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Council approves homeowner variance to place backup generator 40 inches inside rear-yard limit
Summary
The council unanimously granted a variance allowing a home generator at 255 1st Avenue North to encroach about 40 inches into the 25-foot rear-yard minimum, subject to conditions including landscaping, fencing, and noise mitigation; petitioner cited hurricane-related outages and site constraints.
Council approved a resolution granting petition 25-V-6 to allow a home generator to be sited 21.25 feet from the rear property line (short roughly 40 inches of the 25-foot requirement) at 255 1st Avenue North.
Petitioner Stacy Vermillan described neighborhood power outages, a transformer near the rear of her home and limited siting options that would avoid removing mature landscaping. "This area is shrouded by hedges and trees on all sides," Vermillan said, arguing the proposed location faces an alley and is shielded from view. She said neighbors had submitted letters of support and that the unit would be shielded and muffled with plantings and fencing.
Planner Tashima Lewis reviewed the variance criteria, noting that Planning Advisory Board (PAB) recommended approval with three conditions, including full screening and measures to mitigate noise. Lewis said staff found that most thresholds were met but flagged some criteria where petitioners had not fully demonstrated literal hardship; the recommended approval included conditions requiring full screening and recorded limits on future encroachment.
Councilmember Kramer moved to approve the resolution with the three conditions described by staff; the motion was seconded and carried unanimously.
The variance approval requires the generator to be fully shielded by plant material or fencing, limits any future expansion beyond the approved encroachment, and obliges the petitioners to install noise-mitigation measures recommended by the PAB. The council also directed staff to pursue a future workshop on generator standards citywide.
