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Resident's ADU blocked by coverage thresholds; commission questions building-coverage rule
Summary
A West Chester resident's plan to add a garage accessory dwelling unit at 436 North Church triggered a debate over a sliding-scale building-coverage rule in the NC‑1 district that reduces maximum coverage from 30% to 20% at a lot-size cutoff; commissioners questioned whether maximum building coverage should remain a zoning control.
A resident's effort to add a garage accessory dwelling unit on North Church Street prompted the West Chester Planning Commission to reconsider whether maximum building-coverage thresholds remain appropriate in the borough's NC‑1 district.
Commissioners reviewed a recent case in which a homeowner sits just over a lot-size threshold that, under the NC‑1 sliding-scale rule, reduces allowable building coverage from 30 percent to 20 percent. That cutoff places the homeowner in a position — the commission said — of either subdividing, selling part of a lot, or abandoning an otherwise preservation‑sensitive infill project.
"If we have a resident who wants to build buildings appropriate for our town, why do we have that here?" a commission member asked during discussion of the NC‑1 district. Commissioners noted the applicant's house recently won a preservation award and argued a single numerical cutoff can block modest, character‑compatible additions such as ADUs and garages.
The commission asked staff to treat the North Church case as a narrow, actionable item while continuing a broader analysis of building-coverage rules across zoning districts. No formal vote or variance decision was taken during the Feb. 2 work session; the commission discussed whether short-term amendments or discretionary relief would better serve the borough's preservation goals while maintaining stormwater and impervious-coverage protections.
Next steps: staff will capture the case details and return with recommended language or options to address threshold issues, including the possibility of applying relief for preservation‑appropriate work.
