Rangeley zoning board grants 5-foot setback variance for garage at 32 High Street

The Rangeley Zoning Board of Appeals voted to grant a setback variance for a new garage at 32 High Street, the board said, allowing the structure to sit 5 feet from the property line instead of the existing 3.5 feet. The decision was made after the applicant described a plan to remove and rebuild a garage on a new foundation and presented a signed letter of consent from an adjacent neighbor and the Church of the Good Shepherd.

Board members reviewed the five statutory criteria in Chapter 38 of the Rangeley Town Code. Members said the property’s lot configuration and the fact the old garage was a preexisting nonconforming structure supported a finding that the hardship was unique to the parcel and not the result of actions by the current applicant. “We’re going from 3 and a half feet to 5 feet,” one board member said while noting the change increases, rather than decreases, the setback.

Code-related issues came up during discussion. A staff speaker noted differences between the 2015 and 2021 codes and said the new garage would need one-hour firewall construction where adjacent to other buildings and must meet building-permit requirements. The applicant (S4) told the board the living quarters above the garage would be a long-term rental and acknowledged ADU rules limiting short-term rentals.

The board moved through the required findings — authority, reasonable return to the land, uniqueness of hardship, effect on neighborhood character, and public-interest considerations — and voted by voice to grant the variance. The board recorded that the approval is subject to issuance of a building permit and any code-enforcement requirements. The applicants were advised to coordinate with code enforcement on permit details; appeals to the building-permit determination were noted as the next available recourse.

The board’s action resolves the zoning question; building and safety compliance will be addressed during the permit review.