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Board grants retaining-wall variance for Villas at Haywood, citing hardship and timing constraints
Summary
The Board approved a variance allowing a retaining wall within the rear-yard setback for the Villas at Haywood affordable senior-housing project, finding undue hardship if the wall were moved and noting potential financing and unit-loss consequences if redesign were required.
The Buncombe County Board of Adjustment voted July 8 to grant a variance reducing the rear-yard setback from 10 feet to 6.5 feet for a retaining wall related to the Villas at Haywood affordable senior housing project at 1925 Old Haywood Road.
County staff told the board the application concerns a retaining wall that was part of an earlier, approved special-use permit for a 52-unit senior housing project. During plan review the retaining wall was discovered to exceed 10 feet in height within the setback and required a variance because it qualifies as a structure under the zoning ordinance.
Applicant Steven Drake, who identified himself as a tax-credit developer with WDT Development and Broad Craft Construction Company, told the board the site is triangular and constrained. He said relocating the wall to comply with the setback would reduce parking by seven spaces and eliminate four to five apartment units, require a redesign in excess of $100,000 and delay the project beyond a financing closing scheduled for July 31 — risks that could jeopardize tax-credit pricing and the project’s viability.
Board members discussed visibility, proximity to neighboring structures, and the fact that the retaining wall is consistent with retaining walls on adjacent properties. Several members said the site’s characteristics and the earlier board approval leaned in favor of granting a variance so the applicant would not suffer undue hardship resulting from an oversight in previous reviews.
A motion to adopt findings of fact and grant the variance (citing Buncombe County code section 78-6-21) passed by voice vote. The board directed staff to draft an order consistent with the motion; the order concluded the hardship resulted from conditions peculiar to the property and that granting the variance was consistent with the ordinance’s intent. The order was entered with an effective date of July 8, 2026.
The applicant emphasized the project’s affordable-housing purpose and the county requirement that the development comply with county stormwater and safety standards. The board’s approval included the standard conditions and noted that no additional project conditions were imposed beyond staff’s standard requirements.
Staff will prepare the formal order and any implementing paperwork needed to proceed through site-plan review and permitting.
