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Franklin City board approves variance letting house and deck encroach into rear setback at 129 Thompson Alley
Summary
The Franklin City Board of Zoning Appeals on June 4 approved a variance allowing a new single-family house and rear deck at 129 Thompson Alley to encroach up to 20 feet into the 40-foot rear-yard setback after staff found unique site constraints, including an MTE easement and a substandard lot size.
The Franklin City Board of Zoning Appeals approved a variance on June 4 allowing a proposed single-family house and rear deck at 129 Thompson Alley to encroach up to 20 feet into the 40-foot rear-yard setback.
Staff told the board the property is zoned R2 and lies within the flood fringe overlay and the central Franklin overlay. Staff said an overhead transmission easement owned by Middle Tennessee Electric (MTE) covers much of the front of the lot and limits buildable area. Staff also said the lot is 12,829 square feet, smaller than the 15,000-square-foot minimum for R2 lots, and that those constraints justified the variance. "Staff recommends that the board of zoning appeals move to approve the variance request to allow the principal building and rear deck to encroach up to 20 ft into the 40ft rear setback for the property located at 129 Thompson Alley," staff stated.
According to the staff presentation, the proposed house would encroach about 5.5 feet into the rear setback and the rear deck about 14.3 feet; when measured together the encroachment reaches up to 20 feet. Staff concluded the three criteria for a variance were met: the site has a unique hardship from the MTE easement and substandard lot size; strict application of the ordinance would require a substantially smaller house; and the proposal would not harm the public good, in part because a vacant lot and railroad tracks lie behind the property.
Board member Smith moved to approve the variance, saying the staff analysis supported the request; Board member Fleshower seconded the motion. During discussion, Board member Beams questioned whether reorienting the house could avoid the encroachment. Applicant Ben McCraary of Chisel Workshop replied that reorienting the dwelling to the prior skew would not reduce the encroachment and explained the design choice to align the house with Thompson Alley. He said the front porch depth is "roughly 7 foot 3".
The board voted unanimously in favor: Board member Beams, Board member Langley, Board member Smith and Board member Fleshower each voted to approve; Board member Scales was recorded as absent. The motion carried and the variance was approved.
There was no public comment on the item. After the vote the board moved to adjourn.
