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Alpine County planning commissioners approve driveway-encroachment variance for 88 Pioneer Trail
Summary
The Alpine County Planning Commission unanimously approved a variance allowing a driveway encroachment and installation of a manufactured home at 88 Pioneer Trail after staff and the county-contracted engineer reviewed a water-drop analysis and found runoff could be directed to a roadside ditch; the project was listed as categorically exempt under CEQA Class 5.
On May 28, 2026, the Alpine County Planning Commission voted unanimously to approve a variance for 88 Pioneer Trail that allows a driveway encroachment and the siting of a manufactured home on the property (file 2026-033).
Alexa Burke, a planner with Alpine County, presented the application on behalf of property owner Todd Snyder and described packet attachments, including a water-drop analysis by Wilson Engineers and a follow-up review by the county’s contracted engineer, Loomis. "This is a variance for 88 Pioneer Trail project file number 2026033," Burke said. She told the commission that Loomis engineer Presley Cochran reviewed the analysis and "determined that the storm runoff and sediment from the unpaved portion of the driveway will be directed into the roadside drainage ditch rather than into the county right of way." Burke also told commissioners the project "is categorically exempt from CEQA, class 5."
The variance request seeks relief from the Alpine County development standard that requires a negative 2% to 5% slope at the edge of pavement intended to slow and redirect stormwater. Commissioners raised practical concerns about whether the steep driveway—including a portion described in the packet as roughly a 13% grade—would produce flow velocities that could overwhelm proposed drainage measures. "What did the water drop test cost?" the chair asked. Staff and engineers explained the analysis was requested because the driveway’s steep grade and alignment could create high-velocity runoff, and the modeling showed runoff could be captured by the proposed on-site drainage and routed to the roadside ditch rather than across Pioneer Trail.
Commissioner Mark Leagle moved to approve the variance and to find a notice of exemption under CEQA; Donnie seconded the motion. The clerk called the roll and commissioners recorded ayes; the chair confirmed that the motion passed unanimously.
No members of the public were present to comment on the item, and staff said the record includes the attachments referenced in Burke’s presentation, including the water-drop analysis and Loomis’s review. The commission took no further action on conditions beyond those discussed in the report.
