Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Use topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning board grants dimensional variance for accessory structure at subdivided 287 Gibbs
Summary
The board granted requested variances and a category-6 special use permit tied to a subdivision of 287 Gibbs after hearing that a brick oven/patio sits 0.5 feet from the new lot line; the board noted recent city ordinance changes on patio lot-coverage treatment helped the applicant's case and approved the petition subject to prior conditions.
The planning board adopted the staff findings and legal conclusions and granted the petition for variances and a category-6 special use permit tied to the subdivision at 287 Gibbs.
Tanner Jackson, attorney for the applicants, told the board that when the development was surveyed the accessory brick oven shown on earlier plans as 6.5 feet off the proposed line was measured in the field to be 0.5 foot from the boundary. "When our surveyors went out to set the actual points in the ground, it was obviously very obvious that the patio was 6.5 feet off from where it should have been," Jackson said; he added the field survey shows the accessory structure is about "0.5 a foot" from the property line.
Neil Hangerani of Narragansett Engineering said the corrected field locations are now accurate and that the proposed lot configuration and utilities will not change. Counsel also noted a recent city council ordinance change (approved 09/25/2024, per the transcript) that excludes patios under 32 inches from lot-coverage calculations. Jackson asked the board to adopt the previously submitted 21.9% lot-coverage figure so the applicants would not need additional relief; he said once the sub-32-inch patio is excluded the lot coverage would be roughly 18.6%.
Board members reviewed the four dimensional-variance standards and the special-use criteria, discussed hardship tied to lot topography and existing parking, and confirmed there would be no increase in stormwater runoff or added lighting associated with the accessory features. The board moved, seconded and adopted the staff findings, concluding the petitioners met the required standards; the decision was recorded by voice vote ('Aye'). The approval is subject to the original conditions of planning-board approval and the planning department will record the modifications.
