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Board approves front-yard and height variances for North Ridgeville homeowner's garage
Summary
The North Ridgeville Board of Zoning and Building Appeals unanimously approved two variances for John and Jennifer Phelan to build a 32x64-foot garage in the front yard and to allow a 4-foot height variance so a motor home will fit; the board split the application into separate votes and granted both.
The North Ridgeville Board of Zoning and Building Appeals unanimously approved two variances on Dec. 16, 2025, allowing John and Jennifer Phelan to construct a 32-by-64-foot garage in the front yard of their property at 6460 Stoney Ridge Road and to exceed the zoning height limit by four feet so the structure can accommodate a motor home.
Clerk read the application (PPZ2025-0391), which requested a front-yard location for the building and a 4-foot height variance; the ordinance section cited in the application was §1294.03. The applicant, John Phelan, told the board his family wants to enclose a motor home and trailer inside a new building and described site constraints including a pond, an existing septic (leach) field and underground geothermal piping that make placing the structure farther back on the lot impractical.
"I'm John Phelan, 6460 Stoney Ridge Road here in North Ridgeville," Phelan said after being sworn in. He described the proposed structure as 32 by 64 feet and said a 14-foot garage door and a 16-foot wall are necessary for his 13-foot, 4-inch motor home. He also told the board contractor drawings list a total peak height of about "22 feet 1 inch tall," and noted the zoning height was measured differently.
Planning & Development Director Lieber explained the code classifies the building as a garage rather than an outbuilding because its primary intent is vehicle storage, and noted the zoning height for peaked roofs is measured at the midpoint. "When it's pitched, we measure at the midpoint," Lieber said, explaining why the applicant's peak height and the zoning height measurement appear different.
Board members questioned whether sewer was available in that part of Stoney Ridge and whether the existing permitted garage (built in 2001) affected lot coverage. Director Lieber said the previously permitted garage counts toward lot coverage and that the earlier structure is nonconforming but not directly before the board in this case.
The chair split the request into two separate votes. The board first voted to allow the garage in the front yard; the motion carried by unanimous roll call. The board then voted to permit a 4-foot height variance; that motion also carried unanimously. The clerk confirmed the motions "carry[ied] unanimously." The chair told Phelan he could pick up the building permit the following week.
The decisions allow construction subject to any applicable building permitting and inspection requirements; the board's action was limited to the specific variances requested.
