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Zoning board approves screening variance for Blossman Gas propane storage site
Summary
The board granted a variance allowing mounded, earth-mounted underground propane tanks to extend above an 8-foot screening fence at a planned Blossman Gas distribution site, citing safety and CPTED constraints on opaque fencing.
The Pompano Beach Zoning Board of Appeals approved a variance to the city's outdoor screening standards so a planned Blossman Gas propane storage facility may install earth-mounted tanks that will, by engineering necessity, extend above an 8-foot fence.
Staff explained that the tanks are subject to state and federal safety standards requiring installation on level surfaces and horizontal connections for distribution vehicles; as a result, portions of the proposed mounded tanks extend above grade. The Broward Sheriff's Office and city staff required transparent perimeter fencing during DRC review to preserve sightlines under Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) principles, which limits the feasibility of taller opaque walls.
Agent Dave Dixon and Blossman Gas representative David Kennedy described the engineering constraint: pumps require flooded conditions to deliver liquid propane to trucks, which necessitates the tanks' elevation. Kennedy said the tanks will be mounded and surfaced with washed stone, then screened with landscaping and an eight-foot semi-transparent metal picket fence. "You couldn't get the product back out... so the point is to get them up high enough," Kennedy explained.
The board moved and approved the variance subject to three staff-recommended conditions, and the matter advanced to any required CPTED waiver review by the development services director.
Staff noted the approved design represents an improvement in screening and site design compared with existing nearby industrial conditions, and that the variance approval does not substitute for required CPTED or other permitting approvals.
