the board he considered repairing the deck but that it was beyond repair and that rebuilding a smaller deck (9–10 feet deep) would function more like a balcony and not meet his family’s needs. Cherry said he seeks to replace the existing 12-by-12 deck with a 12-by-20 composite deck (about 240 square feet) within the existing footprint and had solicited neighbor input; staff filed two emails from adjacent property owners in support.

Staff reviewed the variance standard with the board, noting the Board may issue an area variance based on uniqueness, practical difficulty and the spirit of the code. Carswell flagged practical difficulty items tied to the lot’s depth and the home’s placement on a slope that affects stormwater and lower-level configuration.

Board Member Jergill moved to grant a rear-yard setback variance of no more than 4 feet for the south property line to permit replacement of the existing deck as illustrated in the plans presented to the board on June 13, 2024 (motion referencing the city code provisions cited in the hearing). Board Member Weber seconded the motion, and roll call votes recorded approval by Board Member Zobel, Board Member Weber, Board Member Jergill and Acting Chairman Ted Cicero. The motion passed unanimously.

Carswell told the Cherrys the next procedural step is completion of the permit review; staff noted some permit revisions had been requested and said they would continue processing the building-permit application and notify the owners when the permit is ready to issue.

The hearing record on file includes building permit plans, two earlier surveys, a May 1 building permit application, a Board of Adjustment application filed May 31, a public hearing notice mailed May 29 and two emailed letters of neighbor support. The board closed the public hearing and adjourned shortly after the vote.

Note on address spelling: the hearing transcript includes inconsistent spellings for the street name (appearances as “Old Donna,” “Old Bottom,” and “Old Bonham” in different segments). The board read the property in the hearing as 9118 Old Bottom Road; the applicant and staff consistently discussed the same parcel during the hearing.