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Staff: 2017 interpretation allows limited chimney clearance above height cap; Shoreland restricts elevator exemptions
Summary
City staff told the board a 2017 zoning-administrator interpretation permits chimneys to exceed 33 feet only by the minimum needed to meet building-code separation, but staff said elevator exemptions that apply elsewhere do not automatically apply in the Shoreland Overlay.
During the staff presentation Miles Campbell reviewed relevant code language and prior interpretations that shaped the review of the Lake Harriet variance. Campbell told the board that building-code requirements for chimneys sometimes require additional clearance above a structure, and he cited a 2017 zoning-administrator interpretation permitting limited chimney height above the 33-foot cap where necessary to meet building-code separation.
Campbell explained that the zoning code treats gable and flat roofs differently (gabled peaks are allowed at 33 feet while flat roofs are typically capped at 28 feet) and that exemptions for stairs, elevators and rooftop mechanicals that apply in some districts (e.g., up to 10 feet above the roof under certain area limits) do not automatically apply in the Shoreland Overlay because the overlay is intended to preserve views and constrain massing. "That 2017 interpretation said that a chimney is permitted to go above 33 feet in height where it is only, exceeding that amount by the absolute minimum to meet building code," Campbell said, explaining the narrow scope of the earlier interpretation.
The staff explanation framed why the applicant sought a variance rather than relying on by-right exemptions and helped inform the board’s consideration of the required variance findings.
