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Board rejects pool setback variance at Tradewinds Drive; members cite lack of clear hardship
Summary
A request to reduce the rear setback from 15 to 5 feet at 210 Tradewinds Drive to accommodate a pool was denied by the Walton County Zoning Board of Adjustments after members questioned whether lack of a pool constituted legal hardship and due to stacked forestry and county setback protections.
The Walton County Zoning Board of Adjustments on June 25 denied a request by Shelley Glaze to reduce the county rear setback from 15 feet to 5 feet for a lot that borders Florida State Forestry at 210 Tradewinds Drive.
Shelley Glaze said the reduction was needed so her family could build a pool and a small ADU, calling the limit a constraint that prevents reasonable use of the parcel as their retirement home. "The hardship is just not being able to use our land," Glaze said. Staff explained the county comp plan requires a separate 10-foot forestry buffer adjacent to state forest land; that 10-foot buffer stacks with the county's 15-foot rear setback, effectively creating a 25-foot protection zone in practice.
Board members asked whether a desire for a pool constitutes a legal hardship under the variance standards and whether alternative designs could preserve both parking and recreational space. With no substantial neighborhood opposition noted on the record, members still expressed concern that the applicant had options to redesign the pool and accessory buildings to meet setbacks and stormwater/ISR requirements. A motion to approve the variance as submitted failed on a recorded vote; staff reminded applicants they had 30 days after the final order to appeal.
