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Howells win variance to install six-foot fence at Christman Drive home
Summary
The Green Board of Zoning Appeals approved a variance allowing Matthew and Laura Howell to install a six-foot wooden fence forward of the garage/carport at 4788 Christman Drive, overriding the three-foot front-yard limit, citing safety for two large dogs and a busy nearby road. The motion passed unanimously.
The Green Board of Zoning Appeals on July 18 approved a variance to allow Matthew and Laura Howell to install a six-foot wooden fence at 4788 Christman Drive, where the city code permits a maximum front-yard fence height of three feet.
The Howells asked the board for a three-foot fence-height variance to permit the fence to extend to the front face of the house and to the attached carport. "We would like to do a 6 foot wood fence around the perimeter of our property," Matthew Howell said, adding that the couple has "two very large dogs" and that one dog "has cleared a 4 foot fence before." The property fronts a busy thoroughfare, the applicants said, which informed their request for additional height.
Board members reviewed the applicants' photo materials and discussed a technicality: the carport is treated as the front facade of the house under the city's ordinance, which made the proposed fence location inconsistent with the three-foot limit. A board member noted the applicants had installed the fence posts on the inside (the "good neighbor" orientation) and that moving existing retaining walls would be undesirable.
Board member Schultz moved to approve the variance "as requested" to allow the six-foot fencing past the east wall of the garage to the attached carport; the motion was seconded and carried by voice roll call, recorded as a unanimous vote in favor. The chair closed the matter by wishing the applicants luck with the project.
Why it matters: The decision permits a taller front-yard fence than the code otherwise allows, a change neighbors and zoning staff may now rely on in considering similar site constraints. The variance referenced Green codified ordinance chapter 157 (planning and development code), specifically section 157.0875(c), which governs front-yard fencing standards.
The board did not attach additional conditions beyond those on the record. The applicants may proceed with permitting and installation under the terms approved by the board.
