Resident granted variance to site shed at 4 Easy Street

A majority of the Town of Brunswick Zoning Board of Appeals on July 20 approved an area variance allowing a resident to place a portable shed at 4 Easy Street after finding site topography and septic placement limited alternative locations.

The applicant told the board the shed would sit on the flattest portion of the lot and that the septic system and leach field are higher up the slope, so locating storage elsewhere would interfere with those systems. “It’s just a portable shed that I wanna put down, on the border of the property,” the applicant said.

Board members questioned maintenance and drainage; the applicant said there would be 12–18 inches of stone under and around the structure and landscape timbers to contain the material and provide drainage. The zoning board noted the lot is about 0.99 acres and 300 feet deep and concluded topography and lot size limit feasible alternatives.

The board summarized the dimensional request: the R-15 district requires a 15-foot side setback; the applicant sought a 1-foot setback (14 feet of relief). After deliberation, a board member moved to grant the variance and a colleague seconded; the board approved by voice vote. The chair told the applicant, “So your area variance has been granted,” and urged coordination with the building department on next steps.

The board recorded that the County planning review did not find a major county-level impact and that the project is a Type II action under the State Environmental Quality Review Act, requiring no further SEQRA determination. The applicant may proceed with permits through the building department.