PLDRC approves multiple variances for single‑family properties, continues Stone Island boat‑storage case to Dec. 18

The Volusia County Planning and Land Development Regulation Commission on Nov. 20 approved a slate of variances affecting single‑family properties across the county and continued one case for redesign and additional review.

Old business V‑25‑064 sought relief from a 30‑foot northern front‑yard requirement for an 890‑square‑foot addition the applicants said would serve as an ADA‑accessible suite for the homeowner's mother. Applicant Jennifer Rollerson told the commission the design was meant to provide level, weather‑protected access from a garage entry because her mother has mobility limitations. "I'm trying not to because I know she's my mother...I need to take care of my mom, and this is the best way to do that," Rollerson said during testimony. After neighbors spoke in support, the commission approved variance 1 with the two staff conditions and changed the recorded square footage to 890; the motion carried unanimously.

On the waterfront, V‑25‑058 asked the panel to reduce a 25‑foot waterfront yard to 15 feet for a proposed inground pool and a screen enclosure. Applicant Douglas P. Burdette said he had redesigned plans after zoning staff discussion and planned an 8'x20' hydrotherapy pool; he told the commission he had earlier been told by zoning staff that a 15‑foot waterfront setback applied, then later told it was 25 feet. Zoning manager Scott Ashley clarified that the code's 8‑foot pool provision measures from the property line to the pool water's edge but that waterfront lots in R‑4 carry a 25‑foot setback. There was no public opposition; the commission approved both variances with staff‑recommended conditions.

V‑25‑066 (Daytona Beach) sought two variances related to an attached carport and driveway proximity after a prior lot‑line adjustment reduced usable side yard. Owner Elizabeth Parker said the neighbor had provided a letter of support. Staff recommended approval of the driveway variance and the applicants revised the carport design to provide a 3.5‑foot setback. The commission approved the variances with conditions.

B‑25‑069 involved three variances to establish a 50'x65' buildable pad on a 1.25‑acre A‑1 prime‑ag parcel that predates modern zoning. Staff recommended approval with three conditions, noting wetlands, 50‑foot upland buffers and floodplain constraints. Commissioners discussed broader tensions between A‑1 setback requirements and historic small parcels in the 1909 plat; the board approved the three variances with staff conditions.

At the end of the morning session the commission turned to V‑26‑001, a request to build a 984‑square‑foot boat storage building in a Stone Island PUD. Staff recommended denial; neighbor Robert Moran opposed the project citing drainage and flood concerns and visual impacts. Commissioners discussed separating the variances and permitted the applicant 30 days to review alternatives; the commission unanimously continued the case to the Dec. 18 PLDRC meeting and preserved today's public testimony in the record.

All votes recorded in the transcript were taken by voice and announced as "motion carries unanimously"; the record does not include individual roll‑call vote tallies.