Zoning board approves variances for townhouse at 148 Church Avenue

The Columbia Borough Zoning Hearing Board voted to approve variances allowing redevelopment of 148 Church Avenue into a townhouse after the property owner told the board the lot’s size and shape make full compliance with the borough’s dimensional rules infeasible.

Jeffrey Sugden, the property owner and applicant, told the board his lot measures about 1,379 square feet while the borough table for the high-density residential district requires 2,500 square feet, and that the lot’s width is about 15 feet 6 inches compared with the 18-foot minimum. He requested reductions to minimum lot area and width, a side-yard setback reduced to roughly three feet (and a zero lot line on one side), and a reduction in required on-site parking to accommodate a single garage space integrated into the first floor. “Due to the physical circumstances and conditions of this lot, there would be no possible way to bring redevelopment by conforming to all of the listed provisions in the zoning ordinances,” Sugden said.

The board asked detailed questions about the design and impacts: Sugden said the garage entrance will face Church Avenue and that the new unit will include a UL-listed one-hour firewall between the new construction and the neighboring dwelling where required by code. He described the finished footprint as about 1,286 square feet including the garage and a backyard rain garden to address stormwater; the transcript’s reference to an exact “livable” square footage was unclear on the record.

After closing the evidentiary record, a board member moved to approve the application subject to seven solicitor-drafted conditions. Those conditions require the dwelling to be set at least three feet from the side property line, prohibit use as a short-term rental, limit occupancy to a single-family household, obligate compliance with the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code and the borough stormwater management ordinance, bind the conditions to the land and successor owners, and require that the board issue a written decision. The board approved the motion by voice vote.

The solicitor, Joselle Clary, reminded parties that the board may issue a decision the same night or take the matter under advisement and that a written decision will be issued in accordance with state law. The board said the applicant will receive the written decision once it is prepared.