La Crosse zoning board approves 2-foot setback variance for shared garage at 225 and 221 15th Street South

The La Crosse Board of Zoning Appeals voted unanimously on Nov. 17 to grant two linked variances allowing a 2-foot side-yard setback for detached garages at 225 and 221 15th Street South.

The board heard a presentation from Building and Inspections and testimony from one property owner before moving to deliberation and a motion to approve the variance covering both parcels. Board member Jim Similac moved to approve the variance and Douglas Farmer seconded; the motion passed on a unanimous roll call.

The variance request concerns Municipal Code section 115-390(c), which requires minimum rear- and side-yard setbacks for detached accessory buildings. Andy Burzynski, a Building and Inspections representative, told the board the department’s review found no unnecessary hardship and no unique property limitations and recommended denial, saying granting the variance could set an unfavorable precedent. "There is harm to the public interest if this is granted as it sets precedent to grant similar variances in the future," Burzynski said.

Todd Mandel, one of the applicants and a property owner at 225 15th Street South, described the existing garage as in poor condition, built on the rear lot line with the property line running through the middle of the structure, and said rebuilding in the shared configuration would be safer. "Our current plan is to take it 2 feet off the back line, but to keep the midline of the lot right through the middle of the garage," Mandel said, and he noted the replacement would include a firewall that the current garage lacks.

During deliberations board members debated the three legal factors for a variance: unique property limitations, unnecessary hardship and public interest. Douglas Farmer and others cited other shared garages in older city blocks and neighborhood lot patterns that lack a mid-block alley. Similac and another member said the shared driveway and existing shared structure create a unique physical situation and that replacing the existing building with a safer structure satisfies the hardship and public-interest tests.

The chair announced the board approved the waiver for both properties and reminded the applicants that, if a variance is granted, construction must commence within 180 days of the board’s decision. The meeting adjourned after the vote.

What happens next: The board’s decision is final unless appealed to the La Crosse County circuit courts; the record indicates applicants must file any such appeal within 30 days, per the chair’s instructions at the hearing.