La Plata board denies variance for exterior elevator at 8 Kent Avenue

Acting Chair Jay Burrus and the La Plata Board of Appeals denied variance V00001-2025 on the request to reduce the southern side-yard setback from 10 feet to 4 feet for a new exterior elevator shaft at 8 Kent Avenue.

Planner Debbie Simpson told the board that the property owner, Oakwood Associates LLC, applied to replace an interior elevator with a larger exterior shaft that would encroach into the required 10-foot side-yard setback. "Staff finds variant 00001-2025 to be a self-imposed hardship because the elevator shaft could be placed on the north or east elevation side of the building and still meet the CB zone development standards," Simpson said, adding that the parcel already exceeds the town's parking requirement (82 existing stalls vs. 34 required for the building's gross floor area).

The applicant's team, represented by attorney Lewis B. Jenkins Jr. and project planner Stacy Lagana of LDG Incorporated, argued the exterior elevator is necessary to provide ADA access and to preserve the building's security and functionality. Architect Lloyd Bowling Jr. said placing the elevator at or near the existing lobby location preserves a secure entry sequence and avoids extensive interior structural work: "If I'm in a wheelchair... the elevator needs to go where the existing elevator is or as close as we can get it so that the security of that building isn't compromised," he testified.

Board members focused on the code's variance findings, particularly whether the hardship was self-created or resulted from a physical constraint. Simpson emphasized alternatives on the north or east sides that staff had identified and said relocating the shaft would not materially violate parking requirements or the zoning ordinance. Board members and staff discussed construction sequencing and National Fire Protection Association (NFPA 101) concerns about temporarily losing a required egress during interior shaft construction.

After a closed-session consultation with counsel, the board returned to open session and the acting chair signaled he would "not approve the variance." A member seconded the motion and the board recorded votes denying the variance, finding the applicant had not demonstrated the required non-self-created hardship under section 191-54 of the La Plata zoning code.

The denial leaves the property owner with the existing interior elevator or the option to pursue alternative locations that comply with setback requirements and zoning findings. No further appeal or follow-up date was announced at the meeting's close.

What happened next: The board closed the hearing, moved to its next scheduled case, and took no further action on V00001-2025.