Council denies variance request for oversized garage at 2130 Cronin Place East

Ken Roberts, the city’s community development director, presented a variance request for 2130 Cronin/Cowan Place East seeking to construct a 1,200‑square‑foot detached garage, 252 square feet larger than the city’s size limit tied to the principal dwelling. Roberts said the applicant argued the lot size and neighboring property conditions supported the larger structure, and two neighbors spoke in favor of the request at the Planning Commission public hearing on June 4.

Roberts told council that, under city code, the maximum allowed detached accessory building size is equal to the principal dwelling’s ground floor area (in this case roughly 940 sq ft) and that staff did not find the application met the variance criteria that require unique property conditions not created by the owner. “We didn’t find any special conditions or any special reasons in the code preventing them from meeting that 948 square feet,” Roberts said.

Council discussed whether the applicant could return with a smaller design that complied with the code limit and noted staff had advised that a 948‑square‑foot garage could be built without a variance. Council member Jason moved to adopt the staff recommendation and the resolution to deny the variance; the motion was seconded and the council voted in favor.

The resolution adopted denies the variance application for the oversized accessory garage at 2130 Cronin/Cowan Place East. The council invited the applicant to revise and resubmit plans that would meet the existing code size limit or otherwise demonstrate the special‑condition basis required for a variance.

The item concluded with council members urging the applicant to consider a reduced footprint so a conforming detached garage could be built without further delay.