Oconee County board grants Lake Cherokee homeowner a floodplain variance

The Oconee County Board of Zoning Appeals voted unanimously Dec. 17 to grant Variance VA 25000019, allowing a property owner on Lake Cherokee to construct an addition within the mapped floodplain.

David Irvin, who identified himself as the property owner of 331 Time Out Place, told the board he has owned the house more than 40 years and that the structure ‘‘has never been flooded’’ during his ownership. He told the panel the project would make the house single-level and handicap-accessible, adding a bedroom, master suite, kitchen and a rear porch.

The board proceeded to review the ordinance factors in Chapter 16, including danger to life and property, access for emergency vehicles, the availability of alternate locations and the structure’s susceptibility to flood damage. A staff member warned the board that, according to FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program guidance, ‘‘a variance granted for the floodplain management purposes can result in a project that does not meet the minimum standards of the NFIP’’ and that such variances ‘‘should be granted only rarely.’'

Board members discussed local history and technical context. One member, who identified himself as a dam inspector with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, said Lake Cherokee’s spillway had been widened after prior storms and that, in his view, the lake’s spillway makes overtopping unlikely except in an extreme event. Members also noted that several neighboring houses were similarly located and that map redrawings had placed more properties into the mapped floodplain than had historically flooded.

The panel took the four determinations required by the county ordinance for a floodplain variance. The board found extraordinary or exceptional conditions pertaining to the property, that those conditions were generally not applicable to other nearby properties, and that strict application of the ordinance would unreasonably restrict the property’s use. After discussion and a brief attempt by the chairman to propose an amendment making approval contingent on a county hold-harmless agreement and mandatory flood insurance, the amendment received no motion and was not adopted.

A final motion to approve the variance passed with the board’s approval recorded as unanimous. The board did not record individual roll-call votes in the public proceeding.

The applicant thanked the board at the close of the meeting. No additional conditions beyond those listed in the ordinance were included in the board’s announcement of approval.