Clayton zoning board approves variance for large accessory structure at 5186 Phillipsburg Union Road

The Clayton Board of Zoning Appeals voted to approve application VAR2601 at its Feb. 3 meeting, allowing property owners Neil and Beth Langenkamp to replace an existing accessory building with a new structure measuring up to 1,920 square feet and approximately 16 feet at the peak. The motion to approve the variance with staff-recommended conditions passed with affirmative votes from the members present.

City planning staff told the board the application (received Jan. 12, 2026) requests relief from multiple provisions of the Clayton Codified Ordinances, including the accessory-structure height limit (typically 15 feet), the rule limiting accessory structures to no more than 1,800 square feet, and the driveway material/location standard for lots of this size. Staff recommended approval "with the following conditions," including that the new building be located in the rear yard at least 5 feet from any lot or recorded easement, no closer to the front lot line than 10 feet behind the front building line, be limited to 16 feet in height, be limited to 1,920 square feet in area, and that any installed gravel drive not be altered to further expand its nonconforming status.

Applicant Neil Langenkamp described the existing outbuilding as an older two-level horse barn that is roughly 9 feet high and said it is "incohesive" and exposed to animals, limiting its usefulness. "It just doesn't work for a lot of the stuff I have," Langenkamp said, explaining the need to accommodate larger items such as an RV. He also described minor drainage work and said no gravel drive currently exists where the new drive is proposed.

During questioning, board members asked staff to clarify whether the requested 1,920-square-foot size exceeds the code cap and how the 5% allowance for rear yards over 20,000 square feet would apply; staff replied that the 1,920-square-foot request is a variance from the 1,800-square-foot cap and explained the separate 5% provision. Staff also noted a clerical error in an earlier parcel number on meeting materials and confirmed property identifying information: 5186 Phillipsburg Union Road, Parcel M60030050034, approximately 5.006 acres. Notices to property owners within 300 feet were mailed Jan. 20, 2026, and a public notice appeared in the Eaton Register-Herald on Jan. 21, 2026.

The board orally stated and agreed to the required findings of fact for a variance (practical difficulty, uniqueness of property conditions, not self-created, minimum necessary relief, and harmony with the zoning code). The motion to approve VAR2601 with staff conditions was made, seconded and carried with recorded affirmative votes from the members present. The board did not receive public comment in opposition (the applicants were the only members of the public in attendance). The board adjourned after taking the vote.