Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Residential Zoning topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Rock Island commission denies request to keep shipping container in rear yard at 4027 24th Street
Summary
The Planning & Zoning Commission denied Lori Kilcoyne’s request for a variance to keep an intermodal shipping container on a residential lot, citing code prohibitions, lack of unique hardship and neighborhood character concerns.
The Rock Island Planning and Zoning Commission denied a variance request that would have allowed an intermodal shipping container to remain on property at 4027 24th Street in an R‑1 residential district.
City staff (Tanner) told the commission containers of this type are not permitted in residential zoning, that standard wooden sheds provide the same utility, and that existing code violations are not a basis for a variance. Staff concluded none of the ordinance’s required conditions for a variance were met because there was no unique physical hardship and the container would alter the neighborhood’s aesthetic character.
Applicant testimony described plans to move the container to the rear yard, paint it and add a gazebo and patio. Chris Kilcoyne said the family purchased the container to convert it into usable covered space and that he would perform modifications himself. He also said they would consider a concrete footing or gravel to set the container off the ground.
Commission discussion emphasized condition 3 of the zoning test (compatibility with the surrounding residential area) and the risk of setting a precedent that would allow industrial aesthetics to spread in single‑family neighborhoods. The motion to deny carried on a roll call vote (5‑0). The denial is final for the Planning and Zoning Commission level and was recorded for the City Council record.
