Developer wins appeal over decorative rock at 1205 S. Rogers but BZA denies variances to expand stone coverage

The Bloomington Board of Zoning Appeals on March 26 granted an administrative appeal by the owner of 1205 South Rogers, concluding that the stone currently on the site meets the city’s working definition of "decorative stone." But the board simultaneously denied three variances that would have allowed the property to keep stone over areas that the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) reserves for living ground cover.

City staff had issued a notice of violation after a complaint and told the board the material on the ground was smaller than the decorative-stone standard the planning department has applied consistently: "washed" stone with individual pieces roughly 1½ to 2 inches or larger. Planning staff told the board the property’s change from the approved site plan increased impervious coverage from an approved 69 percent to about 92 percent, and staff concluded…