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Board denies variance to allow two houses on 1.754-acre Amboy parcel
Summary
A request to allow two residential dwellings on 1.754 acres at 13114 S 500 E in Harrison Township (VAR #139-26) was denied March 11 after board members split on several required findings; the applicant said his daughter and son-in-law would occupy the additional unit and offered to install separate well and septic.
The Miami County Board of Zoning Appeals denied VAR #139-26 on March 11, 2026, a request from Matthew Bahrenburg to allow two dwellings on a 1.754-acre A-1 parcel at 13114 S 500 E in Harrison Township.
Bahrenburg told the board his daughter and son-in-law would occupy the additional dwelling and said the family jointly owns nearly ten acres; he explained the adjacent parcel has more trees and would take more work to clear. “More trees are on the other parcel would require a lot more work to clear the land,” he said, and added he would be willing to install a different well and septic if required. Board member BJ Hunt said the health department would likely require a new septic system given the number of bedrooms across the two dwellings. Sue Ellen Sopher asked whether setbacks could be met; Bahrenburg said they could.
Two residents, Tori Pindell and Susan Gamester-Stoner, voiced support for the variance. Board discussion included whether alternative sanitation options (for example, an incinerating toilet) might apply; BJ Hunt deferred that question to the health department. Attorney Mark Frantz tallied votes on the five required findings; the board recorded the following: Finding 1 — 5 agree, 0 disagree; Finding 2 — 3 agree, 2 disagree; Finding 3 — 4 agree, 1 disagree; Finding 4 — 1 agree, 4 disagree; Finding 5 — 3 agree, 2 disagree. The variance failed based on those findings.
Following the denial, Bahrenburg later withdrew a related request (VAR #143-26) for a single dwelling on the same lot. The board did not record any further direction to staff beyond noting health-department requirements and standard setback compliance.
