Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Residential Variance topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Bernards Township board approves patio, pergola and shed setback variances for Kramer home with drainage and pervious-paver conditions
Summary
The Zoning Board approved two variances allowing Andrea and John Kramer to replace a deck with a patio and install a pergola and to leave an existing shed nearer the rear property line, contingent on stormwater mitigation, specified landscaping and either 500 sq ft of pervious pavers or removal of 500 sq ft of impervious surface.
The Bernards Township Zoning Board of Adjustment approved two bulk variances for Andrea and John Kramer of 1 Deer Creek Drive to replace an existing deck with a patio and to retain a shed inside the rear-yard setback.
The board granted a variance to allow a proposed lot coverage of about 19.8% where 15% is the maximum permitted and approved a rear-yard setback variance for the existing shed, subject to multiple conditions including compliance with memos from board professionals and the Environmental Commission.
The Kramers told the board they have lived in Basking Ridge for eight years and want to replace a small deck with a larger patio and a pergola so their family can use the outdoor space safely. "We are respectfully requesting a variance to remove the existing deck and install a patio at the rear of our home," Andrea Kramer said, describing plans for a shaded pergola and new landscaping.
Architect Tina Vasca, accepted by the board as an expert in architecture, described the proposal as roughly a 16-by-20 pergola with an adjacent patio and said the patio would wrap around the rear of the house without removing mature trees. Vasca said gutters on the pergola would be directed to the nearest drainage and that the louvers are adjustable; she stressed the pergola would never be enclosed.
Board professionals raised standard concerns about drainage, topography and coverage calculations. Board engineer Mr. Quinn told the applicants that the submission showed a net increase of about 583 square feet in impervious area and recommended mitigation; the Environmental Commission suggested stormwater best-management practices and protections for existing trees. The board discussed options including permeable pavers, partial removal of driveway area, or other mitigation that would reduce runoff.
As part of the approval, the board required that a minimum of 500 square feet of the final proposed lot coverage be constructed of pervious pavers or that the applicants remove 500 square feet of existing impervious surface elsewhere on the property; the board also required improved landscaping along the southerly property line to fill a gap noted in the record and compliance with the recommendations in the professionals' memoranda.
A motion to deem the application complete and direct the board attorney to draft a resolution memorializing the two variances passed with board members voting in favor (recorded affirmations during roll call). The chair encouraged the applicants to follow the conditions closely: "You're approved. Congratulations," a board member said.
The board’s action is administrative and includes requirements on stormwater mitigation and plan revisions; no DEP approvals were cited as granted during the meeting. The applicants and the board’s professionals agreed that final engineering details, topography and any DEP requirements would be resolved during permit review and by conditions in the board’s resolution.
The board closed public testimony on the application and asked staff to incorporate the professionals’ requested plan revisions and conditions into the resolution for formal memorialization.
