Board approves variance for funicular track at Crystal Bay property despite neighbor objections

The Washoe County Board of Adjustment voted 4-1 on March 5 to approve a variance permitting installation of a funicular track and cart at 552 Ganowabi Road in Crystal Bay.

Planner Julio Lander told the board the applicant seeks to reduce the side-yard setback from eight feet to 1 foot 5 in to install a track running from the garage down to the shoreline. Lander said portions of the proposed track would exceed 18 inches above grade and therefore be treated as a structure under county code, and that staff's review found the parcel's steep topography met statutory criteria for a variance. "The applicant has demonstrated the subject property exhibits one or more of the criteria needed to make the first findings for special circumstances as required by NRS," Lander said.

Applicant representatives said the device addresses access limitations for aging homeowners and minimizes grading. Owner David Marcott said the lift would provide safer lake access for family members; architect/representative Kelly Martinson said the project team had conducted a pre-design review with the Tahoe regional planning agency and expected TRPA to examine coverage and visual impacts if the board granted the variance. Martinson also cited manufacturer noise figures, saying the cart would produce about "45 dB" at 15 feet and a travel speed of roughly "60 feet per minute," and argued most of the track would be visually screened from the roadway.

Neighbor Steven Croll urged the board to deny the variance, saying the close spacing of houses in the area meant the track would "erase" his setback protections, intrude on privacy and reduce his enjoyment of the property. "I treasure my quiet, my privacy, which would be erased by this," Croll said during public comment.

Board members questioned the proposal's dimensions and alternatives, asked whether lights would be used (the applicant said no), and discussed prior nonconforming lot conditions along Ganowabi Street. Several members said constrained parcel geometry and slope limited viable alternatives. After discussion Rob Pierce moved to approve the variance with the conditions included in staff exhibit A; the motion was seconded by Leo Harishni and passed by a 4-1 vote.

The variance was approved with the conditions listed in the staff packet; the decision is subject to appeal following the county's appeal procedures. TRPA review and any required building permits remain separate steps in the permitting process.