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Planning board approves variance for standby generator at 1724 North Lakeside Drive
Summary
The Lake Worth Beach Planning & Zoning Board approved a variance allowing a standby generator between the house and the street at 1724 North Lakeside Drive with conditions including screening and a 65-decibel noise limit; staff had recommended denial after finding the application met only 1 of 4 variance criteria.
The Lake Worth Beach Planning & Zoning Board voted to approve a variance to allow a standby generator between the principal structure and the right of way at 1724 North Lakeside Drive.
Corina Campos, senior community planner for the Department of Community Sustainability, told the board that staff’s analysis found the project met only one of the four variance criteria and therefore staff recommended denial. Campos summarized technical constraints, including NFPA 37 clearances ("the generator must be at least 5 feet from operable windows and doors, must have an 18 inch clearance from existing walls, and must have a minimum setback of 3 feet from fencing and landscaping") and noted pending FEMA flood-map changes with a Dec. 20, 2024 effective date that would increase pad-elevation requirements if those maps were used.
Wes Blackman, a certified urban planner with CWB Associates representing the applicant, argued the lot’s unusual depth and narrow width create a special circumstance and presented three neighbor letters supporting the front-yard location. "We have letters from our adjacent neighbors saying that they're okay and prefer the front location to the west," Blackman said, adding the front placement is the minimum change that makes reasonable use of the property in storm resilience scenarios.
The building official told the board that, from a code and fire-safety perspective, both the staff-preferred southeast location and the applicant’s proposed front/side location could meet NFPA 37 clearance standards. "I didn't see anything wrong with the location where it was at. You had plenty of clearance," the building official said.
After extended legal and policy discussion over whether sections 23.4-16 (mechanical systems) and 23.4-17 (generators) should be read together or separately, and whether the application met the variance prongs (special circumstance; deprivation of reasonable use; minimum relief; spirit of the code), a committee member moved to approve the variance, including conditions. The board required vegetation screening and a decibel limit for operation (included in the conditions) and the motion passed. The chair announced the vote passed; staff will finalize permit and condition language.
The board’s approval does not remove the building-permit review or the need to meet federal, county, or state rules; it authorizes the local land-use variance with the stated conditions.
